Stressors
This sweet-natured youngster indulged my curiosity.
“I’ve always been interested in food but I never thought about it as a career,” she admitted.
Her hospitality studies teacher at high school encouraged her to consider a career as a pastry chef.
“She said there’s a whole career in just pastry. And so I went to study at The Capital Hotel School in Pretoria. I studied for two years. In the first year, you also learn the normal cooking side, so you have balance in the kitchen. In the second year, we specialised.”
After graduation, Naude sought work through an agency and was sent to Bushwa Private Game Lodge for an interview.
“A month later, they called and gave me the job,” she beamed.
“I thought a lot of young people struggle to get jobs and this is a great start for me. So I just jumped into it. It was a bit difficult for me in the beginning. It’s not like other places where you work shifts.”
Confident with pastries, she was hungry to explore the various facets of being a chef.
Shedding light on the meals we enjoyed on Friday night, she said: “I wanted to do a take on a salad as a traditional salad gets boring and a lot of people think it is a side. So I made a purée of butternut, fennel and orange with cream. It was a cold set purée. For the mains, I baked the meat, which is like a beef roll, in the morning and let it rest.”
The main meal was served with perfectly roasted potatoes: crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.
The other pièce de résistance was dessert. Naude explained her choice: “I was tired of the normal mousse, so I made a white chocolate mousse with yoghurt. It gave it another texture. Then I made baklava crisps as a garnish, mini meringues and red wine jelly cubes.”
Breakfast is an interesting affair, too: a cold starter to breakfast – like pancakes with fruit or yoghurt with muesli – followed by a hot breakfast.
Passion and skill filtered through every dish Naude plated.
Although she’s spread her wings since my visit, Monyeki ensures guests are in culinary heaven during their stay.