A staple at braais all around the country, Homemade South African Garlic Bread features a baguette sliced into bite-sized sections (without cutting all the way through), then generously smothered with garlic butter and wrapped in foil before being roasted to perfection. The result? Golden and crunchy on the outside, soft and buttery on the inside, with plenty of garlicky goodness tucked into every slice.
Yes, you can buy garlic bread from the shops. But really, it is so much more fun to make yourself, and homemade always tastes better.
In the recipe below, I’ll show you how to make a simple garlic butter from scratch, but if you’re short on time, there’s absolutely no shame in buying ready-made garlic butter and taking a shortcut. Okay maybe a little judgement.
To start, you’ll need a baguette or French loaf. Slightly day-old bread actually works best because it’s a little firmer and easier to slice.
The garlic butter recipe makes enough for two loaves of garlic bread, which is great because garlic bread freezes beautifully. If you’re only feeding a small crowd, make two loaves, bake one and freeze the other for another day.
The garlic butter itself couldn’t be simpler. It’s just butter, garlic, fresh parsley and salt. That’s it! Mix everything together until well combined and you’re ready to start buttering.
When it comes to slicing the bread, I like to cut it into bite-sized pieces as you can see in the photos. I slice horizontally across the loaf because, well, I think it looks prettier, but the important thing is not to cut all the way through. Leave the base intact so the loaf stays together.
Next, spread garlic butter between the slices. I usually butter just one side of each cut and find that’s more than enough.
Wrap the loaf in foil, making sure the top can be easily opened later, then bake until hot and buttery. Finally, open the foil and bake for a few more minutes until the top is beautifully golden and crisp.
Serve immediately and prepare yourself for everyone to reach for seconds.
If you’re having a braai, you may also want to take a look at these essential (and incredible) braai recipes:
- Mushroom Sauce
- Chakalaka
- Prego Sauce
- Peppermint Crisp Pudding
- Malva Pudding
- Potato Bake
- Rosemary and Lemon Potatoes
Homemade Garlic Bread – Classic South African Recipe
Prep Time: 5 minutes- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 2 garlic breads 1x
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Homemade South African Garlic Bread made with a crusty baguette, plenty of garlic butter and baked until golden and crispy. The perfect braai side dish that’s crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside and packed with flavour
Ingredients
- 2 baguettes / french loaves
- ¾ cup butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed or grated
- 1 teaspoon salt flakes
Instructions
To Make the Garlic Butter
- Place the softened butter, parsley, garlic and salt in a medium-sized bowl.
- Mix until well combined. You can use an electric mixer for a smoother texture or simply mix by hand.
To Make the Garlic Bread
- Slice the loaves into bite-sized sections, taking care not to cut all the way through.
- Spread a little garlic butter onto one side of each slice.
- Wrap the loaves in foil, leaving enough room at the top so you can easily open it later to brown the bread.
- Bake at 180°C for 15–20 minutes, or until the bread is heated through and crisp around the edges.
- Open the foil and bake for a further 4–5 minutes until the top is beautifully golden and crunchy.
- Serve immediately while warm and buttery.
Notes
- Any leftover garlic butter can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
- Garlic Butter is also delicious on baked potatoes, vegetables, steak or corn on the cob.
- Garlic Bread can be frozen for 6-8 weeks
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