My food HERITAGE

As Heritage Month approaches, our thoughts turn to our families and the traditions that are an integral part of our family’s heritage and food is one of those.

Alyssia Birjalal

Being a South African Indian has really put me at a great advantage, I can safely say that our country is flavourful in all kinds of ways. There are a few things in life that I will never compromise on, good food is one of them.

As a South African Indian – now over 30 – I have had the opportunity to taste a variety of food that comes from this rainbow nation, from pap, vleis, and chakalaka to bobotie and every curry under the sun. Let’s not forget one of my go-to favourites, the world-renowned toasted cheese on my meat-free days.

I have also had the privilege to travel abroad, but nothing is better than our home-grown flavourful dishes that pack a mean punch.

People may think that growing up in an “Indian” household, it is just bunny chows or curries daily, but this myth is just that…a myth.

Of course, there are days that I crave a good lamb curry and occasionally we do set out a fire for that specially cooked chicken curry, but certainly living in a rainbow nation has shaped the way I look at food and eat it too.

ALYSSIA Birjalal says nothing is better than our homegrown flavourful dishes.

ZamaNdosi Cele

Everything I know about food and cooking, I learned from the women who raised me. From my mom to my aunts and grandmothers, they have made me the woman that I am. The traditional foods they made took time and heart, which is one of my love languages. Since cooking is a labour of love, I don’t cook for just anyone. It is a gift I retain strictly for family and those I esteem.

Working with food has been a way to express my feelings, from kneading my frustrations out with dough to showing love with a three-course “seven colours” meal.

I love amabele porridge with powdered milk for breakfast. It reminds me of my family in Johannesburg but more specifically, my late aunt Mamkhulu Zodwa. She had a way of making me open up over her famous bowl. I love how simple it is to prepare uphuthu and imfino (green leafy vegetables). I also love the taste and colour of isigwaqane, a pap made of mealie meal and beans. All these recipes were passed on from my great grandmother to my mother and now me.

ZAMANDOSI Cele thanks the women in her life for teaching her about food.

Gerry Cupido

Some of my fondest childhood memories are centred around food. Whether it is catching up on the day over a simple dinner or having the entire family – uncles, aunties, grandparents, and all the little ones – around for a great Sunday lunch, food brings us together.

While we all love the eating part of such a gathering, there is something very special about, what my mom and I refer to as “the dance” in the kitchen as we prepare the dishes. Sipping on wine and listening to our favourite tunes, as we whip up a meal.

My mother is a fantastic cook! She can effortlessly cook up a three-course meal with all the trimmings. But it’s her everyday meals that can silence even the most talkative one at the table. From her famous frikkadels, my daughter’s favourite, to her hearty stews, my dad’s favourite, we are truly spoilt. Her lamb curry is the most requested by family and guests alike. And it is the one dish that has taken me years to master even though I have watched her make it thousands of times.

Gerry Cupido credits her mother for bringing the family together around food.

Vuyile Madwantsi

In my life food is something I strongly tie to our custom-made traditions. Rainy winter days cannot pass without craving amaThambo (bone broth or marrow) and amagwinya (fat cakes), this is something that has become so intrinsic in our family. I don’t care where I am in the world but when the weather becomes a little brisk, I know it is go time.

My mother, who we dearly refer to as chommie (friend), enjoys telling us stories of how she would make the very meal for her brothers growing up. Of course, oil was a scarce commodity as we can all relate to now but the steamed bread and bone broth soup would take rounds around the cosy rondavel we have come to love.

VUYILE Madwantsi loves amaThambo (bone broth or marrow) and amagwinya (fatcakes).

Lutho Pasiya

Some of the greatest influences on food has been a father figure. Growing up, I learned that putting a traditional, nutritious and delicious meal on the table does not have to be complicated. One of my favourite traditional recipes from my dad is one with the fewest ingredients: umngqusho (samp and beans).

So simple, but it is how it is prepared and cooked that makes it so delicious. He also taught me how one ingredient can change the flavour of a whole dish. For example, how you can use Holsum when cooking samp and beans, but not tone down the flavour of the dish. My dad taught me everything I needed to know about the kitchen and our food as Xhosa people. He passed down most of his recipes to me.

The smell of samp and beans, umphokoqo (crumbled maize meal), and beef stew will forever be in my memories because of him.

LUTHO Pasiya says her father taught her about Xhosa food.

Bobotie One Pot. pic Neville Lockhart