By Phetsile Mamba | 2019-04-21

We have people like Bandile Khumalo who is known as ChefB has been working in the food industry as a Private chef, executive chef and a restaurant general manager for six years.

Bandile started cooking after matriculating in 2007 and that before she enrolled at a culinary school in the Northwest. This was where she honed her skills, which she uses today, setting up beautiful tables and elegant arrangements as background to her delicious food.

Bandile started as an executive chef at MTN golf range, a role she served for a short period. She was then noticed and approached by a new establishment restaurant known as Umcwembe Braai Restaurant in Manzini, to come and exercise her expertise. Bandile was with Umcwembe for three years before venturing into her own catering business, known as The Coldroom Takeaways and Catering; that she can call home to prepare delicious, healthy cuisine for families, clients and party guests.

Bandile enjoys cooking dishes such as organic (makhaya) chicken, creamy tripe, dumplings, pumpkin leaves (umbhidvo wetintsanga) and an assortment of savory and sweet finger snacks which are popular with clients and all of the kitchen staff.

 She said pasta was her favourite dish to eat. You can get it anywhere, anyone can cook it. Any combination of vegetable and meat goes perfectly with just about any type of pasta. Restaurants can cook up some pasta, throw some random ingredients together, and call it a quality meal.

Bandile is African so she also enjoys African cuisines with a twist of modern as she calls it.

One dish she’s famously known for is her white wine and creamy tripe.

Her winter menu (for a three course meal) includes:

• Starter- butternut soup (chilli optional)
• MAIN- A soul satisfying chicken curry
• Dumpling

n Creamy spinach

n Dessert- Malva pudding with warm custard

n Beverages: cappuccino or Irish coffee

In winter avoid comfort eating, due to the cold weather and long nights resist the urge. Bandile would advise that people try sweet potato as a starch since it has the lowest starch, you can eat it every day without increasing your waistline, chicken cooked in many ways, It's lean and cheaper. Fish is also great but pricey and add a lot of veggies too.

“I was inspired by my mother's side of the family growing up. From my grandmother to my mother and together with all her siblings, they know the pot exceptionally well hence enrolling at Mafikeng Hotel School for my degree,”Khumalo said.  She watches cook shows and Google for new trending recipes to keep herself updated.

To ensure the quality of the food going out to customer;

n Engaging staff helps

n Personalises the experience for each customer

n By utilsing and generating customer reviews

n Ensure freshness of food

Bandile has trained Delisile Vilakati who is now the current head cook at Umcwembe braai in Fairview. Delisa’s willingness to learn almost everything she instilled there makes me proud of her.

There are many ways to check the quality of food products we eat every day, however some things require the assistance of professionals or specific equipment.

  For example to check chicken breasts one must pay attention to the white stripes and a thick layer of fat on the breast means the farmers injected growth hormones into the poultry and the chickens gained weight way to fast. Such meat is not good for your health.

 Management style: “I have become full circle from when I started to be on my own. As you get more comfortable in your skin your management style changes. Maniacal micro changes that scream because it empowers them not to be effective and are never going to grow.

 As a chef you have to learn to trust people sometimes yelling has validity- when it's the only way to get your point across in a kitchen,” she said.

She is able to set a menu for any event depending on the type of function leaving the customer impressed. She makes sure to apply food presentation at all times. Sheworks well even under pressure.

She would like to improve in pastry. She is very good at baking and preparing simple pastry dishes but she is always willing to learn more.

Bandile believes any dish goes well with a pairing wine so long as you know your wine. Otherwise for her it's has to be oxtail with red wine.

She would like to cook for Trevor Noah one day. She says that God inspired her since he gave her parents money to pay thousands of rands for her to be the Chef that she is today.

“As hellish as he can be on TV it has to be him, Gordon Ramsey. I believe he makes the outside world understand that working with food is very challenging for them to appreciate us as Chefs. I love Siba Mtongana and Chef Citrum Khumalo after personally meeting them. Locally it is Linda as she studied at Capsicum Culinary School,” Khumalo added.

share story          

Post Your Comments Below

---

Eswatini has taken a significant step towards promoting gender equality within the Scienc...

read more