More Than Just a Meaty Snack
Biltong is a popular snack to take hiking or tramping but for something different, here we are cooking with it! For the purposes of these recipes, to make it easier to work with, I whizzed my biltong to a fine crumb and from there, the options are endless. Trust me, you want to start thinking about biltong as much more than just a savoury snack on the run!
NESTLED BELOW THE PORT HILLS
in the south-east suburb of Woolston Christchurch, export-grade topside steak is cured with salt and spices and air-dried in custom driers to create delicious Canterbury Biltong. An ancient method of preserving meat brought to Christchurch by David and Nicole Stanley in 2004, biltong is an incredibly popular snack in David’s home country of South Africa – sometimes babies even use it as a teether!
Biltong is a protein- and iron-rich snack and was invented in the days of no refrigeration. Once hung from trees it’s come a long way to now being manufactured at the highest standard and packaged in an inert atmosphere high oxygen-barrier pouch to lock in all its goodness. But don’t get it confused with beef jerky, which is usually baked.With biltong, the topside cut is selected and trimmed of excess fat and gristle, then cured with salt and spices as a piece, hung and air-dried before being sliced and packaged up for us to chew on. The minimal human interference makes for a more natural product and if you have a savoury tooth, I can say without a doubt this is your version of chocolate!
Given it’s a condensed chunk of perfectly flavoured seasoned meat, it’s honestly an ingredient I’ll be grabbing for more with my cooking at home.
I’m calling it the new Parmesan for scattering over any and everything.
The passion David and Nicole have for biltong shows in the delicious high-quality product they create here in Christchurch and I’m so glad I could create some tasty recipes to show it off. Make sure to throw a pack in your weekly shop! Hot tip, every 100 g packet of Canterbury Biltong comes from at least 235 g of Quality Mark Pasture-Fed New Zealand meat – now that’s value for money!