The Roasted Dad’s Recipes

I am an entrepreneur based in Cape Town, South Africa. After the Covid-19 lockdown saw my business in financial distress, cooking was the creative outlet that helped to keep me sane. To keep track of my recipes, and encourage friends and families to join me, I started my instagram account The Roasted Dad.

Fast-forward to late 2021 - on a whim I (encouraged by my wife) enter MasterChef South Africa. It is a crazy time of life: running a 200 people business and struggling to keep it profitable, two small children with a third on the way, and about to move into a new house. But when I get selected to be one of the 20 contestants participating in the fourth season of MasterChef South Africa, I decide to go all in. Leaving my 7-month-pregnant wife to look after our then three and one-year-old children, I battled it out and came back home five weeks later with the trophy and a million rand prize money in my pocket.

It all started with an Instagram account, and then entering -and winning- MasterChef. But The Roasted Dad is so much more now. I now host Private Dinner Parties, Restaurant Take-Overs and Pop-Ups and Cook-with-Me Demos, and am a Key Note Speaker at events. I share recipes on my website and regularly post accommodation and restaurant reviews too. This is a glimpse into the wild and wonderful life I lead with my wife Lianne, and our three children Aiden (8), Olivia (6) and Harvey (4).

After winning MasterChef South Africa, I started sharing recipes on this blog. They are easy to produce at home, using basic cooking techniques with ingredients found at your local grocery store.

Recipe Index

Poultry Recipes

Red Meat Recipes

Seafood Recipes

Vegetarian Recipes

Salad Recipes

Dessert Recipes

Outdoor cooking

Boerewors & Seafood Paella Recipe
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Boerewors & Seafood Paella Recipe

This Boerewors & Seafood Paella Recipe is a crowd-pleaser. If you have friends coming around for a braai, why not make this instead? Everyone can contribute a few ingredients, and it’s easy enough to prepare while catching up. Instead of chorizo, I added boerewors to this paella, and with some Cape Malay spices, it became a true South African-inspired dish. Try the recipe.

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Hedgehog or hasselback potatoes in the Airfryer
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Hedgehog or hasselback potatoes in the Airfryer

I have childhood memories of using a fork to make krimpvarkie aartappels (Afrikaans for hedgehog potatoes), which in mainstream English are called hasselback potatoes, named after a Swedish restaurant by the same name that made this way of preparing potatoes famous. Making these potatoes in the air fryer saves time, and crisps them up without needing to use too much olive oil.

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Make Bacon Jam from scratch - a step-by-step recipe
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Make Bacon Jam from scratch - a step-by-step recipe

I always have a jar of bacon jam in the fridge. It’s a great addition to a toasted sandwich or braai broodjie, or you can serve it with a blue cheese on a harvest board. I recently spread some bacon jam on ready-made Pick n Pay mini sliders for a Valentine’s Day-inspired picnic. Whatever you do, you can’t go wrong when it comes to bacon jam.

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Easy but Delicious Chocolate Torte
Shawn Godfrey Shawn Godfrey

Easy but Delicious Chocolate Torte

This Rich Chocolate Torte is easy to make. I made it with a mix of flour and ground almonds, but you could easily make it gluten-free and use only ground almonds. I have also provided a dairy-free option.

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No-egg recipe for Marie Biscuit Chocolate Fudge
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No-egg recipe for Marie Biscuit Chocolate Fudge

The recipe lasts for about a week in an air-tight container in the fridge, but in my household they usually don’t last that long! The kids love them as a lunch box treat and as the recipe is quick and easy to make, it is a great one to get your children involved in the preparation too.

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The Top 10 Most Popular Recipes of 2024
Shawn Godfrey Shawn Godfrey

The Top 10 Most Popular Recipes of 2024

I have spent a lot more time on writing up and publishing my recipes on this website this year, and you seem to enjoy it! Traffic to the website has increased significantly month-on-month, and these were the most popular recipes this year.

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