Namibia

🇦🇹Austria

Apple Strudel

Apfelstrudel

Thin pastry rolled with spiced apple filling, raisins, and breadcrumbs, traditionally stretched by hand until paper-thin, a legendary Austrian icon.

🇿🇦South Africa

Biltong

Umncweba

South Africa's most loved snack: dried, cured, and spiced meat (beef, game, or ostrich) with coriander and salt

🇿🇦Cape Town, South Africa

Bobotie

South Africa's national dish: spiced minced meat baked with raisins, almonds, and curry, topped with an egg custard. A Cape Malay classic, sweet-savory and aromatic, served with yellow rice and sambal, a national icon.

🇿🇦South Africa

Boerewors

South Africa's traditional farmer's sausage of beef (90%+ meat) with coriander, cloves, and nutmeg, coiled and braaied. A national and braai staple, juicy and aromatic, a cultural icon, served in a roll or with pap, a cornerstone.

🇿🇦South Africa

Boerewors Roll (Boerie Roll)

Boerewors rol

A braaied boerewors in a hotdog roll with caramelized onions, tomato sauce, or chutney. A street and braai staple, juicy and savory, a national and school fete classic, a quick and beloved snack, a South African icon.

🇿🇦South Africa

Braai

The centrepiece meal of a South African wood-fire gathering: platters of boerewors, lamb chops, steaks and chicken grilled over coals and eaten off the fire with pap, chakalaka and garlic bread

🇿🇦South Africa

Braaibroodjie

A South African braaied sandwich of cheese, tomato, and onion, toasted on the coals. A braai staple, crispy and gooey, a national and comfort classic, a braai side and snack, a beloved and simple treat, a grilled sandwich.

🇿🇦Durban, South Africa

Bunny Chow

A Durban specialty: a hollowed-out loaf of white bread filled with curry (lamb, chicken, or bean). An Indian South African street food, hearty and spicy, a national icon, eaten with the hands, a Durban classic.

🇿🇦South Africa

Chakalaka

A South African spicy vegetable relish of onions, tomatoes, carrots, beans, garlic, and chili, served with pap or bread. A national and township staple, spicy and savory, a braai and comfort companion

🇳🇦Namibia

Dried Meat

Oodhingu

Namibian dried meat — strips of beef or game air-dried in the sun, a preservation method predating biltong; the indigenous precursor to the more spiced biltong.

🇳🇦Namibia

Dried Wild Spinach

Omboga

Dried wild spinach — a traditional Namibian vegetable, gathered wild and dried for storage, then rehydrated and cooked with onions and tomatoes; served with pap.

🇳🇦Namibia

Ekaka

Wild spinach gathered in northern Namibia — similar to omboga, cooked with onions and tomatoes, served with pap; one of several wild-foraged greens in the Owambo diet.

🇳🇦Namibia

Epwaka

Traditional Owambo spinach dish — wild greens cooked with palm oil or butter, seasoned and served with pap; a daily vegetable accompaniment in northern Namibia.

🇳🇦Namibia

Goat Head

Smiley

Cooked goat or sheep head — a Namibian township delicacy, boiled or steamed until tender, served whole with the teeth visible (hence the name 'smiley'); eaten with pap or bread.

🇳🇦Namibia

Grilled Kudu

Kudu

Kudu antelope grilled over open fire — one of Namibia's most popular game meats, lean and flavourful, served at braais and restaurants across the country.

🇳🇦Namibia

Grilled Oryx

Oryx

Oryx (gemsbok) grilled or roasted — one of Namibia's iconic game meats, lean with a subtle sweetness; served at braais, steakhouses, and lodges, often as steaks or in potjiekos.

🇳🇦Namibia

Grilled Springbok

Springbok

Springbok antelope grilled or cooked into potjiekos — a lean, tender game meat that is one of Namibia's most accessible wild foods, served at braais and restaurants.

🇳🇦Namibia

Grilled Warthog

Warthog

Warthog meat grilled or cooked into potjiekos — a game meat with a pork-like flavour, served at Namibian braais and restaurants; one of the more adventurous game options.

🇳🇦Windhoek, Namibia

Kapana

Namibia's signature street food — beef cut into small pieces and grilled on a flat metal plate over open fire, seasoned with kapana spice, served with a salsa of onions, tomatoes, and vinegar, eaten with vetkoek.

🇿🇦South Africa

Koeksister

An Afrikaans sweet of plaited dough, fried golden and soaked in ice-cold sugar syrup, crispy and sticky. A national and tea-time staple, sweet and crunchy

🇿🇦South Africa

Malva Pudding

Malvapoeding

A Cape Dutch sponge pudding with apricot jam, baked and soaked in a hot cream-caramel sauce, served warm. A national and restaurant classic, sticky and sweet

🇳🇦Namibia

Marathon Chicken

Home-grown free-range chicken cooked in a stew — named for the birds that roam freely ('run a marathon') before being caught; a traditional Namibian village dish, tougher but more flavourful than commercial chicken.

🇿🇦South Africa

Marula Fruit

Marula

A South African wild fruit from the marula tree, sweet and tangy, used in Amarula and fermented drinks

🇿🇦South Africa

Melktert (Milk Tart)

Melktert

A South African custard tart with a pastry crust, creamy milk filling, and cinnamon dusting, a Dutch-origin classic. A national and bakery staple, creamy and sweet

🇿🇦South Africa

Mielie Bread

Mieliebrood

A southern African sweet corn bread baked or steamed with whole corn kernels - mieliebrood in South Africa, steamed in corn leaves as sinkwa sembila in Eswatini

🇳🇦Namibia

Mopane

Mopane worms in their dried form — the caterpillars of Gonimbrasia belina, harvested from mopane trees and dried for storage; a key protein source in northern Namibia, rehydrated and fried when needed.

🇳🇦Namibia

Mopane Worms

Omagungu

Fried mopane worms — caterpillars of Gonimbrasia belina collected from mopane trees, fried with chilies, tomatoes, and onions until crispy; a traditional Namibian delicacy and protein source.

🇿🇦South Africa

Namibian Droëwors

Droëwors

A South African dried sausage, similar to biltong but made from thin boerewors, cured with vinegar and coriander. A national and snack staple, dry and savory, a portable and protein-rich treat, a biltong companion, a beloved snack.

🇳🇦Namibia

Namibian Wiener Schnitzel

Wiener Schnitzel

German settler schnitzel adapted in Namibia — veal or beef pounded thin, breaded and fried, served with lemon; a legacy of German colonial cuisine, found on menus across Windhoek and Swakopmund.

🇳🇦Namibia

Omatangara

Beef or goat tripe steamed in a three-legged pot over open fire, seasoned with salt and spices, served with pap or omahangu — a traditional Namibian main course.

🇳🇦Namibia

Ombidi

Another variety of wild spinach from northern Namibia — gathered, dried, and cooked into a side dish with pap; part of the trio of wild greens (ekaka/omboga/ombidi) in Owambo cuisine.

🇳🇦Namibia

Oshifima

Oshithima

Namibia's staple porridge — mahangu (pearl millet) flour and cornmeal boiled in water until thick and smooth, served daily as the energy base of the Owambo diet.

🇳🇦Namibia

Oshigali

Traditional bean puree from the Oshiwambo culture of northern Namibia — white beans peeled and cooked into a smooth puree, served as a side or main with pap.

🇳🇦Namibia

Oshikundu

Traditional fermented millet drink — a lightly alcoholic, thick, creamy beverage made from mahangu (pearl millet) flour and water, fermented overnight; the everyday drink of northern Namibia.

🇳🇦Namibia

Oshikwiila

Traditional pancake made from mahangu (pearl millet) flour — a staple of the Owambo people, cooked on a griddle, eaten with relish or as a snack.

🇲🇼Malawi

Pap (Maize Meal Porridge)

Pap

South Africa's staple food: a starchy porridge of maize meal (mielie-meal), served soft or stiff with meat, gravy, or chakalaka