7 Biltong Cooking Recipes to Make Tonight
A good packet of biltong rarely lasts long enough to reach the frying pan. But these biltong cooking recipes are worth saving a handful for. Its deep savoury flavour and proper South African character can turn everyday eggs, pasta and toasties into something with serious lekkerness.
The trick is restraint. Biltong is already seasoned, dry and packed with flavour, so it works best as a finishing touch rather than something cooked hard for ages. Add it near the end, keep the rest of the dish simple and let the meat do what it does best.
The biltong rule: add it late
Think of sliced or grated biltong as you would a great cheese or a favourite cured meat. Heat can wake up its aroma, but too much cooking can make it tough and overly salty. Fold it through a warm sauce, scatter it over a finished dish, or give it only a minute in the pan.
For these recipes, choose biltong according to the job. Fine shavings melt beautifully into eggs and creamy sauces. Chunkier slices give pasta, potatoes and braai platters a more satisfying bite. If you are using a chilli variety, taste before adding extra heat. The biltong may already bring plenty of fire.
1. Creamy biltong and mushroom pasta
This is a weeknight dinner with proper comfort-factor. Earthy mushrooms and biltong belong together, while a squeeze of lemon keeps the sauce from feeling too rich.
Cook 300 g of fettuccine or your preferred pasta in salted water. Meanwhile, fry 250 g sliced mushrooms in butter with one crushed garlic clove until browned. Pour in 200 ml cooking cream, add a handful of grated parmesan and loosen with a splash of pasta water.
Toss through the drained pasta, then take the pan off the heat. Fold in 80 to 100 g finely sliced biltong, plenty of black pepper and a little lemon zest. Finish with parsley if you have it. Taste before salting - the biltong and parmesan usually have that covered.
2. Biltong, cheddar and tomato toasties
A toastie is not meant to be fussy, but it should be generous. Use good bread, real butter and enough cheese to hold everything together.
Butter the outside of two slices of sourdough. On the inside, layer grated mature cheddar, thin tomato slices, biltong shavings and a light smear of mustard or chutney. Add a few rings of red onion if you like a sharper edge.
Cook in a sandwich press or frying pan over medium-low heat until the bread is crisp and the cheese has properly melted. Medium-low is the key here. A rushed, scorching-hot toastie gives you black bread and cold cheese, which is a poor deal. Serve with a few crunchy pickles or a simple rocket salad.
3. Soft scrambled eggs with biltong and chives
For a late breakfast, this one is hard to beat. It takes barely ten minutes, but feels like you have put in some effort.
Whisk six eggs with a splash of milk or cream. Melt butter in a non-stick pan over low heat, add the eggs and stir slowly with a spatula. Keep the curds soft and glossy rather than dry. Just before they are done, fold through 60 g finely grated or chopped biltong and a scattering of chopped chives.
Pile onto buttered toast and finish with cracked pepper. If you want something brighter alongside it, add grilled cherry tomatoes. Skip the salt until the very end, if you need it at all.
4. Crispy smashed potatoes with biltong sour cream
This is a brilliant braai side, but it is equally good beside roast chicken or as a snack while the footy is on. The contrast matters: hot, crisp potatoes with a cool, tangy topping.
Boil 750 g baby potatoes until tender, then drain and let them steam dry for five minutes. Spread them on an oiled tray, press each one down with the bottom of a glass, drizzle with olive oil and roast at 220°C until golden and crunchy. This usually takes 30 to 40 minutes.
Mix sour cream with lemon zest, chopped spring onion and 70 g finely chopped biltong. Spoon the mixture over the hot potatoes, then add extra biltong on top for good measure. If you are serving a crowd, put the topping in a bowl and let everyone build their own. The potatoes stay crisp for longer that way.
5. Biltong mac and cheese with a crunchy top
Mac and cheese is already a crowd-pleaser. Biltong gives it a distinctly South African twist without making the dish complicated.
Cook 300 g macaroni until just shy of al dente. In another saucepan, melt 50 g butter, stir in 50 g plain flour and cook for a minute. Slowly whisk in 600 ml milk until smooth, then simmer until thickened. Stir through 250 g grated cheddar, a teaspoon of Dijon mustard and black pepper.
Combine the sauce with the pasta and fold in 100 g chopped biltong. Tip into a baking dish. For the topping, mix panko breadcrumbs with a little melted butter and parmesan, then scatter over the top. Bake at 200°C for 20 minutes until bubbling and bronzed.
A small trade-off here: baking biltong for the full 20 minutes gives a more integrated flavour, but less of its tender chew. For the best of both, use half inside the sauce and scatter the other half over after baking.
6. Corn, biltong and cheddar fritters
These are made for a casual lunch, a picnic spread or a plate passed around before the braai. They are also a tidy way to use those last few bits from the bottom of the biltong bag.
Combine one drained tin of corn kernels, 100 g chopped biltong, 100 g grated cheddar, two eggs, 100 g self-raising flour, three sliced spring onions and a splash of milk. Stir just until you have a thick batter. It should drop easily from a spoon without running everywhere.
Fry heaped spoonfuls in a lightly oiled pan over medium heat for two to three minutes per side. Keep them modest in size so the middle cooks through before the outside gets too dark. Serve with avocado, tomato relish or a squeeze of lime.
7. Biltong butter for steak, corn or garlic bread
This may be the easiest recipe on the page, and it brings maximum return. Make a batch before guests arrive and keep it in the fridge until the food comes off the grill.
Mash 125 g softened butter with 60 g very finely grated biltong, one small crushed garlic clove, chopped parsley, lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice. Roll it into a log in baking paper and chill until firm.
Slice a round of biltong butter over a rested steak, tuck it into a hot baked potato or melt it across charred corn. It also makes garlic bread far more interesting. Because it is so flavour-forward, start with a thin slice and add more only if needed.
A few smart swaps for biltong cooking recipes
There is no need to treat every recipe as fixed. Use droëwors in the fritters or potato topping when you want a coarser, more rustic bite. Cabanossi can take the place of biltong in a baked pasta dish, particularly if you prefer a smokier flavour. Jerky works in toasties and chopped sauces, although its sweeter profile can change the balance, so go easy on chutney or sweet relishes.
For a truly standout result, begin with biltong you would happily eat straight from the bag. Handcrafted biltong from Steyn's Biltong & Jerky brings the traditional South African flavour these dishes rely on, whether you are feeding homesick mates or simply putting something better than ordinary on the table.
Keep a little biltong aside next time you unpack your order. Your snack stash will take a hit, but dinner will be all the better for it.