Table of contents for Issue 3 2021 in Koe'sister

20 May 1967 – 4 March 2021 “Happy 2021. My wish for all of us in the LRSB group is good health, prosperity, love and unbridled joy. May you soar to new heights in this time of global uncertainty. May we stay true and never lose our compassion, empathy and love for humanity. To social solidarity. And in our case, cooking, baking and breaking bread with family, friends and Food Fairies. May our plates overflow with friendship, food and fierce love of sharing and caring through good food. Love and light y’all.” – Karima Brown’s message to fellow LRSB group members Find Karima’s lentil curry and chicken noodle soup recipes in the Lockdown Recipe Storytelling Book (order via annakem@mweb.co.za), and read her sourdough journey in the launch issue of Koe’sister…

JESSIE’S AARTAPPELPORRING Fahiem Stellenboom I am my mother’s child. I mean I am of her, the firstborn of three, with so much of her in me that I carry her in me and with me. Proudly. On 19 June 2020, Yasmina Stellenboom, better known as Jessie, my mum, celebrated her eightieth birthday during lockdown. I broke the lockdown regulations for the occasion. After all, it’s a milestone. However, I wore a mask, sanitised regularly and did the social distancing thing. It is she who inspired, encouraged and instilled in me a love for the arts and beautiful things. This was most unusual for a nice Muslim girl from a traditional Cape Malay family in District Six. My mother had other dreams and aspirations as a teenager and young woman. She…

Travel broadens the mind, but too much travel crushes the body. I hesitated myself to a standstill for a long time before writing this mini reflection on travel. It reveals too much about my nerdish interiority. The exercise triggered the realisation that I am quite offbeat, as I find it hard to get out of my head regardless of the destination. Analysis paralysis. I used to travel so much for my work that it had lost its appeal. Instead, I suffered the trip because I usually loved the destinations and the interesting people I met That too was bittersweet. Workshops happened in beautiful settings, but I had to spend most of my time indoors, facilitating, planning, chatting to participants or conducting interviews and writing these up in between room service…

I went to Italy in 1989. I was 19 years old and was going to au pair with a family I had never met. The trip there was a disaster and bad fog had us fly in circles over Milan for four hours before being redirected to another airport. There were no mobile phones back then and I had no way of contacting the family who waited for me at a different airport. After hours of calls between Italy and South Africa, we finally found each other. Me, tired and nervous, the Italian parents and three little kids, totally exhausted. Their eight-year-old daughter sighed with relief when she saw me and said in Italian: “At least it’s not the ugly girl I saw earlier!” That started the first laugh of…

This dish is called Osh, a pilaf that originates from Uzbekistan. Just after South Africa’s first democratic elections in April 1994,we left for Uzbekistan. As soon as we arrived, I became familiar and very interested in Uzbek cooking. I have been making Osh for 26 years. Osh is and remains a favourite with my children, family and friends. I often make it, but especially for family gatherings. • 45 ml cooking oil • 2 large onions, chopped • 1 kg beef goulash, rubbed with olive oil, cumin and coriander (you may also use lamb) • 760 g (1 000 ml) grated carrots • 45 ml cumin seeds (this is the most important ingredient) • 420 g (750 ml) rice, parboiled (I pour boiling water over and let it rest, covered.)…

My mother, although a stay-at-home parent, could not boil an egg, let alone cook. But she was remarkable at making food bought at Garlicks and Woolies look well. And, yes, she had a secret goto shop called Barry’s in Rink Street, Port Elizabeth, where she bought good food from huge bain maries filled with all the home cooking you could want. My father always cooked on Sunday. He made the most delicious Cape Malay dishes and I think I picked up my love of cooking from him. As the years rolled, by I taught myself to cook. One of my favourite dishes to make is lamb pilau made with a carrot base. It is roughly based on a Kazakhstani pilau although I added a curry element. My family absolutely loves…

Op 16 Desember 2017 staan ek in Brasilië met my 20 kilogram tas. Hoewel ons nog ’n week moet wag voor Nathan vanuit Chili in Santiago by ons aansluit, is my moederhart warm. Ek is op dieselfde kontinent wat my seun nou byna ’n jaar lank sy tuiste noem. Effens ongeduldig doen ek mee aan alles. Ek drink caipirinha (tradisionele Brasiliaanse drankie), eet pao de queijo (eintlik net kaas en die ongeloofl ikste brood), dans in Avenida Paulista (die byna 3 km straat wat op ’n Sondag afgebaken word vir ’n klein karnaval met straatmarkies en straatkunstenaars). My kop staan Iguazu watervalle toe! Met die beplanning van die vakansie het ek net drie versoeke gehad. Eerstens dat ek die waterval en die Marble Caves in Patagonia besoek en tweedens dat…

Wat is kos sonder ’n storie of ’n gedig? We were black enough to earn enough to splurge on the three-course banquet of green-bean bredie; Sunday heaven in a mystery of cloves and peppercorn. Mngqusho on the side and turmeric-yellow rice, cardamom scent in a bowl of sago or a choice of jelly and custard. The happy certainty of Monday leftover beef on baked bread red with beetroot salad, or, the belly-comfort of pens-en-pootjies; curried silt in a history of run-aways to the walk-aways at Aunty Meisie’s fiftieth wedding anniversary biduur where it was so well with our souls that we never gave thought to who we were in the lull of the skuinslê between the long late lunch and afternoon tea. The heavy chain of time, dragging through the…

Much as we love samoosas, not many have attempted making them at home, largely because the process can be a little daunting. Yet, once you’ve done it, you will have a new appreciation for what a labour of love it is to make this deep-fried deliciousness. Those who’ve been there, done that shared their samoosa-making secrets and stories with the group. PRODUCTION LINE Mariam Peters My family used to make our own pur (the sheets of dough used to make the samoosa strips or velle, in Afrikaans). It really was a family affair; two aunts made the dough, my one cousin and I rolled the balls and a third aunty rolled out the balls into saucer-sized flat circles. Then my youngest aunt began the easiest job – brushing each layer…

It is September 1996, and I am wandering Amsterdam’s cobbled streets along the canals, marvelling at the cleanliness of the public spaces and the carefully crafted, arty clutter in the small shops. I’ve been walking for hours, lost but not lost, my bus number and apartment address in De Pijp safe in my back pocket. It is my first time in the city. I’ve just completed my Master’s dissertation in England and stopped over before making my way back to Cape Town after a year’s absence. My sons are 15 and 11 years old, and I have not seen them for eight months. I am staying in the bohemian apartment of the luscious Sophie, who I met at a conference in Spain a year ago. I have just said my…

In my previous job, we had regional and project offlces around the globe. Part of our team-building exercises was to flex our culinary skills. You truly get to know a person through their spoken language and the food they eat. Lockdown made me try out some recipes from other cultures, too. Here is my take on a Mauritian fish curry. Mauritian curries are fragrant, light dishes made with thyme and fresh coriander, as well as heady spices such as cinnamon, coriander, cumin and turmeric. Mauritian style fish curry Approximately 1 – 1.5 kg fish (I use yellowtail, but any firm fish will do.) RUB • 10 ml garlic paste • 10 ml ginger paste • Salt and pepper (to taste) • 15 ml vinegar CURRY • 1 medium onion…

“Beam me up Scotty With!" a casual double tap above his heart, Captain Kirk disintegrates, to seconds later take control of his starship, Enterprise! Reis a la Star Trek in die toekoms lyk te onpersoonlik. Ek wil die vibrasie voel as die kragtige Rolls Royce van die General Electric-vervaardigde enjins die vliegtuig oor die aanloopbaan aanjaag om so lig soos ’n ballerina op te styg na nog ’n vakansie erens in die wereld. Vakansies is altyd ’n “ons” ding in die familie. Vanaf ons eerste internasionale vlug met British Airways se Boeing 747 na Brussels via Heathrow, Engeland, in 1997 tot die onlangse Dreamlineer 787 van Ethiopian Air, reis ons altyd as ’n familie. Wanneer daardie eerste gedempte ding-dong in die vliegtuig gehoor word, maak ek nog ’n regmerkie langs…

400 g chicken breast fillets, cut into bitesized pieces Salt to season Cornflour, to coat chicken (about half a cup) Vegetable oil, for deep frying, plus 15 ml extra for vegetables 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped 1 onion, sliced 120 g (190 ml) raw cashews 1 pepper, or as desired, deseeded and cut into bite-sized pieces (I combine green and red pepper) 1-2 dried red chillies, cut into small bitesized pieces (optional) 65 ml sliced spring onion STIR-FRY SAUCE These are the basic ingredients, but you can add Hoisin or Oyster Sauce according to your taste or what you have at home. 30 ml soy sauce 30 ml white vinegar 30 ml sugar 5 ml dark sweet soy sauce 2.5 ml corn flour Alternatively use storebought stirfry sauce.…

I have been making lemon meringue since I was a teen. My recipe comes with tips I gleaned from Bob Hope’s recipe (yes, that Bob) that was published in Reader’s Digest magazine. While there are those who prefer shortcrust pastry, fellow LRSB Facebook group members Carmen Siologas and Anita Shaw have tried tried my recipe and confirmed that it was easy and that their lemon meringues were a success. The recipe is a mengelmoes of different recipes. The base comes from a fridge tart I received from a friend in primary school, the filling is from the label of a Nestlé condensed milk tin with improvisation on my part, and the meringue is Bob Hope’s. TIPS 1. Always use a glass or metal bowl to make meringue. Plastic will retain…

• Wear sunscreen. We were sunburnt because we did not realise that one can burn on a cloudy day. • We chose Phuket, because Bangkok with all its glamour is just another big city such as Dubai, New York or London. • Although Phuket is touristy, we rented a car and explored places off the beaten track where the locals were and shops that the hotel shuttles didn’t stop at stop. Go to https://visit.gent.be/en, www.visittheusa.com, https://u.ae/en and www.tourismthailand.org to check Covid-19 measures in place.…

Saturdays in the Subramoney home in Durban was reserved for chicken curry, yellow rice and carrot salad with cucumbers and tomatoes sliced into rings. I was one of those annoying, fanatical kids who threw tantrums when the salad was prepared in any other way or if the rice wasn’t yellow. There was no Saturday night off from cooking for my parents, because I refused to eat anything else. Over the years and as I grew up, I eventually gave my parents a break and agreed to dining out or even eating chicken curry not prepared by them. Now that I have my own family, I’ve adjusted these classic Indian recipes to suit the preferences of my beautiful mixed family. My Pretoria-born partner loves Durban curry, but hates onions. My daughter…