Go Back
–+ servings
Bella

Melt-in-Your-Mouth Beef Potjie Recipe for Delicious Meals

This traditional South African Beef Potjie is slow-cooked over an open flame and layered with tender beef, hearty vegetables, warm spices, and a rich tomato-red wine sauce. The result? Fall-apart meat and deep, soul-soothing flavor in every spoonful. A rustic, crowd-pleasing meal that brings everyone to the fire.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Southern African
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 tablespoon butter4 tablespoons sunflower oil2–3 cloves garlic minced800g–1kg beef (chuck, T-bone, brisket, stewing steak, or rump), chopped3 tablespoons flour (for dusting beef)3 onions, chopped1 cup celery, chopped1 pack diced bacon1 teaspoon dried thyme1 teaspoon ground coriander1 teaspoon ground cumin2–3 cups chopped butternut10 baby potatoes, halved2 carrots, sliced diagonally2 large or 4 small baby marrows, sliced2 tablespoons tomato paste⅔ cup red wine1 cup beef stock1 cup Passata (tomato purée)Salt and black pepper, to taste

Method
 

  1. Prepare all vegetables, meat, and spices before starting.
  2. Dust chopped beef with flour, coating all pieces.
  3. Heat butter and oil in a potjie pot over hot coals until bubbling.
  4. Brown the beef in batches until seared on all sides. Remove and set aside.
  5. Add onions, celery, garlic, bacon, coriander, cumin, and thyme. Sauté for 3–4 minutes.
  6. Reduce heat by removing some coals to allow a gentle simmer.
  7. Layer the pot: return beef to the pot, then add potatoes, carrots, baby marrows, and butternut. Do not stir.
  8. In a jug, whisk together tomato paste, red wine, beef stock, and Passata. Pour over the pot contents. Do not stir.
  9. Season generously with salt and black pepper.
  10. Cover with a lid and let simmer for 3–5 hours.
  11. Check every 40 minutes to ensure it's not boiling too hard. Stir only if meat sticks to the bottom.
  12. If needed, remove the lid toward the end to reduce liquid.
  13.  
  14. Serve warm with mashed potatoes, rice, or pasta.

Notes

Traditional potjie is best cooked outdoors over coals, but a Dutch oven on the stovetop or oven at low heat also works.
Avoid stirring once vegetables are layered to preserve structure.
You can swap red wine with more stock or a splash of balsamic vinegar for a non-alcoholic version.
Make a double batch—it tastes even better the next day!

Tried this recipe?

Let us know how it was!