MAKING VETKOEK (FAT CAKES) - MAGWINYAS

 

Vetkoek (Afrikaans), or as I got to know it later Magwinya (Xhosa)  is a traditional and popular South African treat, made from flour, yeast, salt and sugar. The dough when ready is deep fried and becomes like a muffin with a bread taste that is enjoyed in all sorts of ways. The best way for me to enjoy a vetkoek is with only butter (salted) when it has just come out of the pan. Recently some customers here in the UK have likened the vetkoek to dumplings  and said it was just  much lighter.  Fat Cake is a literal translation for the Afrikaans word Vetkoek that is pronounced fatcook. Every home in South Africa will know Vetkoek, it is always made as a substitute to bread especially as a quick alternative when the house is without bread. Sometimes it is made from the leftover dough of loaves of bread. Even though it is fried in oil it is not very oily at all.  Anyone learning how to knead bread will tell you that the bonus of it all is when the decision is made to make a few vetkoek too! 

Vetkoek has also become a commercial fast food, some have come to call it bunny chow although bunny chow is really a hollowed out loaf of bread filled with curry.  The connection between the two being the filling with curry. When I was a self supporting student at university I had a small  company selling fast foods to earn a living.  My main business was selling Vetkoek with curry every Friday morning to a great number of regular customers, almost all the staff at the local banks and some schools.  I sometimes had to make up to 400 Vetkoek and fill them with curry and on the odd occasion had to provide a vegetarian alternative for a few customers who did not want to miss out on the Vetkoek.

Vetkoek and Mince Curry

My Vetkoek are made using either Plain or Strong flour. In South Africa I had to stock loads of ingredients because at times I would be asked to provide more even though I had sold out. As an easy fast food I always made a Beef mince curry. The combination of the two works exceptionally well and people will come back for more. To offer my UK customers an opportunity to experience this delectable delicacy I've extended the combinations with other signature flavours from South Africa such as Boerewors or Beef Burgers. These seem to work well too and I've also served it with soup (lovely in winter).