Ask any South African living in the UK what they miss most about home and the answer is rarely a landmark. It is a jar of Mrs Ball's chutney on the table, a rusk dunked in the first coffee of the day, or a shake of Aromat over hot chips. These are the flavours of childhood, school lunchboxes and Sunday braais.

The good news is that you do not need a flight to Johannesburg to find them. Here are 10 South African grocery staples everyone should try, whether you grew up with them or you are discovering them for the first time, along with how South Africans actually use them and where to buy South African groceries in the UK.

If South Africa had a national condiment, this would be it. Mrs Ball's is a sweet, fruity chutney made with peaches and apricots, and it has been a fixture on South African tables for over a century. The story goes that the recipe came from Amelia Ball's family, and she began selling it commercially in the early 1900s.

South Africans put it on almost everything: bobotie, curries, cheese toasties, braaied meat and even mixed into mayonnaise as a quick dip. Choose from Mrs Ball's Original, Peach or Hot.

Rusks are twice-baked, crunchy biscuits made for dunking, and Ouma is the brand most South Africans grew up with. The name means "granny" in Afrikaans, and the brand began in a small Eastern Cape town in the late 1930s. A rusk dipped in tea or coffee is the classic South African start to the day.

Pick up a box of Ouma Rusks, or try our A Taste of Home rusks in flavours including buttermilk, bran and almond with cranberry.

Rooibos (pronounced roy-boss, meaning "red bush") is a herbal tea made from a plant that grows only in the Cederberg region of the Western Cape. It brews a deep amber-red colour with a smooth, slightly sweet, earthy flavour, and it is naturally caffeine-free, so it is a favourite at any time of day.

South Africans drink it with milk and sugar just like regular tea, or black with a slice of lemon. Try Freshpak Rooibos, the everyday classic, or Babylonstoren Honeybush Tea, a close cousin from the same part of the Cape.

Aromat is a savoury all-purpose seasoning in a distinctive yellow tub. It was first made in Switzerland, but South Africans have adopted it so completely that most assume it is home-grown. It adds a salty, umami kick to chips, eggs, popcorn, corn on the cob and buttered toast.

Shop Aromat Original, or try the Peri Peri and Chilli Beef versions.

First, the important part: there are no monkeys involved. Monkey gland sauce is a rich, tangy, slightly sweet steak sauce made with tomato, onion, chutney and Worcestershire-style flavours. Legend has it the name was a chef's joke at a Johannesburg hotel in the 1920s, and it stuck.

It is the classic topping for steaks, burgers and boerewors rolls. Steers Monkey Gland Sauce comes from one of South Africa's best-loved burger chains.

Ask a South African about ketchup and you will be politely corrected: it is tomato sauce, and it is All Gold. Thicker and fruitier than the British supermarket versions, it has been a South African household name for generations and turns up on everything from pies to vetkoek.

Grab a bottle of All Gold Tomato Sauce, and while you are there, try All Gold Smooth Apricot Jam, the jam of choice for South African scones.

Maize meal is the foundation of pap, a porridge that is to South Africa what potatoes are to Britain. Cooked soft, it makes a breakfast porridge. Cooked stiff, it becomes "stywe pap", the essential side at any braai. Cooked crumbly, it becomes "krummelpap", perfect with a spicy tomato and onion relish.

Iwisa Super Maize Meal is the trusted brand, and it pairs perfectly with All Gold Braai Relish and a coil of boerewors.

Every South African has a strong opinion about crisps. Simba's Mrs Ball's Chutney flavour is a cult favourite, and Nik Naks, the knobbly, brightly coloured cheesy maize snacks, are pure childhood nostalgia. Neither tastes quite like anything you will find on a UK supermarket shelf.

Stock up on Simba Crisps in a choice of flavours, and Nik Naks for the full lunchbox experience.

Stoney is a fiery, properly gingery soft drink that South Africans swear by. It has much more bite than most ginger beers, which is exactly why people love it. Serve it ice cold at a braai, or use it as a mixer.

Pick up Stoney Ginger Beer, and for something to make the children's day, try Mazoe orange cordial, a Southern African favourite.

South Africa has a rich curry tradition, shaped by its Indian and Cape Malay communities. Rajah is the curry powder found in almost every South African kitchen cupboard, used for everything from Durban-style curries to bobotie and curried mince.

Choose Rajah Mild & Spicy for everyday cooking, or Rajah Hot if you like a proper kick. No time to cook? Try our ready-made Durban curries.

Ten was never going to be enough. If you are building a proper taste-of-home shop, add a few of these to your basket:

• Koeksisters. Plaited, syrup-soaked fried dough. Sticky, sweet and utterly addictive. Shop Koeksisters.
• Braai seasoning. Marina Braai Salt and Ina Paarman's Braai & Grill Seasoning are the shortcuts to a proper South African braai flavour.
• Bakers biscuits. Eet-Sum-Mor shortbread and Choc-kits are lunchbox legends.
• Biltong and droëwors. No South African grocery shop is complete without them, and ours is one of the best tasting biltong collections in the UK. Shop biltong.

Billy Tong stocks a wide range of South African groceries alongside our award-winning biltong, droëwors, braai meats and South African wines. You can shop two ways:

Our shop is an easy trip from Esher, Oxshott, Weybridge, Walton-on-Thames, Leatherhead and South West London, so it is the perfect place to stock up before a braai, a rugby weekend or a family visit.