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 his recipes, and encourage friends and families to join me, he 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 their 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 (7), Olivia (4) and Harvey (2).

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

Christmas Recipes

How-to Recipes

Salad Recipes

Steak Recipes

Chicken Recipes

Pork Recipes

Lamb Recipes

Duck Recipes

Turkey Recipes

Seafood Recipes

Vegetarian Recipes

South African Recipes

Italian Recipes

French Recipes

Asian Recipes

Mexican Recipes

Sweet Recipes

Savoury Recipes

Breakfast Recipes

Side Dishes

Dinner Recipes

Lunch Recipes

Exotic Pumpkin & Butternut Salad on Whipped Feta
Shawn Godfrey Shawn Godfrey

Exotic Pumpkin & Butternut Salad on Whipped Feta

Christmas is traditionally a meat festival, but a good host includes some vegetarian dishes as well, to serve as either a side for the meat-eaters in your midst, or for vegetarians to dish up as their main.

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Beetroot Salad with Whipped Feta, Bacon, Roasted Olives and Toasted Pecan Nuts
Shawn Godfrey Shawn Godfrey

Beetroot Salad with Whipped Feta, Bacon, Roasted Olives and Toasted Pecan Nuts

With December here, Christmas is fast approaching and so over the next few weeks I will be sharing my favourite Christmas recipes. This Beetroot Salad with Whipped Feta, Bacon, Roasted Olives and Toasted Pecan Nuts is a crowd pleaser. To make a vegetarian version, you can replace the bacon with citrus slices. 

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Blistered Tomatoes, Bocconcini, and Basil Leaf Salad
Shawn Godfrey Shawn Godfrey

Blistered Tomatoes, Bocconcini, and Basil Leaf Salad

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: sometimes it’s the simplest salad that’s the biggest hit on the menu.

Blistered tomatoes, bocconcini, basil leaves, a drizzle of olive oil and of course salt and ground pepper.

The recipe is simple, and if you’re looking for step-by-step, this is it!

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Fennel and Apple Salad Recipe
Shawn Godfrey Shawn Godfrey

Fennel and Apple Salad Recipe

As South Africans we often tend to make the same old salad to accompany our braai meat: it includes lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber. And if we want to get fancy, we add feta. Or olives. Or feta and olives - shoo, then we have really made it a bougie salad. But what if I told you, it could be so much better? A good salad can be eaten as a meal.

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Duck Leg Confit Recipe
dinner Shawn Godfrey dinner Shawn Godfrey

Duck Leg Confit Recipe

Many people are not confident cooking duck. If you don’t know how to prepare it properly, duck leg can be tough or even dry. But when cooked well, it is delicious.

I love the recipe as you get an amazing result without the feeling of excessive cooking times. It is a bit of a cheat confit in terms of time.

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Gammon Sausage Bake with Apples, Tomatoes and Coriander
Shawn Godfrey Shawn Godfrey

Gammon Sausage Bake with Apples, Tomatoes and Coriander

It’s that time of year when limited edition products fill the shelves. Pick n Pay stock these Festive Gammon Sausages only at this time of year, and you’d be silly to miss out! This recipe is a nice Christmas addition that you can’t go wrong with. It only take about an hour to make.

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