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The recipe for Bok RWC glory

Cape Town – There may have been mixed reactions to the Springbok squad selected, but at least Jan Braai is among those fully expecting them to sizzle, provided they follow his culinary guidelines, at the World Cup.

In purely rugby terms Jan Scannell, founder of the National Braai Day initiative, host of the television show Jan Braai vir Erfenis and author of new braai recipe book The Democratic Republic of Braai is clearly the katemba-half-full type as he believes the Boks can defy their recent shaky form to march all the way to the Webb Ellis Cup for a third time.

“On current form we’ll beat the defending champion All Blacks three out of 10 times, but the great thing is that we only need to do it once (assuming they meet as widely expected in a semi-final – Sport24) to be in touching distance of the trophy,” he told us at his book launch here recently.

“The crucial factor will be if the guys eat enough steak, chops and boerewors over the next few weeks.

“Skills and fitness are there; now they need to build on the protein reserves.”

He suggested his garlic burger on page 172 as a perfect pre-game meal for the Boks at the World Cup, assuming that the notorious British weather doesn’t dampen the coals too much: “Garlic is very healthy for muscles, and the burger has 250g steak mince patties, so plenty of protein.

“The roll gives the carbs so that’s the perfect blend for all the energy needed during a RWC match.

“At the first scrum, the Bok pack must collectively blow out their garlic breath just as the ball is fed in – the opposition will take a step back and we can capitalise on that momentum.”

But what about a braai tip for fans watching their progress on television back home?

Jan Braai recommends for them his Revolution Chicken on page 152, which he considers the perfect snack (spicy wings) for a group of mates sipping beers and keeping one eye on a fire while they wait for kick-off. 

*The Democratic Republic of Braai (Bookstorm, R295) runs to 200 pages with recipes and large colour photographs, and is also available in Afrikaans.

*Follow our chief writer on Twitter: @RobHouwing

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