The Cape is famous for its colossal sandwich – a medley of French loaf, various meats or sausages, slap chips, lettuce, tomato, and sauces. La Motte and Ilse van der Merwe have created a mash-up of two beloved South African classics: the Gatsby and the boerewors roll. This gigantic boerie, crafted Gatsby-style, is made with La Motte Bakery’s extra-long Crustique loaf and can be sliced into 4 large or 6 medium portions. While they’ve skipped the chips in this braai-inspired Gatsby, feel free to add them if you’d like!
Boerewors gatsby
Ingredients
- For the balsamic onions:
- 3 large or 4 medium onions, peeled, halved and sliced
- 1 cup white grape vinegar
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- salt & pepper, to taste
- For the roasted tomatoes:
- 400 g baby tomatoes (rosa or cherry)
- 30 ml olive oil
- 5 ml sugar
- salt & pepper
- For the gatsby:
- 500 g boerewors
- 1 La Motte Bakery Crustique loaf
- mayonnaise, for spreading
- fruit chutney, for spreading
- lettuce leaves
- finely sliced red onion
- peri-peri or prego sauce, for serving
Instructions
Prepare the onions:
In a large pot, add the sliced onions, white vinegar and water. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes uncovered, stirring now and then. Strain off the liquid, then add the balsamic vinegar and sugar, stirring. Bring to a simmer, then cook for about 30 minutes until it becomes syrupy, seasoning with salt & pepper. Remove from the heat and set aside (can be made ahead - will keep for at least 2 weeks in the refrigerator, covered).
Prepare the tomatoes:
Preheat the oven to 160 C. In a medium iron skillet or roasting pan, add the tomatoes, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with sugar and season well with salt & pepper. Give the pan a light shake to cover all over, then roast uncovered for 1 hour. Set aside (can be made up to a day ahead).
Assemble the gatsby:
Braai the wors until done but still juicy. Slice the crustique loaf open horizontally, then spread one half with mayonnaise and the other with chutney. To the bottom half, add lettuce leaves, balsamic onions, the warm wors (whole or cut into smaller portions) and top generously with the roasted tomatoes. Drizzle all over with the peri-peri sauce, then cut into portions and serve at once.
ALSO SEE: Mealie meal pizza with spicy chakalaka and boerewors meatballs
Mealie meal pizza with spicy chakalaka and boerewors meatballs
Image and recipe: Supplied
