Durban Mutton Bunny Chow (Bunny Chow)
Bunny Chow Say it: BUN-ee chow
Bunny chow is Durban's most famous street food: a quarter loaf of soft white bread hollowed out and packed with a fiery, slow-cooked Indian-style mutton curry. It was born in the Indian-owned corner cafés of Durban, where curry was served in a bread loaf so workers could carry lunch without a plate or cutlery. The bread soaks up the spiced gravy, giving crisp crust, fluffy crumb and rich, tender meat in every bite.
Durban Mutton Bunny Chow (Bunny Chow)
Bunny Chow
Pronounced BUN-ee chow
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 1 hr 30 min
- Total
- 1 hr 50 min
- Level
- Medium
Also nut-free and egg-free.
Allergens: contains gluten. Check labels on packaged ingredients.
Ingredients
Amounts are scaled. Cooking times and pan sizes stay the same.
For the mutton curry
To serve
Method
Pat the mutton dry and sprinkle with a pinch of the salt. Heat 2 tbsp (30 ml) of the oil in a heavy pot over medium-high heat and brown the meat in batches until deeply coloured on all sides, about 5 minutes per batch, then set aside.
Lower the heat to medium, add the remaining 1 tbsp (15 ml) oil and the onion, and fry, stirring, until soft and golden at the edges, 8–10 minutes.
Stir in the garlic, ginger and curry leaves and cook for 1 minute until fragrant, then add the Durban masala, cumin, coriander, turmeric and cayenne and fry for 30–60 seconds, until the spices smell toasty and darken slightly.
Add the tomatoes and cook, mashing them with the back of a spoon, until they collapse into a thick paste and the oil begins to separate at the edges, about 5 minutes.
Return the meat and any resting juices to the pot, pour in the water or stock and add the remaining salt. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for 60–75 minutes, until the mutton is tender when pierced with a knife.
Add the potatoes, set the lid slightly ajar and simmer for 20–25 minutes more, until the potatoes are tender and the gravy is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
While the curry finishes, prepare the bread. cut a 1-inch (2.5 cm) border around the top of each quarter-loaf, then pull out the soft crumb with your fingers, leaving a thick wall and base. Keep the scooped-out bread.
Fill each bread shell generously with hot curry, scatter with chopped coriander and serve at once, with the scooped-out bread alongside for dipping.
Regional variant: Bean Bunny (Vegetarian Bunny Chow)
Omit the mutton and use 2 cans (14 oz / 400 g each) of drained kidney or sugar beans. Fry the onion, garlic, ginger, curry leaves, spices and tomatoes exactly as above, add the potatoes with 2½ cups (600 ml) water and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in the beans and simmer 10 minutes more, mashing a few beans against the pot to thicken the gravy, then fill the bread shells the same way.
Cook's notes
- Bone-in mutton gives the richest gravy; the bones and connective tissue thicken it as it cooks.
- Toast the hollowed bread shells cut-side down in a dry pan for a minute so they stay crisp and don't turn soggy.
- The curry tastes even better a day later — reheat it gently with a splash of water and fill the bread only just before serving.
Serve with
The scooped-out bread for mopping, plus a little grated carrot salad or chilli sambal and a cold drink.
Make ahead and storage
The curry keeps 3 days in the fridge or 3 months frozen; reheat gently with a splash of water and fill the bread just before serving.
