Covid upped the contestants' game, say 'The Ultimate Braai Master' judges
Our food editor got a taste of what goes on behind the scenes of this competitive cooking show while watching the first episode of season 7 being filmed
From my hotel window at the Boardwalk Hotel in Gqeberha, I gazed at the pool deck below. Stuck in quarantine, awaiting the results of a Covid-19 test, I felt like a voyeur as I watched how the area was transformed for the arrival of the 20 contestants for the seventh season of The Ultimate Braai Master.
This was the first time the contestants would officially meet “ultimate braai master” and show originator Justin Bonello and celeb chefs Benny Masekwameng and Pete Goffe-Wood, who have been the judges on several previous seasons.
From my vantage point the excitement and nervousness were palpable, as the contestants made new friends. Hungry for any tips, they hung on every word from Bonello and the judges. The stakes were high - the total value of prizes up for grabs is R1-million.
It's a competition about cooking over the coals, yes, but more than that it tests teamwork. Working in pairs, the 10 teams were about to embark on a journey that would test their fire and cooking skills to the limit. The game was on.
Next, we were at a farm on the outskirts of Gqeberha, where the first challenge would happen. Each team was allocated a work station and a braai. They'd chosen the recipe for this challenge, and the ingredients were on hand in a well-stocked pantry.
Bonello, a master of his craft, had that signature laid-back look as he welcomed the cooks, and the countdown to the first cook-off.
The air started to fill with the mouthwatering aromas of food prepared over the coals, that evocative smokiness blended with a myriad spices. I had a sneak preview of some of the food - there was oxtail bubbling away on the braai. Would the brave move to prepare oxtail over the coals pay off?
Team Meat Rangers didn't put their best foot forward and finished preparing their meal well before the other teams. The boerewors meatballs they made with a mozzarella filling and sweet chilli sauce, though tasty, looked fairly simple compared to some of the other dishes prepared on the day.
Team Violet outdid themselves with their winning fish-head curry served with baked pumpkin and fragrant soft pap flavoured with chilli and curry leaves.
The three-course meal of the talented chef duo the Eighty8s had a restaurant feel, but would it taste as good as it looked?
It was all up to the judges, Goffe-Wood, ever the English gentleman in his signature waistcoat and hat, and the trendy, chilled Masekwameng, never without his cap, as they tasted their way through the Heritage-inspired spread.
WHAT THE JUDGES SAY ABOUT SEASON 7
GOFFE-WOOD
Consultant chef and judge on MasterChef SA for four seasons
The Ultimate Braai Master, I love it. So good to be back, this has been a really exciting season and the level of food made by the contestants was some of the best we've seen in the series. One got a sense that the contestants, as an upside to lockdowns in the last 18 months, had more time to practise and cook and have been able to challenge themselves with new ideas.
It's not an easy competition, the contestants this season had to cook in the driving rain and howling wind. They don't call Gqeberha the windy city for nothing. It is why this competition is so incredible and definitely separates the wheat from the chaff.
We got to taste some stellar food, including up to 40 dishes in the two last challenges, from a diverse group of contestants from home cooks to professional chefs. Professional doesn't mean you necessarily have the edge as in the previous six seasons professional chefs have taken top honours once.
What did stand out in this season was the camaraderie among the contestants, how they bonded from the very first day- and the genuine emotion displayed by the contestants when a team was eliminated.
When I braai at home I prefer to use wood as it imparts a wonderful smoky flavour to my favourite cuts of steak - rib-eye and bavette, the flank. I use a 50/50 mixture on my steak of extra virgin olive oil and Worcestershire sauce plus salt and pepper, seasoned before it goes on the fire.
My top braai tip is to always keep your grid clean. This business of “burning it clean” is just lazy.
MASEKWAMENG
Chef, TV personality and judge on MasterChef SA
It's great to be back on The Ultimate Braai Master. After a break of a couple of years, I've been longing for it!
Despite all the negative implications of and restrictions around the pandemic, my fellow judge Pete and I believe it has had a positive spin-off in that contestants, who have found themselves at home during lockdown, have had more time to practise dishes and we've seen how the teams all have had something up their sleeves to impress the judges. As judges we experienced better quality and better-tasting food.
The dish that stands out in the series for me was something made in the very first episode, when Team Violet, Dion Vengatass and Yuzaine Philander, prepared a fish-head curry in a potjie. It just blew me away. It was amazing, having to navigate around the head for the pockets of meat and sucking on the bones. Delicious.
When it comes to a braai at home, my family love pork and seafood. Prawns and pork belly are the favourites but then we do enjoy boerie, chops and steak - and, yes, veggies cooked over the coals.
My secret to a good braai is to have control of the fire. Learn how to manage your fire, and my motto is cook big cuts low and slow; thinner cuts, high heat and quick.
And my favourite way to braai is using wood because it adds those lovely smoky notes to food.
• Catch season 7 of 'The Ultimate Braai Master' on e-TV at 6pm on Saturdays.