Chakalaka

Chakalaka is a spiced vegetable relish out of Johannesburg that now turns up next to the meat at braais all over South Africa. Onion, peppers, carrot, chilli and a tin of baked beans do most of the work, which is why a big pot of it costs so little. It tastes better on the second day, so make it ahead when you can.

What you need

• 2 tbsp (30 ml) sunflower or canola oil
• 1 large onion (about 200 g), halved and thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp finely grated fresh ginger
• 1 to 2 green chillies, finely chopped (leave the seeds in for more heat)
• 1 green pepper (about 150 g), deseeded and diced
• 1 red pepper (about 150 g), deseeded and diced
• 1 tbsp Gorima's All Purpose Masala
• 1 tsp Gorima's Romborossi Sting Masala (optional, very hot)
• 1 tsp Benny Instant Stock Powder
• 3 medium carrots (about 300 g), coarsely grated
• 2 medium tomatoes (about 250 g), grated or finely chopped
• 3 tbsp All Gold Tomato Sauce
• 2 tbsp Mrs Ball's Original Recipe Chutney
• 1 x 410 g tin KOO Baked Beans in Tomato Sauce
• 60 ml water, only if the pan needs loosening
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• A small handful of fresh coriander or sliced spring onion, to finish (optional)

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan or a wide pot over medium. Cook the onion for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until it is soft with gold edges.
2. Garlic, ginger and chilli go in next. One minute is plenty, just until the smell lifts out of the pan.
3. Add both peppers and stir them about for 3 minutes. They should soften but keep some bite.
4. Scatter over the All Purpose Masala, the Sting Masala if you are using it, and the stock powder. Give it 30 seconds so the spice toasts, with a splash of water if the pan runs dry.
5. Turn the grated carrot through the spiced onion and cook for 2 minutes.
6. Now the tomato, tomato sauce and chutney. Simmer for 5 minutes, until the tomato has broken down and the pan looks glossy rather than watery.
7. Tip in the tin of baked beans, sauce and all, and fold it through gently so the beans stay whole. Add the water only if the mixture is too stiff to stir easily.
8. Leave it uncovered on low heat for 5 minutes, stirring once or twice. It is ready when a spoon dragged across the pan leaves a trail.
9. Taste before you season, because the stock powder and the beans both bring salt. Add black pepper, then salt if it still needs it, and finish with the coriander or spring onion.
10. Serve it warm, or cold from the fridge the next day.

Worth knowing

• Keep the onion over medium heat and stir it. Once it goes dark and crisp instead of soft and gold, the whole relish tastes bitter and no amount of chutney will cover it.
• If it lands hotter than you want, stir in another tablespoon of Mrs Ball's and a handful more grated carrot, then simmer for 2 minutes. Sweetness and bulk pull the chilli back faster than water does.
• Grate the carrot on the coarse holes of a box grater. Fine shreds collapse during the simmer and the relish ends up soft the whole way through.
• For more heat, swap the Sting Masala for 1 tsp of Gorima's Mother In Law Masala. Kashmiri Extra Special Masala is the softer route: medium heat with more depth behind it.
• Cool it right down before it goes into a sealed container, then keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days. Most people eat it cold next to boerewors and chops, though it is just as good warm with pap, samp or a buttered roll.