The art of using mabele to make delicious meals

Mabele, also known as sorghum meal, is back on our dinner tables with a fresh twist that our grandmothers would approve of.

Praised for its nutritional value and affordability, the indigenous gluten-free grain is an ideal substitute for starches in side servings and salads, making it perfect for everyday dishes.

Lebo Phala, head chef and founder of HL Culinary, recalls childhood memories of her grandmother serving delicious meals made with sorghum.

“I love sorghum and cook a lot with it, perhaps because my grandmother used to cook it for us growing up,” she says.

“We can use sorghum to replace starches such as rice, and you can have it as part of your breakfast. It’s not expensive, and its nutritional value is excellent. People often look down on it.”

Phala says that indigenous and traditional foods eaten by our elders, such as sorghum, morogo (African spinach) and chicken hearts and gizzards, are under-appreciated today, with many people not knowing how to prepare them properly. She has stepped in to fill that gap.

“Our children’s generation is the one that needs to know how to cook this kind of traditional food,” she says.

“This is where I step in and teach people how to cook the traditional foods I make. There are so many ready-made foods and quick meal options, but not all people want that. But who is going to teach them? Even us, as parents, we don’t know how to cook our traditional food.” 

Phala puts a flavourful modern twist to the traditional dishes she prepares to elevate African cuisine to a fine-dining experience in taste and appearance.

“Our traditional foods can look unappetising,” she says. “As someone who comes from the culinary space, we can put a twist on them and make them look nicer,” Phala says.

“Sometimes I would combine different flavours to see if they would work together. Chicken gizzards or chicken hearts is what I also grew up eating, but it has an unattractive appearance. But then I combine them with sorghum, and even the elders are surprised at the combo. It’s filling and delicious.”   

Phala grew up in a large family of women in Mohlaletsi village in Limpopo’s mineral-rich Sekhukhune district. She had little desire to cook at home. However, she did help her mother to sell vetkoeks, minestrone soup and hot meals to workers on construction sites and schools in the community.

“She was famous for her vetkoeks and soup. If there is a construction site, she cooks there. At school, she would sell during breaks and in the afternoons. It was her everyday job, and I would help her with selling, even though I didn’t cook that much at home,” Phala says. 

“It all changed when I moved with my sister to Pretoria. She got married, moved out, and I was left alone. I began cooking for myself and my then-boyfriend [now husband].” 

As a photographer and videographer, Phala would capture private events and food with precise detail. At home, she experimented with plating up food and taking photos and videos of her arrangements.

“When I was dishing out, I realised that I liked to take pictures of the food I had made. I’ll take my time and make sure it comes exactly the way I want with all the details. I began to enjoy food and wanted to know more,” says Phala.

“My husband saw I loved this thing and asked me if I wanted to take it further. I said, yes, because eventually, I might have a guest house, and that’s how I enrolled for culinary school.”

Phala holds a diploma in food preparation and cooking from Capsicum Culinary Studio in Pretoria.

Here is the recipe for one of her favourite sorghum-based salads.

Sorghum salad with radish and mango

Ingredients

• 1 cup sorghum

• 5 cups water (you can use a little vegetable stock as well)

• 1 large bunch of flatleaf parsley

• 1 large bunch of mint

• 1 finely chopped onion

• 1 diced mango

• 1 sliced radish

•  A handful of green peas

Method

• The night before cooking, soak the sorghum grains in ample water with a splash of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar.

• The next day, when you are ready to cook, rinse and drain the sorghum well, then add to a pot with 5 cups of water (add a little vegetable stock for extra flavour).

• Cover and bring to a boil.

• Reduce to low heat and cook for 45 minutes. The sorghum should be soft yet slightly chewy.

• Once the sorghum has cooked, add finely chopped parsley and mint, red onion, radish, diced mango, and green peas. Mix well with the salad dressing of your choice.