2 hours ago
31
Nothing says we love Heritage Day more than the food we indulge in as we celebrate the special holiday. And what better way to honour our heritage and culture than to be inspired by the marriage between fashion and home-cooked favourites?
At the magnificent home of Imprint ZA designer Mzukisi Mbane, guests- including SMag editor-in-chief Emmanuel Tjiya and stylist-to-the-stars Thobeka Mbane- tucked into a flavourful menu of classic homemade dishes with a modern twist, curated by Ezokhetho designer and foodie Mpumelelo Dhlamini.
As the guests broke bread at the harvest table, they shared memories of their favourite foods.
Mzukisi Mbane, fashion designer
Steamed bread with umleqwa, which is our version of free-range chicken. It symbolises home and connects me with memories of growing up. My mother cooks it for me and it's the most exciting thing she does for me when I go home in Cape Town.
She prepares the steamed bread and the chicken. She knows how much I value it. It's a way for us to connect as a family and brings me home.
Mpumelelo Dhlamini, designer and food stylist
My food heritage was shaped by several dishes. The dish that stands out is one my mom taught me, which is cabbage with beef bones. To make it, you boil the bones until they are rendered down into a flavoursome broth. Then you add cabbage, eggplant, and curry paste and cook it for another two to three hours. The bones add a buttery silkiness to the dish because of the fat from the bone marrow. This is my go-to meal.
Nombuso Kumalo, SMag writer
No family celebration is complete without a crumbling, fluffy and steamy heap of uphuthu (crumbly pap) with fresh goat mogodu (tripe) in a savoury broth. Preparations begin the night before, when the overwhelmingly pungent smell boils away into the early morning: The magic happens the following day. The mogodu is seasoned with stock cubes, chopped onions, and coarse salt (if you must) and left on the fire to soak up the goodness. My mom often seasons it with herbs and spices, but I have come to enjoy this version. Enjoy while it's hot and nix mapha!
Ray Manzana, photographer and videographer
My dad makes the world's best umngqusho (samp and beans). As a traditional Xhosa man, growing up we rarely saw him in the kitchen, so experiencing him behind the pot was a special occasion. He cooked it in the biggest pot at home. He brought his unique flare to the classic Xhosa dish by adding mince, cabbage, carrots, and potatoes. It was finger-licking and very spicy.
He would take all day making it, showing so much discipline and focusing on the details, which is an approach I bring into my creative process as a photographer/ videographer: My dad and I are not close, but that dish bonded us.
Emmanuel Tjiya, SMag editor-in-chief
Atchar is my fighter. It's the most delicious homegrown condiment. I can indulge in atchar day and night with almost every meal, adding it to rice, pap or bread to enhance the meal. My favourite combo is probably pap, grilled cabbage, and atchar. Pap, mopane worms, and atchar also slap. I want the good stuff, not the store-bought pickled version. Give me homemade mango atchar from my home province of Limpopo - extra spicy and tangy, then deliciously soaked in vegetable oil and finished with garlic. Here is the sad twist: I have terrible stomach ulcers, but atchar is the hill I'm willing to die on.
