Photo: Steven Groves

The secrets to a good potjiekos are closely guarded by those who actually own potjie pots – squat black steel pots on three legs, designed to be placed over a fire for hours.

Seeing as I don’t own a potjie pot myself, I can’t tell you the secrets. But I’ve had a few superb potjies in my life, and I know a little about what goes into them.

To start with, you have to build the fire (obviously), and then ideally hang the potjie pot over the fire, or place it in the coals (I stand to be corrected by any potjie experts out there). The pot has to be prepped with fat, and then the ingredients can be thrown in – big chunks of meat, carrots, potatoes, vegetables, water, stock, and anything else that you need to get rid of.

And then the wait begins – about 4 hours, I think, or as long as it takes for one man to drink six quarts of beer (again, I stand to be corrected).

That might be a pretty vague description of what goes into the making of a potjie, but what comes out of it I am totally clear on: delicious, meaty, rich, gravy-soaked stew. The kind of stew you dream about on cold winter nights. Slow-cooked, bursting with flavour, delicious.