First Lady takes cook-out to Lupane
FIRST LADY Auxillia Mnangagwa’s countrywide traditional meal cookout competition has buttressed the importance of her earlier programme of distributing traditional grains to chiefs’ wives and rural communities.
Traditional grains are famed for their high nutritional value, medicinal properties and drought tolerance which makes them easy to grow even in droughtprone areas.
Participants from different parts of Matabeleland North like Binga, Hwange and Lupane, to name a few, yesterday exhibited traditional dishes which showed a lot of ways through which the highly nutritious grains can be packaged to unlock their value.
The First Lady spent the better part of last year handing out seed packs of millet, rapoko and sorghum to various communities as part of her well calculated move to promote their cultivation and consumption.
Yesterday, the traditional grains, herbs and wild fruits earned praises from participants and guests to the traditional meal cookout competition here yesterday who attested to their medical properties, nutritional benefits and capacity to build strong healthy bodies.
Yesterday’s cookout traditional meal competition which was held at Lupane State University, drew 20 participants from all the districts in the province who included the elderly, women from different churches and chiefs’ wives who showcased some innovative ways through which traditional dishes can be made more appealing to young people who due to lack of knowledge viewed indigenous food as inferior.
Mrs Caroline Nhekatambe, the wife to Chief Nhekatambe of Hwange presented her unique dishes.
According to their culture, she said
during each first harvest, there were foods that were given to men and others that were given to women.
She said men were given Ngogo, which is porridge made from a mixture of fresh cow milk and millet meal. To get the healthy milk, they let a calf suckle from its mother before they remove it, milk the cow and prepare the porridge for men.
That porridge enhances men’s masculinity and ability to withstand diseases.
On the other end, women are given Isnikwa, a mixture of roots of a tree called nhevu, berry tree roots, fresh mealies, sweet can, groundnuts, round nuts, pumpkins, millet meal to which they add ash and soak over night.
“In the morning you drain the ingredients and take the water, mix with millet meal and make porridge which is then given to women.
“You then take the ash and make everyone have a bite. This helps make women strong, fight disease and make them warm bodied.”
The mixture, she said, also cures bile challenges.
Mrs Nhekatambe also prepared mnyii bread where one soaks the mnyii fruit, pound it to remove the seed and mix with millet and water which was used to soak to make dough.
“You then spread millet stalks in a pot, add the dough, boil till the water is finished and you get mnyii bread,” she said.
Mrs Nhekatambe also showcased herbs like Ibhundi powder from bhundi tree roots. The powder is soaked in water and taken as a drink to add water in the body and reduces dehydration.
She exhibited Unhutulungwa herb which she said the water from the soaked roots relieve constipation. Also the powder from the dried roots, mixed with salt, she said also cures swollen tonsils and bleeding gums. Leaves of the Zakaranda tree which was exhibited can be crushed mixed with water and drunk to boost immunity. Th e powder from the crushed leaves can be used as a spice in while the leaves can serve as tea leaves. On the Imhondo tree, one can take the seeds, add ash, salt then boil and drink the water. It helps with eyesight. Th e First Lady also heard that dried leaves of Umtunzwana tree make tea, while fresh pumpkins mixed with muzhambe tree roots, leaves and boiled, the mixture can be smeared on foreheads to prevent headaches. An elderly woman from Binga also prepared Nhongo made from sorghum which is soaked in hot water overnight. The following morning the water becomes a thick mixture which is then added crushed groundnuts and becomes relish for sadza. There were cucumber vegetables made from dried yellow cucumbers that were sliced and had seeds removed. Th ey were cooked, added to tomatoes and ate with sadza. Other dishes prepared include Sadza from sorghum, millet, rapoko, sorghum cake, millet bread, pearl millet cake, pearl millet scones, road runner, quails, birds pumpkins and fried okra. Th ere was also dried meat in peanut butter, zvinyenze, nhopi, mazondo mixed with moringa leaves, madora, rice in peanut butter, dried vegetables, roundnuts, groundnuts, sweet potato chips, zumbani tea among other dishes. Mrs Nhekatambe took fi rst position while Mrs Soneni Nkomo from Lupane took second position. Th e winners won sets of pots and other kitchen utensils. All the contestants were given food hampers by the First Lady that included Angel of Hope Foundation mealie-meal, cooking oil, sugar, rice and laundry soap. Matabeleland North Provincial Aff airs Minister Richard Moyo praised the First Lady for the traditional cookout competition which he said promoted the consumption of traditional meals and raised awareness of the diversity of traditional meals in Zimbabwe. “Your excellency it is your commitment to ensuring that our traditional ways of preparing food are preserved and handed down to the next generation that we so admire. “Th ese competitions which are being held throughout the country’s provinces show that Zimbabwe is indeed rich in traditional food. Amai you are a role model as you lead from the front. Th e National Development Strategy (NDS1) indicates diversifi cation of food production and consumption as one of the strategies of ensuring food security,” he said. Minister Moyo expressed hope that the cookout traditional meal competition would encourage the growing of traditional grains which would improve food security in Matabeleland North which is prone to drought. Read full story on www.herald. co.zw