DORAH SITOLE: QUEEN OF AFRICAN CUISINE

BUHLE MBONAMBI

THE death of culinary icon Dorah Sitole left many of us heartbroken. The celebrated chef and editor died in January this year. Her legacy will forever be that of one of the people who made us appreciate our indigenous cuisine.

“I believe we are on the cusp of an African food revolution,” she said on the eve of the release of what is now her final book, 40 Years of Iconic Food. “With this book, I seek to strike a balance between paying homage to traditional cooking methods and putting my own, modern, interpretation on authentic dishes.”

40 Years of Iconic Food was published in October 2020 and is a celebration of Sitole’s culinary journey, which took her from a hungry childhood in the townships to kitchens and cuisines across Africa and beyond. During her time as a judge on e.tv’s cooking show, Flava Queens, she told IOL how she wanted more people to embrace African cuisine.

“I worry about people not wanting to try our food. And yet we are so keen to try different cuisines. Everyone’s eating sushi. Even black kids. Why are we so keen to try out other food, and yet kids make faces about tripe. But they are very quick to eat oysters.

“It’s quite sad that people think we eat our food because of survival. I don’t think they realise it’s food we grew up on and that we aren’t eating it because of a lack of food. That’s the food that was cooked and eaten by our ancestors.”

For many of us, Sitole was the first person we thought of when someone mentioned a food editor. She was the authority when it came to our local cuisine and was unapologetic about it.

In 1994, Sitole edited Recipes with a Touch of Africa, which dedicated a special section to traditional African cooking. This was followed by Cooking from Cape to Cairo, in 1999, which was translated into German.

With that, here are some of our favourite recipes that Sitole shared with IOL Lifestyle over the years.

MOROGO WITH TURNIPS AND POTATOES (SERVES 4-6)

Ingredients:

2 bunches of morogo (wild spinach), well rinsed and finely chopped

1 bunch spring onions, chopped

1 bunch turnips, peeled and diced

3 potatoes, peeled and diced

salt and pepper, to taste

45g butter

Method:

Place morogo, spring onions, turnips, potatoes and a little water in a saucepan. Season well with salt and pepper. Let it boil and then simmer gently for about 30 minutes until cooked. Add the butter and serve on hot pap.

EAST-AFRICAN-STYLE FISH CURRY (SERVES 4)

Ingredients:

45ml oil

500g hake or Cape whiting steaks

2 red onions, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

15ml grated ginger

2 chillies, chopped

15ml curry powder

45ml curry paste

10ml turmeric

65g can of tomato paste

4 tomatoes, peeled and chopped

6 curry leaves,

optional salt and pepper to taste

250ml coconut cream

coriander for garnishing

Method:

Heat oil and brown the fish steaks on each side for about 5 minutes. Remove and keep warm. Add onions, garlic, ginger and chillies to pan and sauté until onions are soft.

Add curry powder, curry paste and turmeric and cook for 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, except coriander, and simmer gently for 10 minutes.

Return fish steaks to sauce, bring to boil and then turn down heat and simmer gently for 10 to 15 minutes until the fish is cooked. Gently fold through coriander leaves. Serve with Basmati rice.