JUSTINE’S GREAT BALANCING ACT
Justine Drake is director of the Taste Festivals, she has her own TV show, Just Cooking, and she edits Fresh Living magazine. Omeshnie Naidoo spoke to her
AT 23 she was food editor at one of the largest-selling women’s magazines in the country.
South African foodie Justine Drake knew from an early age that food would be in her future. Most of the female influences in her life were already in the industry.
At Fairlady she wrote her first cookbook, then moved on to become food editor for a number of magazines, including Men’s Health, and Shape.
She now has a multi-faceted career in food – writing, styling, editing and conducting trends analyses – and appearing on various media platforms, from print to TV.
South Africans will remember her best for her culinary travelogue programme, Just in Africa.
Drake says at the time she could easily travel the length and breadth of the continent, cooking on the side of the road.
“Food has led me into every avenue, but the work I’ve done has always been a reflection of where I was at in life. These days being a mom, to Trixie-Rose, 7, and Flynn, 3, is what’s pivotal to my career.”
Just Cooking in association with Fresh Living, which airs every Tuesday at 9pm on BBC Lifestyle (DStv Channel 174), is aimed at South African householders.
“I can genuinely relate to my audience. As a working mother of two, I constantly have to balance work, family and individual tastes to keep everyone healthy, happy and fed,” she says.
“Like most working moms, I don’t have hours to prepare the evening meal, nor do I have a limitless budget, so modern, fresh food that’s simple and quick to whip up is the order of the day.”
Her half-hour show offers healthy everyday dishes for the time- and cash-strapped cook.
Drake presents ways to jazz up everything from roast chicken and curry to soups and salads.
She is passionate about the provenance of food.
When they can, she and husband Marc and the children leave their Camps Bay home and head to the family farm in George.
“My children know their vegetables and where they’re from. You don’t have to have a farm to do that… just growing a few strawberries in a patch of the garden helps create awareness for kids.”
She says she loved this stage of her life, particularly as the “curator” of her children’s palates.
“You do get fussy eaters but as parents we have a responsibility to introduce our children to varied, fresh foods. My daughter’s idea of take-out is sushi, but that’s just because she has been exposed to a great deal of food.
“To teach our children about good food, we need to be alert consumers. As South Africans we’re hopeless with labels – for example, we offer breakfast cereals loaded with sugar – that we’re unaware of or unconcerned about. It’s as good as junk food.
“Waste is another great tragedy in the South African scenario. I loathe packaging, huge meals and the wastage of water,” Drake says.
“This is the next frontier in the food revolution because people aren’t even conscious of the level of waste in their daily lives.”
A repeat of Just Cooking in association with Fresh Living can be seen on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays.