SOUTH AFRICAN CULINARY HERITAGE
The book South African Culinary Heritage by Eunice Rakhale, is about local food history and traditions interlaced with family conversations. It illustrates the culinary diversity of Southern African cuisine and some neighbouring countries, comparing the similarities and unique palatable heritages thereof. Written in a conversational style, the book is a handy culinary compilation which will bestow the reader with explorations regarding local African lifestyles history, art, clothing, music and perhaps even some song and dance. For tourists visiting these African countries – possessing a diversity of ethnic cultures, it is a worthy read regarding heritage and of-course African cuisine. A guide which should be included in any tourist’s travel pack and families. It is about a genuine story told with an extraordinary ability that draws parallel between the author’s struggle in the restaurant industry and in her personal life. Ultimately, her passion for food is where she finds solace to learn, heal and grow. Mother Daughter relationships can be extremely complex and Eunice is no exception. In the book, besides a plethora of authentic recipes and history, she shares candidly about her strained relationship with her daughter Mothei Makhetha. Being estranged for seven years, Mothei writes her mother a letter, in a desperate cry for help, which she hopes will begin the healing process. After receiving the letter, circumstances of her life took Eunice back home to her mother in Moletsane, Soweto. This happens while she is researching her culinary book authenticating the recipes through the help of her mother. This handing down of recipes from her mother gets them connected on a very deep level, thus, creating compassion and trust they never had. In desperation Eunice seeks counselling from her own mother to try and mend the relationship with her daughter. Their journey is one of true and sincere conversations handed down from one generation to another, around family meals and prayerful family meetings.
The book South African Culinary Heritage by Eunice Rakhale, is about local food history and traditions interlaced with family conversations. It illustrates the culinary diversity of Southern African cuisine and some neighbouring countries, comparing the similarities and unique palatable heritages thereof. Written in a conversational style, the book is a handy culinary compilation which will bestow the reader with explorations regarding local African lifestyles history, art, clothing, music and perhaps even some song and dance. For tourists visiting these African countries – possessing a diversity of ethnic cultures, it is a worthy read regarding heritage and of-course African cuisine. A guide which should be included in any tourist’s travel pack and families.
It is about a genuine story told with an extraordinary ability that draws parallel between the author’s struggle in the restaurant industry and in her personal life. Ultimately, her passion for food is where she finds solace to learn, heal and grow.
Mother Daughter relationships can be extremely complex and Eunice is no exception. In the book, besides a plethora of authentic recipes and history, she shares candidly about her strained relationship with her daughter Mothei Makhetha. Being estranged for seven years, Mothei writes her mother a letter, in a desperate cry for help, which she hopes will begin the healing process. After receiving the letter, circumstances of her life took Eunice back home to her mother in Moletsane, Soweto. This happens while she is researching her culinary book authenticating the recipes through the help of her mother. This handing down of recipes from her mother gets them connected on a very deep level, thus, creating compassion and trust they never had. In desperation Eunice seeks counselling from her own mother to try and mend the relationship with her daughter.
Their journey is one of true and sincere conversations handed down from one generation to another, around family meals and prayerful family meetings.
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Tender Herbs
South African Culinary Heritage
These herbs have soft, fragile leaves and need careful
handling. They should be added in the last few minutes of
cooking time or to the finished dish. Popular tender herbs
are: Basil, which goes well with tomatoes and African
traditional style dishes; chervil, dill and tarragon, which are ideal
for fish, eggs and cream sauces; mint, coriander and the great,
full-bodied parsley.
Full-Bodied Hardy Herbs
These herbs have tough, woody stems and strong leaves and
withstand long cooking. These should be added at the
beginning of the cooking, to extract and mellow their
flavour; and should be removed just before serving. These
include richly flavoured bay leaves, which go well with
Mogodu; sweet-smelling aromatic Oregano, Marjoram and
Thyme, which are ideal for Umleqwa (Traditional Chicken) and
Maotwana (Chicken Trotters); Rosemary, which goes well with
Lamb Shank; and Sage, which is suited for pork dishes.
Hot Spices
Spices are usually added at the beginning of cooking time.
However, these may be bitter if cooked for a long time and should
be added halfway through the cooking. Many spices add heat to
dishes, some give just a hint of warmth, while others
introduce a fierce heat to the meal. The essentially hot spices are
chilli, ginger, pepper and mustard. There more than two hundred
types of chilli, and these vary in shape, size, color and
potency, and can be bought fresh, dried, flaked or ground.
Chilli powder may be hot or mild, and can also vary from
red hot cayenne pepper to mild sweet paprika. All chilli can
be bitter after long cooking and should therefore be added
halfway through the cooking time. Peppercorns add a kick to
the dish, with black seeds being the hottest.
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