Chefs shine at mall cook off
A variety of dishes were served, ranging from popular Indian cuisine to traditional Zulu meals.
Port Shepstone Mall hosted a successful Heritage Day cook-off recently, with the event building on a finalist announcement from earlier in the month.
Shoppers were invited to show their support as the top five finalists showcased their culinary skills ranging from popular Indian to traditional Zulu meals.
Finalists were chefs Joel Gayapersad, Zonke Gcingca, Zinhle Gumede, Amanda Mseleku and Pastor Bradley Pillay.
With excitement in the air, Pillay emerged victorious with his winning dish, butter chicken and prawn curry and naan with a shot of Bombay crush.
Gayapersad prepared a lamb curry, basmati rice with sambals and raita.
Mseleku cooked basmati isigwaqane served with chicken feet and a side of imifino and pumpkin.
Gcingca made uphutu with curry cabbage and chicken feet, and Gumede prepared isigwaqane chicken hearts and gizzard curry with sticky chicken feet and imifino nethanga.
Port Shepstone Mall’s Property Administrator Tanya Draai said: “We wanted to celebrate Heritage Day in a fun way. So, we thought why not invite the locals to show us how they embrace their heritage through their favourite dishes. We had 30 entries in total and the judges narrowed it down to the top five who went head-to-head in the final last Saturday. We thank every sponsor and all the chefs that took part in the event.”
Judges Hala Mncwango, Ntombi Mkhoma and Kershnie Govender had a difficult time choosing the top three as all contestants cooked their best and presented their meals to perfection.
The judges sampled and critiqued each dish, and their training allowed them to properly judge each meal and choose the top three.
Pillay won R15 000, Gayapersad R10 000 and Mseleku R5000.
The event was well organised with loads of entertainment provided by Llewellyn Nel from Pro35 Entertainment and prizes handed to shoppers.
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