Slap pap – try it at our Restaurant

Pap is the Afrikaans word for porridge. But when South Africans mention this word, they don’t mean porridge in general; they refer to only one type, the traditional dish made from maize meal: mieliepap.

It is a staple food which can be enjoyed any time of day, either sweet or savory.

Maize meal is made by drying white maize kernels, removing the outer shell and heart, and grinding the rest into a coarse meal.  The consistency of pap depends on the ratio of maize meal to water. Pap can be cooked to be runny, soft, or stiff.

The Restaurant at The Story of Emily honours this heritage food and serves a slap pap which is smooth and runny.

On our menu you can enjoy this staple with amasi, honey, cinnamon, and stewed dried fruit, as a vegetation and sweet option. Amasi is a thick, sour, fermented milk product that originated in Southern Africa. It is creamy white in colour and has a smooth texture.

For a savoury dish that promises to keep you full until lunchtime, opt for the slap pap with boerewors, tomato smootjie (relish), and fried egg. The tantalising smell of the Restaurant when the boerewors is being cooked on an open grill is nearly impossible to ignore. Boerewors is the Afrikaans word for traditional South African beef and pork sausage with all kinds of herbs, usually made by farmers on farms.

To be self-sufficient, the Boer farmers have large herds of Afrikaner cattle; an indigenous breed with a red-brown hide, merino sheep, an array of poultry, and large orchards with fruit trees. Fruits were preserved, sun-dried, and used to make jams so they didn’t go to waste. They also planted and harvested maize which was and still is a staple crop.

When visiting the War Rooms, you will see replica maize – corn on the cob in the kitchen. As well as dried fruit – similar to those we serve with the amasi, honey and slap pap - on the table and preserved fruit on the dresser.

When ordering either of our slap pap dishes, remember to try our fire pit coffee which is prepared exactly like it was done over 125 years ago.