Food
It would be hard to keep a blog and not write about the food here. I’ve travelled a lot and tasted many different foods. On one level, the food here was not very strange, but on another level it is very foreign and has taken a while for my stomach to adjust…if it has even done that yet. I was assigned to the kitchen for my first week living on the base, so I got first-hand experience of preparing and cooking the food. The staple food here is made from maize and is called nshima. The maize is made into a powder because it lasts longer that way. The powder is then added to water to make nshima. Add a little and cook for a short time and you have nshima porridge. Add a bit more and cook for longer and you get nshima. It is white, bland, and has the consistency of playdough, but it is filling. It is typically served with a relish or soup, with maybe a bit of fish or meat or beans, and some cabbage. It’s eaten with the right hand. Grab a bit with your fingers, roll into a ball in the palm of your hand and then dip in the relish or soup. Repeat. I’m slowly getting the hang of eating with my hand, but I imagine I look a bit awkward doing it.
I’m completing my training with about 60 other people (over 4 courses). Most of them can barely afford the training, so the food is very simple so it’s more affordable. For breakfast we either get porridge or bread. If it’s bread, it’s three pieces with either butter or jam or peanut butter on one of the three. And a cup of tea (rooibos). It’s very weak because we only use a few teabags, but that’s compensated by a lot of sugar. The sugar in the tea is pretty much the only sugar we get throughout the day. Lunch is normally nshima and a relish or soup with fish (either the head or tail). The head is the preferred part and I’m more than happy to allow my fellow student that delicacy! If we’ve had nshima for lunch, then dinner is rice with beans or a piece of meat with tomato relish. On Sunday we eat fruit, egg and bread. It’s a nice change.
Kitchen duty was an eye opener. For those serving in the kitchen, our day would begin at 4:45am so we were ready to begin preparations at 5:00am. We would prepare and cook breakfast in the bush kitchen and then serve food at 6:30am. For the rest of the day we would attend our training sessions until a meal time when were would head into the kitchen to prepare and serve the meal. It was hot hard work, but has taught me a lot about humility and working hard, and I got to know my team well. We talk while we work, and I’ve been slowly learning some Bemba phrases. After one week in the kitchen, the next group took over, and although I had learned a lot, I was also grateful to be finished…at least for a month when my group is next on.
