Celebrating culture through food, drink Roberta Abodi and Charles Nyika serving Focaccia
Roberta Abodi and Charles Nyika serving Focaccia

Roberta Abodi and Charles Nyika serving Focaccia

Christopher Farai Charamba Lifestyle Correspondent

Food and drink are an integral part of culture. The diverse flavours, textures and ingredients give a glimpse into the identity of a people. Thus breaking bread with people becomes a cultural experience that brings people together and allows them to know more about each other.Harare last Saturday hosted the International Cultural Food Festival at The Rock in Msasa. It was the second time for this event to be held, bringing together people from different countries and communities to share their various cuisines.

The brainchild of Dananai Chipunza, the ICFF was first held in 2013 and this year partnered with the annual craft beer Oktoberfest hosted by The Rock, formerly Spookhouse.

Filipino community serving variety of Filipino cuisine

Filipino community serving variety of Filipino cuisine

A wide selection of traditional cuisine was on selection for tasting and eating, as well as over 40 different craft beers for revellers to enjoy and pair with the different meals available on the day.

My first stop upon arrival at the ICFF was the Italian stand, hosted by the Italian Embassy. On offer for tasting was an Italian flat oven baked bread similar to pizza called focaccia.

“It is made with flour, water, salt and yeast. We then add vegetables and herbs to it as well. You can choose which vegetable combinations you want to add. In this one there is broccoli and also cheese to give it some flavour,” Ms Robeta Abodi, who was responsible for the stand said.

A great vegetarian snack, the focaccia had a crunchy and light crust with a soft broccoli and cheese filling.

Also available for tasting was a plain Italian bread topped with a lot of salt. Unfortunately, there was no side to taste it with but it would certainly pair well with a rich tomato soup.

The highlight of the Italian stand though, was the Illy Crema Café Frozen, or frozen coffee. With the blazing temperatures over the weekend it was the perfect way beverage to cool down. One could also add a shot of whiskey or Amarula to add a bit of a kick to it.

Traditional Snacks at the ZTA stand

Traditional Snacks at the ZTA stand

My next stop was for some Turkish cuisine at the stand hosted by The Space. On offer was a Lamb Shish Kebab. The meat was tender and full of flavour. According to the chef it was marinated with a homemade Middle Eastern sauce.

Accompanying the kebab and also on offer was humus, a traditional crushed garbanzo bean paste with a hint of avocado and Tabouli Salad, a middle eastern dish consisting of finely chopped vegetables with lots of fresh parsley, lime and olive oil.

Simply Asia did not have any free samples, but their stand was a crowd favourite with the most popular dish being the Kyew-Teow Kua, a stir-fry of egg, carrot, cabbage, bean sprouts, spring onions, fried garlic with chicken and rice noodles.

The stand-out exhibitors for me were the Philippines. They had a variety of meals, snacks and desserts for tasting and purchase.

First up was a stir-fry rice vermicelli called Pancit Bihon. This traditional Filipino sweet and savoury dish had a variety of different bite sized vegetables and chicken and was quite filling.

The Rock's T-Bone Steak and a craft beer

The Rock’s T-Bone Steak and a craft beer

There was also the Embutido, a pork meatloaf which too had a sweet and savoury flavour to it. It can be added to a meal or eaten as a snack. Chicharon, a pork cracker, deep fried pork rind.

For dessert was Biko, a Filipino sticky rice that was made out of glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk and sugar. It was very sweet and would have paired nicely with custard or ice cream. The other traditional Filipino dessert was cassava cake which tasted similar too sweet potato pie and would be a delight to eat with ice cream or warm custard.

The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority were also exhibitors, they partnered with Queen’s Catering who are based in Milton Park. On offer was sadza with a variety of traditional pairings, beef, mabonzo and vegetables. The stand also had snacks to nibble on such as nzungu dzakangwa, matohwe and mawuyu. To drink was a lovely, sweet and refreshing maheu.

Revellers enjoying craft beer at the Oktoberfest (Pic by Lovemore Meya)

Revellers enjoying craft beer at the Oktoberfest (Pic by Lovemore Meya)

Another stand offering local cuisine was Kurainashe Organisation. It is an organisation that works on harnessing community efforts to combat HIV and AIDS. The members of Kurainashe work in horticulture and produce their own vegetables for consumption and resale.

They had on offer, a gango with various meats and vegetables paired with peanut butter rice. As the night proceeded and revellers had a imbibed on the various alcohols available, the gango was rather popular for those looking to quell their hunger.

Aside from food there was also the Oktoberfest taking place with numerous craft beers on offer for people to buy.

Director of The Rock, which hosted the Oktoberfest and ICFF, Dimitri Adamakos said this year there were just over 40 different craft beers available up from last year’s 30.

Kurainashe Organisation Stand

Kurainashe Organisation Stand

Craft beers are produced in much smaller volumes than the major bottling companies and only use pure ingredients, barley, hops, maize and water and other crops in their production. They have a unique and definitely and acquired taste as they differ a lot from regular mass produced beers.

“We had a quite a good range of craft beers this year, most of them from Germany. We stock the entire Brewers and Union line. We have interesting ciders made from pear, we have got a cherry beer which we hold also, it’s a lager brewed from cherries, blueberries and strawberries.

“The more popular of the craft beers are the Brewers and Union line, the Sunday, Friday and Steph Wiess.”

Zimbabwe too has its own locally produced craft beer called Koovha, made by Sarungano Brewing

According to Adamakos, the appetite for craft beer is growing in Zimbabwe as it is elsewhere in the region and he said that plans have already began for next year’s Oktoberfest.

“We hope to continue growing as a festival and were pleased with the numbers that came through. It was also great partnering with the ICFF because as you know food and beer go great together.

Dimitri and Emmerson with a selection of craft beers on offer

Dimitri and Emmerson with a selection of craft beers on offer

“The craft beer scene is growing in Zimbabwe as it is in South Africa and next year we are hoping to get some brewers from SA as well to showcase their beers.

“Between now and then we want to hold other events here at The Rock on a monthly basis that where we make different kinds of alcoholic beverages like cocktails available to people at cheaper prices. So that is something to look out for,” he said.

ICFF director Chipunza, said the food festival was huge success with some 1 500 people making their way to the event.

“The event has grown from the first time we hosted it. The aim was to expose people to different kinds of cuisine and when we first held it in 2013 there were a lot of people mainly form the expatriate community.

“Now we have plans to grow the event even more and it was great partnering with Oktoberfest. We are already preparing for next year’s food festival. We also hope to host smaller events throughout the year to get people interested in different cuisines and expose them to different food from around the world,” she said.

The ICFF and Oktoberfest brought together people from different communities and backgrounds all experiencing and sharing food, drink, culture and entertainment on offer.

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