COOKING with chef and author Zanele Van Zyl just got interesting.
This as she's now taking cooking all the way back to the villages and bringing back traditional food to display in a new cookbook.
Zanele's new book, Senidlile Kodwa? Have you eaten yet?, is set to be launched in October 2023.
Growing up in a family of 12 kids in the village of Bergville, KZN, Zanele said and those were the days that opened up a culture of cooking in the family.
“My siblings and I would alternate on who was next to cook and often we would all cook the same thing all the time from maize to beans and meat. So it was never really interesting.
“But it was my mum’s cooking I couldn’t wait to have. She loved cooking pap and meat and that was my favourite. My mum really had that thing, of fresh vegetables and would pick them from the garden,” she said.
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She said it was through these moments she drew inspiration for her new cookbook.
The book divided into several sections from breakfast to dessert, and the pages she's most proud of are the ones where she shows off traditional dishes.
“That section will look into food from my village like phutu, cabbage, chicken, samp, jeqe and more,” she said.
Zanele dishes have made waves on social media, so much so that she has built a inspiring community of foodies through her cooking classes and social media posts.
The launch of the new book comes as Zanele has already put two self-published books which sold more than 10 000 copies. Her second cookbook, Cooking with Zanele Vol. 2, won Book of the Year at the 2021 Luxe Awards.
With a new cookbook on the way, Zanele has also advised for people not to take their eyes off her.
“I have so much more in line. I am planning on going to cook overseas. I have this love for French cuisine that I want to try out.”
