Woolworths Taste – August 2019

addsomewateruntilthefoodis cooked,

donotburnthepots.ButI amtenyears

old,andmyheartis inthestreetswhere

myfriendshavestartedthelastsetof

marounders, touchorskippingrope

withoutme.I chastisethemandinsiston

skippingevenif onlyfora minute.Bythe

timeI returntothekitchen,thesmellof

charredpotsgreetsmeatthedoorwhere

Gogois standingholdinga wetdishcloth.

I am 18 yearsoldandvisitingGogo

duringuniversityholidays.SheknowsI love

idombolo, steamedbread.Shewakesup

atfourthefollowingmorningtomixflour,

sugar,yeast,vegetableoilanda pinchof

saltina bigmetalbowl,whichsheplaces

inthewarmingdrawerofherwhiteDefy

electricstovetorisebeforesteamingit.

I wakeupseveralhourslateranddevour

thesteamedbreadwithbutterandsweet

milkytea.Later,GogoboilsZuluchicken,

thehardbody,untilthemeatnearly

fallsoffthebone,addschoppedonions

andtomatoes,andseasonsit withsalt

andpepper.I eatthemeatwithleftover

steamedbread,withmyhands,goodness

drippingbetweenmyfingers.

Gogois 94yearsold,butagehas

notstoppedherfromfussingaround

wheneverherchildren,grandchildren

andgreat-grandchildrencometovisit.

Hercookingis basicnow,boiledand

saltless.Halfofthetimesheforgetsthe

potsonthestove.Yet,she stills insists

on cooking forus.W

NozizweCynthiaJele’ssecondnovel,TheOnes

withPurpose(KwelaBooks)isavailable at good

bookstores, @jelecynthia PORTRAIT

SAALEHA IDREES BAMJEE

PHOTOGRAPH

CLAIRE GUNN

PRODUCTION

ISHAY GOVENDER-YPMA

T

hefirstvividmemoryI haveofGogo’s
cookingis thesmellofidokwe, soft
porridge,whichshemakesformeand
mybrothereverymorningonheryellow-
and-greenWelcomeDoverstove.I am
fouryearsold,eyeswidewithcuriosityand
mouthburstingwithquestions,whilemy
brother,Lindani,twoyearsyounger,only
wantsa warmandquietplacetosuckhis
thumbandrubhislefteye.Ourparents
workfarawayandonlycomehomeatthe
endofeverymonth.SometimesGogo
makesthesoftporridgecreamyandsweet

• I salivateasI lookatthetracesofbutter,
  milkandmeltingsugar;othertimesshe
  makes it sweet and sour, which we prefer

toeatcold.Wesitonthe

benchinGogo’skitchen,our

backstothemudwall,andeat

ourbreakfastbeforescattering

tothestreetsfora day’splay.

Mysecondmemoryof

Gogo’scookingis thesmell

ofsautéedonionswafting

fromthekitchentotheliving

roomwherewearewatching

television,thesoundofthe

generatorbuzzingrelentlessly

outside.We’vetemporarily

movedintoa shackwhilethe

mainhouse,a brickhouse,is

builtinthefrontoftheyard.

Wedriftintothekitchento

checkwhatGogois preparing;

shealwayshasa surprisefor

us.Wefindherslicing,inneat,

evenrings,a pieceofpurple

fruitorvegetable,I’mnot

sureyetwhatit is.Sheadds

theforeign-lookingfoodin

measuredquantitiestothe

onionsandseasonswithsalt.

Sheseemspleasedwiththe

finalproduct,andsoarewe.

I’veconvincedmybrotherthatwhatever

Gogohascookedtasteslikefriedeggs.

Weeateggsoncea monthwhenour

parentsarearound.WeaskGogotodouble

ourportions.Shedishesuppapanda

mountainofthefriedfood.Wetakebig

mouthfulsand immediately spit out

thefood.

“Ewww!”wescream.

Gogolaughsandgivesusamasi, sour

milk.I wouldnoteatbrinjalfor 30 years.

Oneofmydutiesinthehouseis

towatchoverthepotswhileGogo,

occasionallyMa,is busywithother

householdchores.Dinneris oftenstewed

meatwithcarrotsandpotatoes,mashed

pumpkin,lightlyfriedcabbage,savoury

rice.It’saneasyenoughtaskthatcomes

with even clearer instructions: occasionally

“I salivate

asI lookat

thetracesof

butter,milk

andmelting

sugar”

56 TASTE AUGUST 2019 TEXTNOZIZWECYNTHIA JELE

TASTES LIKE MORE

Award-winningauthorNozizweCynthiaJelerelivesherearliestfoodmemories,from

softporridge(good)toherfirstbrinjals(bad), all cooked by her grandmother

Gogo’s kitchen

Findrecipesformielie-mealporridge with maple-
buttersauce at taste.co.za.