June 27, 2022 
With limited international travel opportunities due to the pandemic, consumers have been seeking adventure through food and, as well as reaching for familiar global favourites, they are exploring local cuisines from abroad and Bakels are well-positioned to serve this trend.
In the UK for instance, Mintel found that 20% of UK bread buyers would be interested in these foreign cuisines [1] and in the US one-third of consumers looked forward to trying new global foods and/or flavours this year, with 42% seeking spicy foods according to Datassential [2].
South African cuisine
Famous for its great natural beauty and cultural diversity, all of which have made the country a favoured destination for travellers since the legal ending of apartheid in 1994, South Africa is also home to a wide range of foods such as biltong, boerewors, malva pudding and bunny chow, many of which are a hit in food markets across the world.
A mainstay on most South African dinner tables and served cold or at room temperature, chakalaka is a traditional South African vegetable relish that is usually spicy and commonly served with bread, pap, samp, stews or curries. Chakalaka may have originated in the townships of Johannesburg or on the gold mines surrounding the city of Johannesburg, when Mozambican mineworkers coming off shift cooked tinned produce (tomatoes, beans) with chili to produce a spicy relish with a Portuguese taste to accompany pap.
Like many local food specialities, there are a number of variations of chakalaka, often dependent on the region or family traditions; for instance, some versions include beans, cabbage and butternut.
Chakalaka Bread Mix
Inspired by this popular South African food, South Bakels has introduced an exciting local and proudly South African bread mix based on the flavour of Chakalaka. Like chakalaka itself can take on a range of different varieties, the bread mix was developed with these same versatile advantages in mind. Bakers have the capability to produce breads like Chakalaka Speciality Bread, Focaccia, Potbrood and even pizza, so they too can provide consumers with a traditional flavour in traditional bread products.
The product has a distinctive South African flavour with a difference and is available in a full/complete mix or a 20% premix, according to customer and process requirements.
Sources: 1: Mintel – UK – Bread – September 2021, 2: Datassential 2021. FB FoodBytes Trend Forecast Issue.
