Bogobe jwa Lerotse

Ingredients

• 250 g sorghum meal
• 800 g lerotse melon, or butternut or sugar pumpkin
• 1.2 litres water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 200 ml cold water, for the slurry
• 2 tbsp sugar (optional)
• 20 g butter
• 250 ml sour milk (madila) or fresh milk, to serve

Before you cook

• Peel the melon, scoop out the seeds and cut the flesh into two centimetre cubes
• Mix the sorghum meal with the 200 ml of cold water in a jug until smooth

Steps

1. Bring the 1.2 litres of water to a boil in a heavy pot with the salt.
2. Add the melon cubes and boil them for fifteen minutes, until they collapse under a spoon.
3. Crush the softened melon against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon.
4. Pour the sorghum slurry into the pot in a slow stream, stirring hard so no lumps form.
5. Lower the heat and cook for twenty-five to thirty minutes, stirring every few minutes as it thickens and begins to plop.
6. Loosen the porridge with a splash of boiling water if it stiffens beyond a thick pouring consistency.
7. Stir in the sugar if you want it sweet, then beat in the butter.
8. Ladle the bogobe into bowls and pour cold sour milk over each one.