Ideas for a South African Themed Party
In South Africa, eating outside is almost a way of life - the barbecue (or
braai) is pretty fundamental to how they live,
and as long as we get some decent weather, we can make the most of this tradition!
South Arica Party Decorations
Decorate yourself and your room with South African shirts, flags and scarves (see links,
right, or
search for South Africa kit at Kitbag.comg(512634)a(1759159))
).
If you're serving food, search for green and yellow table covers, napkins, plates, cups and
cutlery on our general
Party Decorations Page
For bunting, flags, balloons and more
South African Party Decorations Ideas,
visit our
African Party Decorations Page
As for colour schemes, in addition to the above ideas, anything else you can find in yellow and green will help create the right atmosphere.
Food for a South Africa Themed Party
So, barbecued meat is a big part of South African cuisine, and we'll add not only recipes but also hopefully some links to retailers of authentic South African
boerwors,
biltong, etc.
But there's a lot more to South African cuisine than just barbecue. Curry-lovers will be delighted to know that curries are very popular in South Africa, especially in the Durban area,
so in a World Cup with no India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Thailand, etc, we still have an excuse for a good curry or two!
Influences on South African cooking come from Europe, the Indian sub-continent, Malaysia and of course the indigenous South African peoples. We'll try to include some examples of each,
but leave out such African delicacies as Ulusu Lwenkomo (stewed ox tripe), stewed rat and Mopane Worms. No, seriously, if you want to try these recipes, they do exist
so feel free to search for them online. This site is all about throwing a party, and we're not sure how well some of those recipes would go down with your party guests, but it's
obviously entirely up to you!
Try some of these next time the Bafana Bafana are playing (or there's another world cup match on and you can't think what else to cook!):
Starters
Butternut Soup
Main Courses
South African Barbecue Fish Parcels
South African Cape Malay Kebabs (Sosaties)
South African "Sundowners" - Barbecued Chicken Wings
Bobotie
South African Potato & Pea Curry (Muttar Batata)
South African Yellow Rice
Chakalaka - Spicy Tomato & Bean Stew
Drink for a South African Themed Party
South Africa produces some excellent wines and beers, for which it is rightly gaining a good worldwide reputation. South African white wines, especialy Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc,
make up the bulk of their production, and are loved for their light, crisp quality. Some red wine is also produced, including Shiraz, and Pinotage, a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault.
Castle Lager
is well known around the world, and generally held to be the country's "national beer".
Search for South African Wines at Tesco.com.
