When speaking at conferences or in churches, I often get the question, "What do you eat where you live in South Africa?"
While my diet is a bit different from those I work with in the township-community, we all eat simple and fresh foods. Unlike American grocery stores, we do not have a lot of boxed food. We don't eat a lot of casseroles nor a ton of cheese. I like to eat fresh vegetables and simple meats (chicken, fish). Because we don't have a lot of preservatives in our food, you have to go to the grocery store/market fairly often because food doesn't last very long in your house.
As I was making my lunch today, I thought, this is a perfect, beautiful example of the answer to this "What do you eat" question. I had steamed broccoli and a bean salad. Bean salad is a very South Africa dish, usually served at a Braai (BBQ). I've learned to make a few South African dishes but my American roots still drive how I prefer to eat and what I make in my house. [Recipe below]
Most people I work with are from various African countries (Refugees) and local South Africans. The diet of these people is made up of simple, inexpensive food:
Porridge or Millie-mil (oats or grit-like breakfast)
Bread
Eggs
Rice
Curry (chicken in spicy sauce)
Frozen mixed vegetables
Stew (meat pieces in broth with a few vegetables)
Lack of food is a common problem. Many children go without food on a regular basis. And when they do have food, it's usually not high in nutrients but rather superficial, white carbs. This is a source of concern in our environment. Pray with me about what The Church is to do about problems like this that face poverty-communities.
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South African Bean Salad Recipe
1 can chic peas
1 can red/kidney beans
1 small cucumber
red, green & yellow peppers (half of each)
cilantro/coriander (small handful)
1 tsp chopped garlic
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tbs olive oil
2 tsp sugar
squeeze of lemon juice
salt/pepper
(you can also add a shake of an all-purpose seasoning - with spices like mustard seeds, oinion, pepper, chili, cumin, etc.)
Now you can enjoy a truly South African dish.
More 'frequently asked questions' to be answered in the coming days!
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