Cultural diversity is no easy game

When people think of Africa as a continent, they often envisage poverty, hardship & people living in what they would deem as relative ‘squalor’. This of course is not the case for everyone but as we know only too well, it is increasingly prevalent and recent statistics suggest it is the sad reality for more than half of the population in Africa. South Africa holds 50% of its people haunted below the poverty line and in most towns and indeed larger cities, there will be at least one substantial if not numerous townships scattered outside the buzzing metropolis.

Townships (otherwise known as slums, shantytowns, squatter camps, or, if like me you prefer the less derogatory term, rural communities) as you can see above can vary from dirty and impoverished to quite cheerful looking yet basic settlements. They were first constructed during the Apartheid era, where it is was critical for government to separate the blacks and whites and keep them in designated areas. It was the infrastructure and western technology brought over from overseas whites that created the cities while the ‘informal settlements’ were created for the black populations outside of the city centres where it was still possible for it’s inhabitants to find work. As you can imagine, the settlements grew with accelerating momentum and before long had soon exploded and become firmly recognized homes for hundreds of thousands of people.

The townships across South Africa today are still as distinctive as they once were, despite Apartheid now firmly revoked. They are predominantly, if not entirely occupied by black citizens and the way these people live their lives is not dissimilar to how it would have been 40, 50 years ago. The only crucial difference now is that freedom has entitled a population to no longer feel shackled by oppression.

But was Apartheid unreservedly a bad policy? Of course that is a rather controversial question to pose, but I can’t help but weigh up the pros and cons of that time. I find, and will continue to find Apartheid a morally abhorrent period in history but it doesn’t mean that we can’t analyze it. The way Apartheid was handled was sickening and the treatment of millions was unforgivable. On the other hand, and forgive me for sounding dispassionate, what prevailed as a result was a far more controlled country than is true today.

The government were on such high guard that they were ruthlessly strict, crime was controlled in a similarly rigorous fashion and the municipalities were run far better. Yes -the blacks got their freedom and damn right too but the ramifications for South Africa today is corruption and wrongdoing. South Africa as a country appears to be one of organized chaos and it is a shame to reflect and comprehend that in reality, during Apartheid the country was in fact just organized. People will argue that this so called ‘organization’ was organized brutality and inhumane segregation, and for the most part I agree; but in scrutinizing the situation however, I now find myself failing to see the situation in such absolute terms.

 

Nompilo's boerewors & pap

What are some traditional South African foods? I think I can safely say that any South African asked this question would undoubtedly mention boerewors and pap, along with others. So when we spent the night at the Welverdiend rural community, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to acquire some knowledge from Nompilo, our resident ‘chef’ for the evening. Sarah and I acted as sous chefs, while at the same time snapping at every chance we got and endeavouring to remember what Nompi was telling us. The persistent flash from my camera actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it helped to illuminate the otherwise pitch black night.

So for those who don’t know what pap is (also called ‘ugali’ in East Arica, ‘buntu’ in West Africa, ‘sadza/isisthwala’ in Zimbabwe and ‘nsima’ in Zambia), it is essentially a traditional porridge made from miele (ground maize or other grain). It is a staple food source for many South Africans (mainly black and Afrikaaner populations) and is eaten in a few ways; smooth pap is called ‘slap pap’ or pap with a thick consistency is called stywe pap, one that can be held in the hand and eaten. A drier and more crumbly pap is called phutu pap. Pap can be eaten as a breakfast staple with milk and sugar, or served with meat and tomato stew, the latter being what we learned to cook with Nompi.

So we began by prepping our boerewors ready to be braai-ed, (by the men of course). The kind we were making were chakalaka spiced already so not much needed to be added, so a sprinkling of paprika as well as salt and a generous glug of oil was all that was required. These were then put to the side and we moved on to the pap.

Pap, although a simple food, needs to be prepared with care because without, it can end up being a mushy mess.

1)You start by coating 75% of your miele grains with cold water and stir well so that the grains have absorbed all the water.

2)Now you must leave it to stand for 10 minutes or so.

3)It is now time to add the pap to the heat. We were cooking over a fire so it may vary slightly but you want to heat your pap on a high heat until you start to see it bubbling.

4)Once you see it bubble, you need to start stirring pretty vigorously so that is doesn’t burn. Now bit by bit you need to add the remaining maize.

5)After about 10 minutes give or take, your pap will be ready. Be warned, you don’t want to leave it on the heat for too long even if it still looks a bit runny, as it will continue to cook from the heat of your pot.

To make the tomato sauce or ‘stew’ as it is called here, follow these simple instructions:

1)Wash your tomatoes and cut roughly into small chunks.

2)Do the same for a few green or red peppers.

3)Pop the tomatoes and peppers into a pan and heat on a moderate heat with a large handful of diced onion and 1 diced garlic clove.

4)Season well with salt and pepper.

5)Stir well and be sure not to let the vegetables burn.

6)Add a small amount of water as well as a dollop of tomato sauce for a bit of sweetness.

7)Taste to check seasoning is right and serve on top of the pap

We ate our spicy boerewors and pap with delicious baby gem squash and buttered carrots. YUM.