THE MAGIC OF MUSHROOMS
What does it take to become a specialist mushroom grower? Light, air, moisture and a lot of passion, which chef turned farmer Mongezi Mzoneli has in spades. Khanya Mzongwana tells his story (and scored some top-quality ’shrooms for these dishes)
Find out more about mushroom grower Mongezi Mzoneli, plus add Khanya Mzongwana’s tasty new recipes to your arsenal.
But that is precisely what former chef Mongezi Mzoneli had to do in order to realise his dream to become the kind of specialist farmer whose produce requires very little work to yield delicious results. That is a dream worth having.
This dynamic young cultivator grew up in Ballito Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, where he developed an interest in food that led to him studying culinary arts at the Swiss Institute. Mongezi then worked as a chef at The Greenhouse in Cape Town for 18 months, first under Peter Tempelhoff and then Farrel Hirsch. With this invaluable experience, he decided to leave restaurant kitchens behind and start his own business on a small scale.
Mongezi says his grandmother,
Lydia Dabukile Mzoneli, inspired him to dedicate his life to farming. “She would tell me stories about how she started her business. She had a stall at our local market selling corn, spinach, potatoes.”
Watching Lydia cook using produce from her garden ignited Mongezi’s interest in the origins of his food. “I also have a green thumb and believe that one of the most vital skills is knowing how to grow food so you can feed yourself and your family. That and working in the industry as a chef – and seeing some substandard produce out there – inspired me to start farming to grow consistently good ingredients.” IN 2018, TO FULFIL HIS MISSION, and with farming as his chosen means of expression, Mongezi established Bleu de Octane. The business expanded quickly to include two medium-sized operations – one growing mushrooms in a house in Woodstock and microherbs at Ben Rath’s creative workspace, Miteri, in Salt River. Here, Mongezi’s indoor growing facility produces more than 20 varieties, from alfalfa and sorrel to sunflower, borage and broccoli. He now supplies his exotic fungi and microherbs to the likes of The Greenhouse and JAN Innovation Studio in Cape Town.
He chose mushrooms for their niche market value, since there are few farmers in SA. “Mushrooms also have a longer shelf life and potential to create other products such as dried shimejis, stock and herbed salt. There’s not much you can do with microgreens apart from selling them as fresh produce or turning them into a powder for juices and smoothies.”
Other members of the team include Brynne Campbell, who heads up the administrative aspect of the business, as well as Mongezi's older brother, Thabo Ntusi, who is his primary investor and one of his biggest supporters. “Thabo advises me a lot and although he doesn’t actively participate in the running of the business, he is a co-owner.”
Mongezi talks me through the mysterious growth cycle and explains the initial challenges of his chosen crop: “When you start off by growing mushrooms in a house, the biggest consideration is having enough space to set up, depending on how much produce you want to yield. Now I have two growth tents – I use one as an incubator where the mycelium colonises. Once it’s colonised, I have a second tent that’s a fruiting chamber.
“But for my first basic grows, I used my two-bedroom flat in Kenilworth to figure out what worked. Then I chose a house where I could grow up to 100 kg a week. Growing in a house is how most growers start out. Once production is big enough, they move into a warehouse. I was lucky to find a property owner who understood my vision!”
In a good week, Bleu de Octane can produce up to 10 mushroom varieties.
“At the moment I have pink oysters, grey oysters, king oysters, yellow oysters,
“THE BIG CHALLENGE IS TELLING SOMEONE: ‘I WANT TO RENT YOUR HOUSE TO GROW MUSHROOMS.’ ”
white oysters, lion’s mane and shiitake.”
“I’m a huge fan of king oysters. It’s the meaty texture that’s so unreal, with another level of woody deliciousness.
It’s intense in a way that white button mushrooms, brown mushrooms, or portobellos just aren’t. Their colour and size are also amazing. But I love cooking with any mushrooms because I’m inspired to find out how tasty I can make the food I’ve grown.”
“One of the most vital skills is knowing how to grow food to feed yourself and your family” – Mongezi Mzoneli
WORKING AS A CHEF AT FINE
DINING RESTAURANTS has meant that Mongezi brings real precision to the way he farms. “I have been on the other end, where you get not-so-good produce that requires a lot of work for a tasty result. Now I want to be the best grower so that not much work is required. Butter, garlic, thyme, light sauté, done! It’s about that drive to be the best, be sustainable and as kind to the environment as I can be.”
Another of Mongezi’s goals is to help create food security by supplying produce to local communities and helping them to start their own “impact gardens”.
“A dream is to introduce the free-food tree initiative to South Africa – simply planting fruit trees in public spaces so anyone can have access to the produce. Educating people on how to farm and become independent growers is something that is close to my heart.”
In a year’s time, Mongezi sees Bleu de Octane becoming a frontrunner in the business of exotic and gourmet mushrooms. “We will expand our range and become a go-to for information about sustainable growing and futuristic farming practices. We want to encourage people to grow in a way that has a positive impact. We want more people to be fed! The world views us as starving, but we have land and labour. Farming for ourselves should be the answer.”