==============================================================
BILTONGMAKERS.COM! The home of Biltong,
Boerewors, and much, much more!
==============================================================
Special edition of our newsletter - September
2003
===================================
You are receiving this newsletter because
you have previously placed an order with Biltongmakers or made an enquiry about
Biltong, Boerewors or Potjie Pots.
If you do not wish to receive this
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then be permanently deleted from our database
===================================================
THE
BILTONGMAKERS.COM! NEWSLETTER FOR SEPTEMBER 2003
===================================================
* From the editor
* The incredible RNA-5kg Biltong Maker
* The Traditional 2kg HBM is back!
* This month’s special offer!!
* Tip of the month
* Frequently asked questions
* Can anyone help?
* Recipe corner
* Happy people comments
* Around the world
* Funnies
* The Monthly Competition
* Buy on your Budget account
* Let’s hear from you!
* Boerewors in the Benelux
* Subscribing and un-subscribing
FROM
THE EDITOR
================
Belgium
September
4, 2003
Wow! It is September already!
Here in Belgium the days are getting
shorter. It is still dark at 6am when
June leaves for work.
It is as if it had been a clear-cut
decision all along that when August was finished, summer would end. The mornings are becoming nippy and the
evenings are not much better. In fact,
we were talking about getting the central heating going last weekend!
Anyway, like I have said all along during
the summer, give us the winter anytime.
The heat has been unbearable the past couple of months.
We are looking forward to the autumn. It is always so beautiful with these
incredible ever-changing colours on the trees.
The Holly Tree next to the house, by the
garage, has already some red berries on it.
It is a pity they fall off before Christmas because they would make
lovely decorations!
The seasons here in Belgium are very
defined. You know, and can see, when it
is summer, autumn, winter and spring.
Each has its own beauty.
Well, what has been happening this month?
The introduction of the new RNA-5kg
Biltong maker has been incredible. We
should have done this a long time ago.
I received my own machine from the factory in Johannesburg this month
and proceeded making Biltong immediately.
It is a pleasure to be able to hang really big pieces of meat to
dry! The machine has not been standing
still. It takes exactly 4 days for the
Biltong to be ready. We then
vacuum-pack it at Harry’s, our friendly butcher and put it in the deep
freezer. We had to buy a second one to
take all the Boerewors so there is now ample space.
For those people living in Belgium and
Holland I have a little tip. “Stoof
vlees” (Stewing meat) is of such quality that it makes excellent Biltong, the
pieces are huge and it is cheap too!
Just use lots of the pre-mixed biltong spice and let the meat marinade
for quite a while, preferably overnight.
And than of course some very good news!
The Traditional 2kg Biltong Maker is
available again as from the beginning of September. It has taken a bit longer than expected but while we were waiting
for the elements we also made some major changes. The HBM is now manufactured at a new factory and the quality has
much improved.
So, when you visit the web site (www.biltongmakers.com) you will be
able to order again as before.
We have two new people in Johannesburg
now.
Trish, who takes care of the despatch and
Neil, who is involved in the manufacture of the new improved Traditional Home
Biltong maker.
Everything is running like clockwork with
the only hiccup being that we cannot keep up with the supply of the RNA-5kg
model. But, we are working on
that. The factory has promised to increase
production and we will soon be able to decrease the present lead-time of three
weeks to one week.
So, here we are with a brand-new month
ahead of us. We still have a couple of
functions where we will make Potjiekos in the big Potjie and then that should
be finished for the year. A bit too
chilly to make a Potjie in the snow!
This weekend should be good fun. I have mentioned before that we live close
to a little village with the name of Werchter.
Every year, around the end of June, they have a three or four day rock
festival there. Much like the
Glastonbury Festival in England. This
weekend they managed to have one extra concert with as the main act the Rolling
Stones. Part of their Forty Licks World
Tour. When the normal yearly concert is
on we can actually sit in the back garden and listen to the music. (A bit of a
pain when it carries on till 4 in the morning for 4 days!). When we wanted to get tickets they were of
course all sold out! But…, Harry, our
friendly butcher has his shop in Werchter, right next to the grounds. I asked him for tickets on the off chance
and…he had some!
So, on Sunday Derek, Tony (our two sons)
and I will toddle off to the grounds and spend a couple of hours listening to
some nostalgia.
These grounds are really just a big meadow
in amongst farmland. Really beautiful.
Well, that was it again from me this
month.
How about hearing from YOU about what is
happening in your part of the world?
That would be nice!
Till next month!
Lo
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THE INCREDIBLE RNA-5KG BILTONG MAKER
=====================================
As I mentioned above, the introduction of
the new RNA 5kg Biltong Maker has been a blast! We should have done this years ago.
Please bear with us as far as timely
shipping is concerned. We never
expected the kind of response that new HBM received. We are working very hard at catching up!
Unfortunately the special pricing we had
for a short while has come to an end.
We are still sticking to the introductory price for a while though so
make use of that opportunity and order your machine as soon as possible.
Full details about the machine can be
found at the link below.
http://www.biltongmakers.com/biltong03b_rocky5kg_01.html
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THE 2KG BILTONG MAKER IS
BACK!!!!!
================================
Here is some very good news!
The Traditional 2kg Home
Biltong maker is back with the first 100 units coming off the production line
this week.
A lot of people made use of
the special facility we placed on the web site to place back-orders. We will now mail these people so they can
place their orders as soon as possible.
We do expect a bit of a rush
but this time we are prepared!
There is ample stock for the
moment and machines will be shipped within a couple of days from receipt of
order.
So, for all these people who
have been waiting for this the past month or so, place your orders as soon as
you can to avoid the initial rush.
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THIS MONTH’S SPECIAL OFFER!!
===========================
During the month of September
we will give away 20 special Biltong Storage Bags with every order placed for a
Home Biltong Maker. These bags are
specifically designed and manufactured to keep the Biltong from “sweating” in
the plastic. The bags are full of tiny
little holes.
When we ordered the bags I
got a bit of a shock. I thought that
since they used less plastic (it’s holy after all) they might be cheaper. Not so!
They were four times the price of the normal vacuum-seal bags we use!
Anyway, aren’t our customers
worth it?
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TIP OF THE MONTH
================
Here is one we could not resist.
Hey, I use an 1875-watt
hairdryer at high speed but low temperature setting to blow into my biltong
box.
Excellent biltong in only
24hrs.
No lamps, no fan.
Regards,
Hugo Forster
(How do you
sleep Hugo? -Ed)
(Anyone out there with some real tips for
our readers! -Ed)
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
============================
Every month we receive
hundreds of mails from people around the world regarding many issues. A lot of these queries are similar if not
identical. In this section we publish
the most regular ones.
It might help others who have
the same questions.
Question:
------------
Dear Biltongmakers
Thank you for your recipe for
biltong.
I reside in London and used your versatile biltong recipe and enjoyed the results very much.
I have one question though. I used 3 kg of meat and topped up the recipe accordingly but found the biltong slightly salty. How can I overcome this?
Many thanks once again, a superb site
Steven Freeman
Answer:
----------
Instead of fine
salt you should use coarse salt or rock salt.
Make sure that after marinating the meat you wash all the salt off!
=========================
Question:
------------
We made some biltong recently
and after three days, when we cut it,
there were worms in it!
What could be the cause?
Marcha Van Wyk
Answer:
----------
The answer to this
is simply FLIES!
We constantly warn
everybody about keeping away any flying insects whilst working with the meat as
well as during the marinating process.
Once a fly settles on the meat it will lay eggs and they do it super
fast! These eggs will hatch and you
will get your little worms!
Keep the meat
covered. Spray the kitchen or the area
you work in with an insect killer like Doom.
Any butcher you visit will have an ultra violet light to keep flies
away. They are a menace!
=========================
Question:
------------
I am interested in making and
selling biltong to shops, friends etc. Is the HBM a worthwhile investment to
make if I want to go in this line of industry?
Brendon Lillis
Port Elizabeth
Answer:
----------
Many of our customers are
making Biltong continuously to supply their friends and families. There are also many people using more than
one Biltong Maker. Some even as many as
10 machines! These people make Biltong
to supply bars, shops and clubs.
So, the answer is; you can
turn your Home Biltong Making into a nice little business!
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CAN ANYONE HELP?
=================
Every month we receive mails
from people who need help with a specific problem. Some of these people we cannot help.
This section is devoted to those
queries and, with any luck, someone in the world reading this newsletter may be
able to help!
So, if you have a question or
problem please mail us and we will publish it here.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This request came from Edmund
Waller from Pretoria:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Lo
Really enjoyed your
Newsletter and would love to continue receiving it.
Most important
request:
I'd love to e-mail
South African expats overseas and receive e-mail from them. I therefore require
their e-mail addresses. You obviously receive mail from so many! Please mail me
all the e-mail addresses you have, even on a weekly basis, bit by bit, and put
my e-mail address in your newsletter asking them to contact me.
I urgently desire
to leave SA, but at age 56, the problem seems to centre on getting a job
abroad. After retrenchment in SA it's impossible to re-enter the job-market, as
you well know, despite my qualifications & excellent business consulting
& financial management experience. I've been battling without help for so
long!
These famous words
are true: it's not what you know; it's whom you know!
I really need your
assistance.
Please advise what
other info you require from me.
Kind regards
Edmund Waller
Pretoria, South
Africa
+27 (12) 543 1571
or
+27 (82) 400 8044
(We never give out our
customers or any other email addresses we have on our database but anyone who
can help Edmund is free to email him-Ed-)
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RECIPE CORNER
==============
Here is a Guinea Fowl
(Tarentaal) Potjiekos recipe from Vishnu Naidoo from Johannesburg.
We have tried it and it is
really very, very nice!
Ingredients:
=========
*-
1 Whole guinea fowl of about 2kg (cut in 5cm pieces)
*-
1/2 Cup cooking oil
*-
2 Onions cleaned and sliced
*-
1 Teaspoon turmeric (borrie)
*-
1 Teaspoon fine black pepper
*-
1 Teaspoon garamasala
*-
2 Tablespoons minced ginger and garlic
*-
3 Whole green chillies pounded
*-
2 Tablespoons curry powder
*-
1 Small bunch of fresh coriander-chopped
*-
4 Curry leaves
*-
2 Bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, elachi, aniseeds, cloves
*-
3 Ripe red tomatoes, chopped (keep the juices)
*-
2 Cups cleaned peas
*-
Salt to taste...
Method:
======
*- Take
a size three or four Potjie. It does
not really matter what size but these would be best suitable.
*-
Heat the oil.
*-
Add the sliced onions and let it fry until soft.
*-
Add the turmeric, the black pepper and stir for a minute or so.
*-
Add the curry powder and stir for another 30 seconds.
*-
Add the minced ginger, garlic and the pounded chilli and stir again for about
30 seconds until mixed properly.
*-
Then add the two cinnamon sticks, 1/2 teaspoon grounded elachi powder, 2 or 3
aniseeds, 3 whole cloves.
*-
Immediately add the guinea fowl pieces and stir until all the portions have
been mixed with the spices.
*-
Add ˝ cup of boiling water, the bay leaves, a sprig of curry leaves, the salt
and close the lid.
*-
Let this whole lot braise for about one hour.
*-
After this hour add the tomatoes and garamasala and close the lid again.
*-
Be very careful not to put more water, the guinea fowl must be braised dry.
*-
Also be careful not to burn the meat.
Just add a little water if there is no liquid left.
*-
Keep the heat low!
*-
Guinea Fowl is pretty tough meat so you can let it go on this low heat for
about an hour or two.
*-
Once cooked add the peas and the finely chopped fresh coriander.
*-
Serve with pap, and a Greek salad.
Believe
me this recipe will surprise you, it is a winner!
Vishnu
Naidoo
Kempton Park
(Thank you very much Vishnu –Ed)
--How about YOUR favourite recipe everyone? --
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HAPPY PEOPLE COMMENTS
========================
Beste Biltongmakers,
Moenie vergeet om in die
volgende epos te noem dat die Biltongmaker ook lekker droë wors maak. Ons het 'n slagter in Bisley, Surrey, wat al
goed geleer is om SA Boerewors te maak, nou droog ons dit met die Biltongmaker
wat ons verlede Kersfees
gekoop het, en siedaar, die Engelse heel-jaar winter is nou baie beter met
biltong en droë wors heel jaar !
Groete,
Daan en Anette Olivier,
Hayling Island,
Hams, UK.
anette@oliviers.freeserve.co.uk
----------------------------------
Hello
Lo
I
can now finally report that I am an accomplished Boerewors maker. My boeries came out a huge success and gave
me quite a feeling of achievement. I didn’t have to experiment too
much to get the correct proportions (for our own taste, of course), and found
that using a mix of 40% Pork, 40% Lamb and 20% beef makes a delicious wors.
Many
thanks again for your assistance with the Boeries.
Best
regards
Mercia
Bucharest
----------------------------------
Lo
Very pleased as my
first batch came out GREAT!!!.
Here is Chicago; it
is difficult to explain to a butcher what the final result might be, when it
comes to biltong!
The fact that I
landed up at the butcher store after 6pm (when no one is there to actually CUT
the meat didn't help either!!)
But I picked up
some FAIR grade thinly sliced pepper steak (about 3mm thick) and bought
0.5lb(0.25 Kg) - I put my order in for 1/3" thick meat for the next day
pickup (now it's the next day - I picked it up and it's F$%^&*G 3mm thin
again, no-wonder my wife wants to come back to SA!!) Anyway back to the story.
I used your Quick
biltong recipe and in 24hrs had really great, really good, SA tong - or what we would call "bites" -
even my 5yr old daughter and 3 yr old son took part and enjoyed.
Thanks
Only some
constructive criticism would be...the unit could be a little bigger to handle
larger quantities!!
The price is right
though...I've since seen "Billies Biltong Maker"(at R2500 if
purchased from USA) and although it might offer some additional features...I
think your price is a lot more reasonable.
I've been out of SA
for 5 yrs now, and you've made the way to me making my own tong.... I feel like
a child that has achieved enormous things!!
The HBM is GREAT
and works well for me.
Enough from me now
Thanks again -
loving it...might even send you a picture or two of some final tong!
Go well
Christian
Chicago
(A
big thanks to all of you for your nice comments. This will keep us going again for a while! -Ed)
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AROUND THE WORLD
==================
It’s so nice to hear from
other people. Here is an anecdote we
receive quite a while ago. I just
re-discovered it today and like to share it with you.
------------------------------------------------
Hello
to the Biltong Team and all its members!
Thank
you for this terrific newsletter! I find it most interesting, and its good to
hear from other fellow South African's around the world.
Here
is something to make you laugh!
Lets
call it...
"WALK
IN ANOTHER (WO)MAN'S SHOES".....
Just
want to share this experience my children and I had last year during their July
summer vacation.
We were
pretty bored with life, as Dad was away...and bright spark got an idea.
I
ask my daughter (13) to fetch her long blonde wig, and asked my son (17) to put
it on. He looked at me rather confused,
but after I promised both of them we would have fun that night, he put the wig
on.
I
had a thought...the Arab men all chase after you when you are blonde, and its
high time to get them back! We went for
a joy ride, with my son wearing the wig, on the Gulf Road here in Kuwait, and
the timing was perfect.
All
the guys were cruising along in their sports cars etc. and when they noticed
the longhaired blonde sitting next to me, got all excited, and next thing,
started to follow us!
I
told my son please hide your dark eyebrows and don't look at them! Well needless to say, by the time we reached
the Ras-Salmiyah traffic circle, we had caused a traffic jam!
I
wish you all could have seen their reaction to this "blonde"!!
I
had cars on either side boxing me in, behind and in front, showing that the
blonde had captured their hearts quickly!!
We
were in stitches with all these guys after this blonde! At the traffic lights,
we were asked to please stop; they wanted to talk to the "blonde"!!
My son got very embarrassed, and kept saying: “I am not into this at all, I
want to remove it!” But we were laughing so much, and enjoying the reaction
that was caused by this blonde!! There and then, my son realized what his mom
and so many other expat ladies go through, living in a country where sexual
segregation causes such behaviour! Now
he appreciates it when I get upset by followers on the road!!
One
thing is for sure; I was one up on them!!
P.S. Leon Schuster may just have met his match!!
Hope
you all enjoyed this!
Kindest
regards,
Carrie
Britz
Kuwait
City
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FUNNIES
=======
As promised here is the third
and last part of the “Afrikaans” slang so often used.
It comes from our friend Mark
in Jamaica.
Some of you have probably
read this before but I find it fascinating nevertheless.
------------------------------------------
BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO AFRIKAANS
(Part three)
BOET----This is an
Afrikaans word meaning "brother" which is shared by all language
groups. Pronounced, "boot" as
in "foot", it can be applied to non-brother. For instance a father can call his son
"boet" and friends can apply the term to each other too. Sometimes
the diminutive "boetie" is used. But don't use either with someone
you hardly know - it will be thought patronizing.
PASOP----From the
Afrikaans phrase meaning "Watch Out!” this warning is used and heeded by
all language groups. As in: "Your
ma hasn't had her morning coffee yet Boet-so pasop and stay out of her
way." Sometimes just the word
"pasop!" is enough without further explanation.
Everyone knows it
sets out a line in the sand not to be crossed.
SKOP, SKIET EN
DONDER (OR DONNER)---- Literally "kick, shoot and thunder" in
Afrikaans, this phrase is used by many English speakers to describe action
movies or any activity, which is lively and somewhat primitive. Clint Eastwood
is always good for a skop, skiet en donner flick.
GRAZE----In a
country with a strong agricultural tradition, it is not surprising that farming
words crop up (pun intended) in general conversation. Thus to graze means to
eat. If you are invited to a bioscope show, you may be asked: "Do you want
to catch a graze now now?"
CATCH A TAN----This
is what you do when you lie on the beach pretending to study for your matric
exams. The Brits, who have their own
odd phrases, say they are getting "bronzed". Nature has always been unkind to South
African schoolchildren, providing beach and swimming pool weather just when
they should be swotting for the mid-summer finals. If you spend too much time catching a tan at exam time, you could
end up catching a sharp klap from your pa.
ROCK UP----To rock
up some place is to just sort of arrive.
You don't make an appointment or tell anyone you are coming - you just
rock up. Friends can do that but you
have to be selective about it. You
can't just rock up for a job interview or at a five-star restaurant. You give them a bell first - then you can
rock up.
SCALE----To scale
something is to steal it. A person who
is "scaly" is not nice, a scumbag, and should be left off the
Christmas party invitation list.
JA NEE----"Yes
No" in English. This expression's
origin is believed to be when a family member starts talking politics (what
else do we talk about in South Africa??) and you don't want to cause a
political argument and get klapped or donnerred, then every now and again you
mutter "Ja Nee".
(Thanks a lot for your input
Mark; what are you doing back in SA?-Ed-)
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THE MONTHLY COMPETITION
=========================
THE ANSWERS TO THE AUGUST COMPETITION
---------------------------------------------------------------------
The answers to the questions for August
were:
* Question 1: PST Rigid Styrene
* Question 2: A 40-watt globe
* Question 3:
Rockey's New Age
Most of the 18156 people who entered had
the answers right!
THE WINNER OF THE AUGUST COMPETITION
======================================
The winner of the August competition is Michael Tillman from
Melbourne in Australia.
Well done and CONGRATULATIONS Michael, your New RNA-5kg Biltong
Maker is on its way to you and you will join the many other Biltong Makers in
Australia already using the new RNA-5kg Home Biltong maker!
PLEASE REMEMBER THE FOLLOWING
================================
The monthly draw or competition is totally
free to everyone.
You can enter as many times as you like.
You can only enter via the Competition
page on the Biltongmakers web site.
All prizes are sent to the winners free of
charge.
THE PRIZE FOR THE SEPTEMBER COMPETITION
========================================
As the prize for the September competition
we have a real South African Falkirk size 4 Potjie Pot!
A lot of people have been asking to have
this as a prize again so….why not?
On the competition page you can see a picture
of a size 100 Potjie. Don’t for one
moment think that this is what you will win because it isn’t! We just put it on the site for fun and for
all to have a look at. A pretty
impressive sight when you see it in real life!
Just visit our home page and click on one
of the two competition links.
The winner of the September competition
will be notified by email.
OTHER PRIZES FOR THIS YEAR
==========================
We have some great prizes lined up for
this year.
* Biltongmakers
* Biltong spices
* Boerewors
spices
* Braai tool
sets
* Potjie Pots
* Barbecues
* More Cadac
Skottel Braais and………. much, much more!!!
So, don't wait!
You can enter right now by going to
www.biltongmakers.com and clicking on the COMPETITION link.
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BUY ON YOUR BUDGET ACCOUNT!
=============================
Just to remind you that you can now
purchase any of the items on the Biltongmakers web site on your credit card
budget account. We see that more and
more of our customers are choosing this way of purchasing. So, if you hesitated in the past you can now
click on our website link www.biltongmakers.com and follow the order placing
procedure. It's as easy as that!
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LET’S HEAR FROM YOU!!
=====================
Lots of people wrote to us this month.
Please remember that if you have something
interesting to tell, a nice recipe to part with or perhaps a question to ask,
it would be nice to hear from you!
Perhaps you have some advise to give?
You never know how you could help somebody
else with your own hints and tips.
Of course it does not have to be about
Biltong or food. Anything that is of
interest is welcome! Share it with
other people around the world!
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BOEREWORS
===========
We are at last organized!!
With an additional deep freezer and Harry,
our friendly butcher helping us along, we now have ample Boeries to help a lot
of people!
Just remember that we have the “Beef and
Pork” as well as the “Beef Only” version as well for those people who don’t eat
pork!
The price is € 8.00 per kilogram.
You can mail us at info@biltongmakers.com
for details or phone Lo at +32-16-53.96.25.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Till next month!
THE BILTONG TEAM
Lo
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