Authentic Cape Malay Cuisine in Manenberg with Colleen and Ruth

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Host Bio: Colleen and Ruth are sisters with over three decades of experience in the food industry. Passionate about Cape Malay cuisine, the sisters consider their unique culinary traditions a rich legacy passed down from generation to generation. Food has offered them both an opportunity to better their lives and the community they come from. Colleen and Ruth were born in Manenberg on the Cape Flats, a community that was borne out of Apartheid's spatial laws, yet rich with diverse cultures as a result. Growing up on the Flats allowed them to forge deep bonds with neighbors, and create a community based on love, kindness, and food. The sisters learned to cook from their grandmothers who took nothing and made the most delicious meals, and their mother who cooked for the entire community. Colleen and Ruth are honored to share their culture and history through food with guests from around the world. The village of Manenberg rose from insurmountable odds, to become a community and not just a settlement. It is a community where love abounds in the face of hate, generosity flourishes even in poverty, and innovation lives where resources don’t. There is a unique magic that exists here when a neighbor gives their last to someone who has less and stretches their already stretched pot of food to feed those who don’t have food. Colleen and Ruth are eager to share their favorite childhood dishes in honor of their mother and all those whose unbreakable spirits gave them everything. Meal Description: Meet your hosts Colleen and Ruth at Ruth’s home in the Manenberg neighborhood of Cape Town. Sip on a South African rooibos tea and enjoy it with Cape Malay koeksisters, a traditional doughnut-like sweet treat as you chat with your host about life in Cape Town. Join your host at her dining table to enjoy a traditional Cape Malay meal. Your menu includes starters, a main, and dessert. Enjoy a platter of Cape Malay pastries including samosas, half-moons, and fried spring rolls served with a traditional dhanya (coriander) dipping sauce. This will be followed by a main of Cape Malay tomato bredie, a South African stew of slow-cooked meat and vegetables served with yellow rice, made from a secret family recipe. Cooking Description: Join your hosts Colleen and Ruth at Ruth’s home kitchen to learn to cook a Cape Malay meal from recipes that have been passed down through generations of the sisters’ family. Cape Malay cuisine is all about bold flavors and warm hugs. Your hands-on Cape Malay cooking class will last about 2 hours. You will learn to cook a three-course Cape Malay meal including samosas, tomato bredie, rice, and dessert. Enjoy learning about the tips and techniques involved in Cape Malay cooking before you sit down at the table to share the meal you helped prepare with your hosts Colleen and Ruth.