September 7, 2025 — 10:00pm
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Got itThe dish: Braai, South Africa
Braai meat including boerewors sausage, lamb chops and chicken kebabs.Getty ImagesPlate up
Which country is the most obsessive about barbecues? Because it’s not Australia. When it comes to passion for singed meat, we’re middling grillers at best. The winner could be Argentina, or perhaps Brazil. It could be the US, or possibly Spain. Or, it could be South Africa. Because if you’ve ever been to South Africa or even just met a South African, you would surely know about the culture of the braai.
A braai is a barbecue but it’s also a ritual, a long afternoon of grilling meats – almost solely meats – and socialising with family and friends. Join South Africans for a braai and you will almost certainly be served boerewors, the traditional spiral-shaped sausage, and then maybe cuts of beef, lamb, chicken or pork, or skewers known as sosaties, or game meats such as kudu, warthog, ostrich or springbok (that’s right, we’re not the only country to eat its national emblem). These meats will be cooked over wood fire or charcoal, and served with bread or pap – a maizemeal porridge – Mrs Ball’s Chutney and maybe a beer or a pinotage wine.
First serve
The braai has a history as multi-faceted as any cultural staple in South Africa. While the word is Afrikaans, and comes from the Dutch “braden”, meaning roast, there have been people cooking meat over fire in what is now South Africa for millennia. When Dutch settlers arrived in the 17th century, they added their own culture of grilling meat to those of local peoples, as the British did in the 19th century, while over time Indian and Malay migrants have added their influence, culminating in the current nationwide obsession with grilling and socialising.
South African spread… Braai feast.Getty ImagesOrder there
Though a classic braai is usually had at a friend’s house (or your own), visitors to South Africa can sample excellent barbecued meats at the Grillhouse Rosebank in Johannesburg (thegrillhouse.co.za).
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Order here
For braai-style meats in Sydney, try Meat & Wine Co in the city (themeatandwineco.com). In Melbourne, head to the South African Shop to stock up (thesouthafricanshop.com.au). And in Adelaide, call in to Africola (africola.com.au).
One more thing
There’s another classic accompaniment you’ll find at many braais called monkey gland sauce, which tastes far better than it sounds. It’s made with chutney and tomato sauce, plus onions, vinegar, garlic and Worcestershire sauce.
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Ben Groundwater is a Sydney-based travel writer, columnist, broadcaster, author and occasional tour guide with more than 25 years’ experience in media, and a lifetime of experience traversing the globe. He specialises in food and wine – writing about it, as well as consuming it – and at any given moment in time Ben is probably thinking about either ramen in Tokyo, pintxos in San Sebastian, or carbonara in Rome. Follow him on Instagram @bengroundwaterConnect via email.Traveller GuidesFrom our partners