Talk:Braai

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Peer review This article was externally reviewed (November 7, 2005) by Mail & Guardian. It was rated 8/10

Please see discussion of this article in the Mail & Guardian, Can You Trust Wikipedia? -- it received an 8/10 rating. — Catherine\talk 06:01, 8 November 2005 (UTC)

[This article] could be a more in-depth description incorporating favourite dishes from various areas. -- De Waal Davis, author of Braai Buddy and Bakgat Braai, op. cit.

I agree. The article also gives too much prominence to pap as a component. In my experience it is significant only in the northern inland provinces, I cannot remember attending a single braai south of the Orange River with pap. Potatoes and/or bread feature there as the carbohydrate component of the meal. Roger 11:36, 24 August 2007 (UTC)

Also see Talk:Boerewors <>< tbc 08:58, 8 November 2005 (UTC)


The social norms section either needs to be rewritten or deleted entirely. Someone has tried to clear the contradiction by removing the second part, but that leaves the "original" section with horribly outdated information. It really does appear that the author has not been to a braai in the last 20 years! Roger 09:10, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] convenience braaiing

I see you removed my contribution to the braai article on wikipedia. It seems that you have done a lot of contributions on Wikipedia and know the system quite well. How can I add something about convenience braaiing without promoting any products? I would like to add something about this new trend, but do not want to promote my product. User:Bwkling (by email)

I took another look at your addition, to see what was salvageable, but couldn't find anything, I am afraid. I appreciate your courtesy in mailing for clarification, and I direct you to What Wikipedia is Not - in particular 'Wikipedia is not a soapbox' items 3 and 4. I live in South Africa, and I have never seen nor heard of 'convenience braaiing'. That is not to say it does not exist, but I need to see independent references, probably from more than one place, for the information to belong on wikipedia. I don't mean to bite the newbies, but I see this is your only contribution to wikipedia, and while we welcome newcomers, this looks too obvious as a promotional piece. Think 'report with references' rather than 'promote'. Wizzy…☎ 18:07, 8 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Merger Proposal

I'm probably going to step on a lot of toes by proposing this, but if one looks at Barbeque, there is a lot of overlapping. I suggest creating a section "Braai" in that article, highlighting the South African spin on barbeque. I know this is a bold suggestion, so feel free to critize it and motivate the reasons against a merger. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Bothar (talk • contribs) 14:28, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

Well, I've experienced both activities on different continents, and found little similarity. For example, in England:

  • 99% of people (Jamie Oliver excluded) turn up with hamburger patties and pork sausages (different ingredients)
  • Everyone tries to cook their own food, women included (procedural difference)
  • Women & men don't congregate separately (social difference)
  • Most of the food gets cooked when the fire is too hot, resulting in charred, but raw food (no braai-master)
  • People don't share what they bring with anyone else. (social difference)
  • No boerewors (different food)

Conversely in Australia, most cooking is with gas, although the variety of food cooked is probably more creative. A BBQ on another continent immediately becomes a braai when SA's turn up, because of the cultural norms of the group. So a braai is not just about cooking outside on a fire. If you're looking for a merger, I think potjiekos/braai is a better fit as the history and customs are the same. Socrates2008 15:19, 19 October 2007 (UTC)

Okay, so far most are against the merger (with good reasons, it seems). I will leave the tag for another few days and then remove it if there is no changes in the majority opinion. Bothar 07:26, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

Merge proposals removed. Bothar 14:33, 29 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Braai, the beloved country

Sorry, can someone explain what the following sentence is trying to say?

This term is a reflection of new South African humour that is characterised by bitterness and is self-deprecating and sometimes irreverent (and quite politically incorrect).

I think it is a gratuitous POV/Insult, but I am not 100% sure, (it could be because I have never heard of the saying "Braai, the beloved country" in 30 odd years of Braaing). FFMG (talk) 08:00, 29 April 2008 (UTC)

I removed it as it has no reference and I never heard of the saying or the meaning given. A quick search on Google seems to agree. FFMG (talk) 05:17, 20 May 2008 (UTC)