The roots of distinctive Indian cuisine
NO ARTICLE on South African Indian cuisine could be written without starting at the entry point, which is the arrival of the indentured Indian sugar-cane labourers in 1860.
They arrived from various parts of India, bringing their own distinct cooking traits and ingredients and, as they were grouped together on sugar estates, they began to share their skills, ingredients, cooking and eating techniques.
Food became even more diverse, with the contribution of the local population, as Indian and black labourers lived side by side.
South African Indian cuisine was also influenced by the unavailability or lack of genuine Indian ingredients, the prevalence of local ingredients and produce, as well as cooking utensils.
In the absence of cultural links with India during the period of sanctions, Indian food that is available now at Indian restaurants could not be obtained then and was unheard of, unless, of course, you visited India.
Families developed their own ideas of what they thought a certain Indian dish was and this varied from family to family, and from community to community – and from province to province.
Note that the original indentured Indians were dirt poor and received a small ration of groceries from their employers. Ghee, mealie meal, mealie rice and salted dried fish were a staple part of the ration.
Most South Indians would have been vegetarians then and, being market gardeners and farmers, would have grown an abundance of fresh produce.
Since salted dry fish was available, as well as fresh vegetables, a huge pot of mix
vegetables or beans, flavoured with such fish, did wonders for large, poor families. Food quantities had to be bulked up to feed Indian families, which usually had many members.
Besides being used in a mixed vegetable curry, dried fish was also utilised with calabash or with green paw paw, sous sous, luffers, serm or madumbies.
It was also sometimes substituted
for dried shrimps, as this became available, due to the arrival of Indian merchants, who brought Indian commodities to trade with indentured Indians.
At this stage, the indentured Indians formed a sizeable community.
The ghee and mealie meal was used to make roti.
The Indian population settled and fused with the locals and started using fresh ingredients that were grown and used by the locals.
Indians took the plain samp
(isitambu, colloquially referred to as kober), which is basically broken mealies, boiled it with dried beans and added curried meat to it to give it an Indian tempering.
In the Magazine Barracks area, canned fish was part of the ration. Indians commonly made canned fish dishes with
sambals of onions, tomatoes and chillies.
Tinned fish curry with boiled eggs or brinjals is another local Indian favourite.
Most Indian homes had at least one fisherman in their midst and, hence, fresh fish, especially shad, was available for the family to cook.
Mealie meal was used to make kully or sangithi, to go with fish curry.
Then, what is referred to as all-purpose food – breyani – was cooked for special occasions and would be either vegetable, mutton, chicken or fish.
The flagship Indian heritage food, which is the best symbol of local Indian cuisine, would be the bunny chow.
Jimmy Moodley is a cultural activist and the creator of the Facebook page, Food And All Things Spice