Shawn Godfrey is an entrepreneur based in Cape Town, South Africa. After the Covid-19 lockdown saw his business in financial distress, cooking was the creative outlet that helped to keep him sane. To keep track of his recipes, and encourage friends and families to join him, he starts his instagram account The Roasted Dad.
Fast-forward to late 2021 – on a whim Shawn (encouraged by his wife Lianne) enters MasterChef South Africa. It is a crazy time of life: running a 200 people business and struggling to keep it profitable, two small children with a third on the way, and about to move into a new house. But when Shawn gets selected to be one of the 20 contestants participating in the fourth season of MasterChef South Africa, he decides to go all in. Leaving his 7-month-pregnant wife to look after their then three and one-year-old children, he battles it out and comes back home five weeks later with the trophy and a million rand prize money in his pocket.
It all started with an Instagram account, but The Roasted Dad is so much more now. Shawn has stayed his entrepreneurial self and whilst he hosts Private Dinner Parties and Cook-with-Me Demos, does Restaurant Take-Overs, he still runs the lighting company and several other businesses.
On his blog, Shawn shares Restaurant Reviews and Accommodation Reviews, and gives an insight into the wild and wonderful life he leads together with his wife Lianne, and their three children Aiden (6), Olivia (4) and Harvey (2).
Tips Pork belly dishes have always been my favourite to cook. I have smoked pork belly, oven baked, braised, pressure potted and put it in the Weber. But ultimately, I have found the best pork belly is done in an oven where consistency and accurate temperature control...
Ingredients 500g of store-bought white bread dough (if you want to make your own bread dough from scratch, you can follow a simple white bread flour recipe) 4 plums, halved and pitted and cut into slices 100g pancetta or streaky bacon 150g fresh bocconcini mozzarella...
This delicious salad recipe pairs well with ostrich or lamb, the rich earth notes and the sweet and tangy apple will bring about a delight to a dinner table. Ingredients 80g watercress 6 plums, halved, de-pipped 500g beetroot cooked, peeled and quartered 2 large...
Ingredients 1 whole ostrich fillet (400g) 20g thyme 20g rosemary Smokey Maldon salt Freshly ground, black pepper 4 large nectarines 4-5 Tbsp of olive oil 4-5 Tbsp of high heat oil for cooking if using a pan Method Leave the steak out of the fridge for a few hours so...
Ingredients 4 thick cut lamb loin chops (roughly 650g, get your butcher to cut them specially) 20g rosemary for marinating 2 Tbsp fresh chopped garlic ⅓ cup of olive oil 2 fresh yellow cling peaches cut in half and pitted 1 cup of sweet corn boiled ⅓ cup of mint ½ a...
Ingredients 800g lightly smoked snoek (often called ‘braai snoek’ on South African retailer shelves) Juice of one whole lemon 8 fresh plums (leave 2 plums aside for garnish) 60ml water 250g white sugar 20g fresh basil leaves 2 Tbsp fresh ginger grated 2 Tbsp fresh...