Good start to the braai season

Today heralded the onset of the braai season. The South African male is hardwired to respond to fine weather with a shout of: 'Let's braai!' and South African females' hearts sink at the thought of another six months of slogging in the kitchen, making the braai sauce, salads, wrapping potatoes in foil and transforming loaves of sliced bread into sandwiches of cheese, onion and tomato for toasted sarmies on the braai. Vast quantities of boerewors and chops, with perhaps a side of pork rib for nibbles, will have to be on hand - braais involve the eating of an average of five times the normal intake of meat at a meal - and if the man is not the best braaier in the world, could also entail a fair amount of chargrilling - none of which is ideal for the digestive tract.

Vast quantities of beer are also consumed as the rooikrans logs transform to charcoal - ready to cook when you can hold your hand over them for a count of 10. The beer is also handy to douse any flames which threaten to blacken the wors, although the amount required is carefully measured lest the coals be cooled too quickly or the throat become parched.

Today the meat was cooked to perfection, without a single char, the potatoes and toasted sarmies replaced by garlic bread done with the minimum of fuss in the oven, a minimal amount of green salad was required and the beer was kept to a happy medium. Apart from a minor incident involving Monty escaping and having a good run down to the rocks, and Biggles deciding that our friends' car would be a nice place to sleep and nearly being catnapped, it was a jolly good start to the braai season.

Long may it last!