About beskuit (rusks)

Beskuit, known as "rusks" in English, is made from dough, broken or cut into chunks or slices after baking, and then slowly dried in an oven. It is usually briefly dipped into a warm drink such as coffee, tea, or rooibos tea before being eaten.

Beskuit (South African rusks) is the ideal snack food for rumbling tummies; morning, noon and night.

Making beskuit is simple: balls of dough are packed into loaf tins and baked in the oven. Once cooked, the risen balls are then separated and dried out completely in a warm oven for a couple of hours.

Beskuit is best enjoyed when dunked into a hot drink of coffee or tea. Be careful not to dunk it for too long though: it will become too soggy and end up inside your cup.

A traditional way to treat stay-over guests, is to wake then with a tray of freshly brewed coffee and rusks.

Beskuit variations include buttermilk, aniseed, bran, muesli, etc. The raising agent can be self raising flour, baking powder combined with buttermilk or yeast. Instant yeast is common, with alternatives such as potato yeast or must "mos". Must is the juice of grapes in the first stages of fermentation. Beskuit made with mos, "mosbolletjie", are particularly good.