South African Journey

Those that know me well know about a habit I have when I travel. For those that aren’t sure, I have a habit of photographing various meals I have on trips. I’m not sure when this first started but that’s not the point of this article. With all the various meals I have had the pleasure of having while in South Africa, I couldn’t go the whole year without sharing the wide range of food with you. (So those with weak stomachs you are warned ahead of time that you may not want to read past the midway point, as the food gets interesting!)

I’ll start off easy with the basic staple foods that are huge parts of most home cooked meals here. Maize in a number of forms is usually a part of any meal along with a few sides. Maize meal, mealie meal, Stamp/samp are the most common forms of maize. Mealie meal, or Pap (sounds like ‘pop’), is the most popular and is similar to grits, but it isn’t as runny. Sides usually include any combination of the following:  beetroot, pumpkin, potato salad, various vegetables, pasta salad, cabbage, baked beans (cold), ‘normal’ salad. Also, you can’t forget the meat and the type of meat has varied a lot for me, typically a chicken or beef, but I’ll get to more details later. Lastly, almost always there is a gravy of some kind poured over the pap and meat. These meals are usually eaten with your hands, by taking the pap and rolling a ball and using that to pick up the sides. I usually opt for a fork/spoon if I’m at home but have gotten quite accustomed to using my hands an entire meal…it’s also fun!

If you visit a restaurant you can order anything from traditional African foods to the classic American burger and fries. And everything in between is available at most places. For you fried chicken lovers…KFC is quite popular and I have had the honor of visiting it on numerous occasions with local friends. KFC and McDonalds are the only two American fast food places I have seen (I think) but there is no shortage to South African fast food joints. My favorite quick take away ‘meal’ is a township special around Jozi (Johannesburg) called Slice. Ingredients are (but not limited to):  chips (fries), cheese, slice (a bologna looking piece of meat), russian (brat), archaar (spice mango). Your choice of fillings are placed between 2 or 3 slices of bread. It’s not healthy, but it will fill you up for awhile…and make you really sleepy. Celebration’s call for a braai (cook-out), always a fun time. Chicken, beef, and wors (similar to a brat) are the usual meat options with pap and gravy to go along…don’t forget the House music or amazing group chorus’ in a variety of languages!

***Weak stomachs be warned***

One of my first weekends in Alex I spent with a few of the young adults at the church. I was told we were going to prepare dinner…they told me this with a smirk. Dinner was to be parts of a chicken that I had never thought of eating. Before we could cook we had to clean the pasta looking things…the chickens intestines! Already cooking on the stove were what was left of the chickens transportation…yes, it’s feet. Dinner was chicken intestine and chicken feet…with pap and gravy! And it was really good. Chicken feet don’t offer much in the form of meat, but eating them is quite a challenge the first time…and makes eating a chicken wing seem really easy. (side note:  the next night we had KFC for dinner)

For breakfast the following Monday morning I noticed something wrapped in newspaper on the table. Asked what it was and they told me to open it…I did so slowly and pulling the newspaper away it revealed a sheep head cut down the middle, cooked and seasoned. The local name for this is ‘scop’ and it‘s good with the seasoning. I was laughing as I ate my first bite…I was looking the then right in the eye! Good times!

At ceremonies I have attended for weddings, funerals, unveilings, cleansings, etc the hosting family slaughters an animal, usually cow or goat. And not a part goes to waste. On one occasion in December Tripe, or cow intestines, was given to use upon arrival the night before the ceremony. At a cleansing ceremony (celebration 6 months after the death of a family member) we had a stew that had the left over parts of the cow in it. We didn’t eat all the parts as some were used just for flavoring…not sure how to hoof of a cow…yet!

My host mom laughs when people ask what I think of the African food. She likes to share with people that I eat first and ask questions after. My thinking is, if I don’t eat I’ll be hungry, so if I can eat it and not know what it is then it shouldn’t matter when I do find out what I just ate…like meat from a cow head for breakfast after a cleansing ceremony in February.

Alright, at my home we have a wide range of meats to go with the various sides and pap combinations. We do have chicken legs, breasts, thighs, etc. But we also throw in intestines, feet, livers, kidneys, giblets, necks, and even the head has been known to make it’s way into something. Now I don’t enjoy all these parts of the chicken and being at home makes it easier to find something else if I need to.

I share all of this with you not to try and gross you out, or to ‘brag’ about the various foods I have encountered and tried while in South Africa. Just that I find it refreshing to know that the numerous cultures here don’t let anything go to waste. Whether the meat is braaied or cooked in a stew it is used and not thrown out. I am curious to what happens to all the parts of animals that isn’t put on grocery store shelves in the US. But I suspect much of it is ground into mystery meats served at schools, or into hot-dogs.

I hope you have enjoyed getting a look into some of the African food I have been introduced to. But please remember that the food described above are not the only foods you can find. There are so many wonderful foods I have encountered that you can’t go hungry. And I will admit that I will miss many of the wonderful flavors and meals that aren’t found back home…not yet at least!