Bunny Chow; Apartheid Relic, South African Icon

Bunny Chow was born in the throes of Apartheid, during the Second World War. During this period African workers were unable to carry knives, cutlery, and items the police could construe as a potential weapon. Workers were at a disadvantage as to where they could eat as they weren’t allowed to dine in non-black restaurants. Bunny Chow became a way to carry your lunch and eat it too – without the need of accoutrements. It flourished during a time of suffocating social restrictions by the South African government.

The origins of Bunny Chow come from the city of Durban, on the Indian ocean side of South Africa. Indian restauranteurs, a class of merchants known as “Banias” originally designed it as a portable meal; black workers found it as a way to circumvent the law. The preparation was simple. A loaf of white bread was cut in half and one end snipped so that the half loaf could stand on end. The inner aspect was hollowed out so as to make the end result a bowl made of bread. In the cavity, or hole, one could put a myriad of favorite fillings, meaty or vegan, a curry or a sambal for example. The result was a meal ready to go. It was a bowl of bread and a ‘soup’ of tasty filling that gained favor with the people. Pieces of the bread rim could be broken off and used to scoop the filler. When the filler was eaten you could then consume the bowl itself. This became very popular among the population who could slip by the back doors of an (Indian) restaurant and pay for/pick up their meals on the go. The Chow was named after the “Banias” initially but the name was corrupted by the South African dialect to become “Bunny”. Don’t allow your long-eared furry friends to become hopping mad. There is no rabbit in “Bunny Chow”.

With the collapse of Apartheid in the 1990s Bunny Chow, to contrary expectations, survived as a popular dish. American companies such as McDonalds, Wendy’s, Burger King, and Kentucky Fried Chicken moved in but their fare could not outpace the status of Bunny Chow. It not only remained popular with the labor force but now with office personnel, schoolchildren, and especially those in rural communities where small eateries still served it. Its popularity also spread northward to the nearby country of Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia). This simple meal, a remnant of a terrible age, survived and retained its place in the cultural cuisine of the people and the soul of their country.

Recommended References;

“Bunny Chow Recipe”. August 15, 2022. Dan Toombs. The Curry Guy. https://greatcurryrecipes.net

“Bunny Chow”. January 26, 2016. Imma Adamu. Immaculate Bites. https://www.africanbites.com

“How to Make Authentic South African Bunny Chow at Home”. March 26, 2025. Kofi Adeyemi. Cultures of West Africa. https://www.culturesofwestafrica.com

Robert Killeen