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monkey gland sauce

{{Short description|South African sauce}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{Use South African English|date = September 2023}}

{{Infobox food

| place_of_origin = South Africa

| type = Condiment

| main_ingredient = {{Plainlist|

| minor_ingredient = {{Plainlist|

}}

Monkey gland sauce is a dark-coloured, thick, sweet and tangy sauce from South Africa. It is typically served as a topping for grilled steaks or burgers, but is also used as a marinade, a dipping sauce for onion rings and chips, or on roasted potatoes.{{Cite web |last=Crushmag |date=2021-09-07 |title=The History of Monkey Gland Sauce |url=https://crushmag-online.com/the-history-of-monkey-gland-sauce/ |access-date=2022-05-04 |website=Crush Mag Online |language=en-US}} It has been featured as a restaurant item since the 1930s, becoming a South African restaurant and fast food staple condiment.

Ingredients

The main components of monkey gland sauce are chutney and tomato sauce (ketchup) – which result in a sweet mixture. Then, the addition of onions, vinegar, garlic and Worcestershire sauce, gives it a savoury-sweet flavour.{{Cite web|last=Says|first=Simon|date=2020-07-27|title=Monkey gland sauce – what is it and where did it come from?|url=https://www.food24.com/monkey-gland-sauce-what-is-it-and-where-did-it-come-from/|access-date=2021-07-12|website=Food24|language=en-US}}

Naming

Despite its name, the sauce does not contain any monkey glands.

There are various theories on the origins of the sauce but the most likely is that it originated with French chefs at the old Carlton Hotel in Johannesburg.{{cite web | url=https://briefly.co.za/77277-how-juicy-traditional-south-african-monkey-gland-sauce.html | title=How to make juicy traditional South African monkey gland sauce | publisher=Briefly | first=Rodah | last=Mogeni | date=8 September 2020 | accessdate=13 May 2022}} South African diners added sauces such as chutney, tomato sauce, and Worcester sauce to the French dishes before eating them. Thus, the disgruntled chefs combined all the condiments to create a sauce which they named monkey gland sauce. There was speculation at the time that monkey glands could slow down ageing.{{cite web | url=https://tastyrecipes.sapeople.com/south-african-monkey-gland-sauce/ | title=South African Monkey Gland Sauce | date=24 July 2017 }}

A more outlandish theory is that it was named after Russian-born French scientist, Dr Serge Abrahamovitch Voronoff, who was a regular visitor at the Savoy Hotel in London. One of his medical experiments involved grafting monkey testicle tissue onto impotent men as a cure. The hotel renamed his favourite steak dish the "monkey gland steak" when he became famous. Then an ex-Savoy waiter brought it over to South Africa in the 1930s.

See also

Notes

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References

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  • {{cite book|last=Gold|first=Scott |title=The Shameless Carnivore: A Manifesto for Meat Lovers|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kOXyRsI6XhUC&pg=PA118|year=2008|publisher=Ten Speed Press|isbn=978-0-7679-2922-6}}
  • {{cite book|last=Pienaar|first=Heilie |title=Karan Beef Cookbook|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LOYWxpq-oQ0C&pg=PT29|publisher=Struik|isbn=978-1-86872-838-1|year=2003}}
  • {{cite book|last=Raichlen|first=Steven |title=Planet Barbecue!: 309 Recipes, 60 Countries|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YNIbnKBfrcAC&pg=PA254|year=2010|publisher=Workman Publishing|isbn=978-0-7611-4801-2}}
  • {{cite book|last=Sellick|first=Will |title=The Imperial African Cookery Book: Recipes from English-speaking Africa|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=seX5e48GbpoC&pg=PA214|year=2010|publisher=Jeppestown Press|isbn=978-0-9553936-8-6}}

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{{Condiments}}

{{South African cuisine}}

{{portal bar|Food}}

Category:Sauces

Category:South African cuisine

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