Chef “Ms K” — Khululani Jobo Matshabane — has travelled a long road from Mdantsane and back over 37 years to come to the conclusion that nutrition, society, nature, the environment and climate are all interconnected.
And we need to look after them all.
A happily married mother of one, Jobo-Matshabane has attended the University of the Western Cape (UWC), Infinity Culinary Training school and the SA Chefs’ Academy led by chefs Garth Stroebel and Paul Hartmann.
Her educational round trip started at Siyanda Primary, Bashe Primary in the Eastern Cape, and then on to Cape Town's Kenwyn Primary and finally Goodhope Seminary Girls High.
She enrolled for a degree in commerce but the cookies and other confectionery she baked as a student and sold on campus “led me to the culinary world”.
She baked to make up for “financial constraints” but says her culinary education was “the kick-start of my journey in the industry”.
“I have not looked back since then.”
It also drew her to the conclusion that: “Nutrition, our social and natural environment are all interlinked.”
“Social factors which affect us as individuals, such as our social networks, income level and the ability to purchase food, are linked to how we perceive nutrition as a whole.
“When an individual has a good nutritional diet, they tend to have great energy and a positive mental health state,” Jobo-Matshabane said.
“Feeling good on the inside has great benefits of a more positive self image.
“When you take care of yourself, you tend to automatically take care and be mindful of the environment.
“Wholesome nutrition has definitely a direct impact on the overall health and wellbeing of a person.
“My work as a chef is to educate, introduce and remind people about the basics of a balanced diet.
“We lead very stressful, busy lives which need mental agility, and physical endurance and strength, to name a few.
“It is very important to incorporate wholesome foods into our daily diets. It is a job well done to me when I know that I left people feeling warm after they had eaten my food.
“To eliminate and reduce stress, diseases, climate change we are forced to add wholesome foods to our diets, using them as seasoning, spices, add-ons to foods to maintain healthy lifestyles.
“Food defines us and connects us with our families and society.
“Unfortunately, our province, the Eastern Cape, is the poorest province in SA with a very high unemployment rate. Our people are prone to suffer from malnutrition.
“This leads to the consumption of a lot of unhealthy starchy and fatty foods.
“The positive that the Eastern Cape has a lot of land with great soil that we should be using more. Having a garden and planting seasonal vegetables helps eliminate a lot of problems we face as a province.
“It helps us have direct access to healthy seasonal veggies and plants. That leads on to helping confront rising prices of food and is a counter to our declining economy.
“Your own garden and growing your own food helps promote food security.
“What bothers me the most in the world of food and nutrition, health and taste, is the fact that not everybody has access to healthy sustainable foods.
“Even some who do have the privilege of having access, sometimes their education is not adequate.
“People sometimes don’t know how to cook their foods properly to bring out the most nutrients and to get the great taste out of it.
“Plant-based foods are not only about eating salads and rice — or potato chips.
“I have a vegetarian husband which forces me to constantly create and celebrate a lot of our local ingredients.
“People need to be more mindful and open about trying out foods which are loaded with nutrients because this has health benefits.
“This should be added to the way choices are made based on culture, location, advertising and price.
“It is important that people make full and wise use of the nutritious food they have access to.
“We all saw during the pandemic how our beautiful indigenous foods and plants came to the forefront, bringing bold, unique and wonderful flavours.
“That period of pandemic will remind us to go back to nutrition basics to recognise and embrace our heritage.
“I have a slogan I live by: Slowly but sure will heal the nation through food.”
DispatchLIVE
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