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.
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
Eunice Rakhale-Molefe
brokenness. None of us, her children, had ever bothered to
ask her – besides being our mother – what she had really
wanted to do with her life. Suddenly, I saw my eighty four
year old mother as really being more than just a mother, but
as a woman who once had personal dreams and aspirations,
but had sacrificed her deeply-held, innermost desires so that
we, as her children, attain our respective objectives.
My mother’s frank sharing of herself had made me want to
know more about her childhood, her relationship with her
mother and father, her youth, the interlude during which
she had dated my father, leading to her marriage and
motherhood. Listening to her story had also ignited a deep
compassion and made me understand who she really was.
This had brought to mind, these words by Somerset
Maugham:
“For men and women are not only themselves; they are the region in
which they were born, the (townships) and (homes) in which they
learned to walk, the games they played as children, the fairy tales they
overheard, the food they ate, the schools they attended, the sports they
played, the books they read and the God they believed in.”
You see, for a long time Elia had been telling us about his
pain, and no one in the family had ever heard or listened to
him – intently, with compassion, unconditional love and
keen understanding. And, for the first time, I was filled with
immense empathy for both my mother and brother.
Essentially, kindheartedness is something that I first had to
understand and continue to learn in my latter years.
Back to the table...
Even though the discussion was heavy and somber, the
meeting ended on a high note, having been buoyed by a
good meal. With my brother having a beautiful voice like
my mother, our family meetings are always rounded off with
a hymn. A hymn, not a chorus. We always carry our hymnals
when we go home in case there is a meeting and we need to
sing before and after the meeting. My mother’s Sesotho
196
Change language