Pull up a chair as culinary twins Lebo and Tebo Ndala debut their intimate, finger-licking kitchen with a new cooking show.
Their weekly show, Twice as Nice: With Love From The Twins, airing on The Home Channel, is on a mission to prove that good food doesn’t have to be intimidating.
The Mamelodi-born twins, founders of the beloved With Love From The Twins food brand, bring nostalgic family recipes, practical cooking tips and infectious sibling banter to the small screen.
Six years after the success of their bestselling cookbook, Food Stories — Our Favourite Recipes, the 32-year-olds have also qualified as sports nutritionists, adding a fresh focus on wholesome, flavour-packed meals that make healthy home cooking simple and delicious.
“Our younger sister always says that we’ve stuck to plan A, and through the show we want to show people that if you’re consistent in your dreams, good things will happen,” says Tebo.
“We’re not promising that it’s going to be smooth sailing and that you won’t have those bad moments, but if you stick to your plans, good things will happen and I believe this show is one of those good things for us.”
The eight-part series is a celebration of modern SA home cooking, serving up comforting classics, easy bakes and crowd-pleasing dishes. Then sandwiched between heartfelt family stories, playful banter and the inside jokes that make Lebo’s and Tebo’s kitchen feel like home.
So, who is the funny sister between the two?
“I’m definitely the funniest! ”, says Lebo. “We had this argument a few days ago, and I’m the funniest.”
Tebo adds, “I won’t say I overly obsess over plating and presentation, but I’m somewhat of a perfectionist. Lebo is more arty, like how in one episode, she drops the sugar on the crème brûlée. I almost wanted to say ‘please don’t do that’, whereas I would have taken a spoon and done it the careful way. But that’s just our different personalities.”
Moving beyond the pages of their bestselling cookbook, the series gives the sisters a platform to bring their food stories to life, inviting viewers into never-before-seen moments that have shaped their culinary journey.
“Our show is mainly about the recipes we grew up on and some fancy stuff we learnt as professional chefs, bringing those two worlds together,” Lebo says.
“We want to show people that cooking doesn’t have to feel like a chore — offering recipes that people can quickly make after a long day but are also healthy and bring people together. It’s a cute cooking show.
“Shooting the show has been such a beautiful process. It’s literally like bringing our written recipes to life. Having a second cookbook has been a big dream and has been something we’ve been actively chasing since our first one — and we’re ready for it.”
Beyond the recipes, the pair hopes the viewer brings a little bit of their magic into their own kitchens and around family tables.
“We hear many of our friends say that cooking from scratch is intimidating — making your own pasta or bread or even starting a stew from scratch. Through the show, we want to cut through the noise and demystify those stereotypes and show them that it’s possible. You can make a stew when you come back from work or, on the weekend, make a beautiful healthy salad and dressing from scratch and have fun, feel satisfied and proud for making something from scratch,” says Tebo.
“We also want to show kids from Mamelodi that dreams do come true, and we want people to look at the show and say, ‘Oh my goodness, that can be us as well.’ We’re just girls from a township who love what they do and chased their dreams.”
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