Bobotie from South Africa

Bobotie pronounced [bɒˈboʊti]

Babotie

As a lover of Cottage and Shepherd's Pie, this instantly caught my eye. There's no mash involved but instead, custard!
I've omitted from my version some of the original ingredients; almonds, apricots, sultanas/raisins and chutney, as I found the dish quite sweet enough without these.
Ingredients:
400g Lean Ground Beef Mince
400g Lean Ground Lamb Mince
2 tbsp Sunflower Oil
2 Large Diced Onions
2 Allspice Berries
2 tbsp Malt Vinegar
Splash of Balsamic Vinegar
Splash of Light Soy Sauce
2 Slices of White Bread
1 Cup of Full Fat Milk
1 tbsp Madras-style Curry Powder
1 tsp Tumeric Powder
2 tbsp Sugar
2 tsp Sea Salt
A liberal grinding of freshly grated Black Pepper
3 Eggs
4 Bay Leaves
Method: Pan fry the oil and onions until softened and transparent. Add the ground meat and continue cooking until the meat starts to brown.

While the meat is cooking, soak the bread in the milk. Once the meat is nicely browned, squeeze most of the milk from the bread and crumble it into the frying pan. Reserve the milk for the custard topping.
Now add the Soy Sauce and Malt and Balsamic Vinegars to the pan. Using a large pestle and mortar grind all of the remaining ingredients (except the Eggs and Bay Leaves) and add to the pan. Stir through for a minute and then remove from heat. Transfer to a greased baking dish large enough so that the mixture sits about one to one and a half inches thick. Smooth the top with the back of a spoon so that it is flat and without gaps. Whisk three eggs in a bowl with the milk and then pour over the meat mixture. Top with bay leaves and bake at 180°C for about an hour until the top of the Bobotie is golden brown.  Serve with some potato-based products and vegetables

Cost: Most of the ingredients come from the store cupboard, with the only real outlay being for the mince - the above recipe serves four at a cost of about £2.50 per person, including accompaniments.