Online Reporter
Gift Moyo [email protected]
BULAWAYO-based culinary storyteller and Magriza Made Me Cook founder Prince Sivalo Mahlangu has expressed gratitude after representing Zimbabwe at the prestigious Standard Bank Luju Food & Lifestyle Festival in Eswatini, where he showcased the richness of traditional African cuisine and heritage.
Mahlangu, who is regarded as one of Southern Africa’s leading ambassadors of indigenous food culture, was among a select group of chefs invited to take part in the festival’s culinary showcase held over the weekend.
During the showcase, themed “Ancestral Forage & Ferments”, Mahlangu highlighted the diversity of Nguni food traditions, demonstrating how indigenous ingredients and age-old cooking techniques continue to shape African gastronomy. He shared the platform with acclaimed chefs, including South Africa’s Mmabatho Molefe and Eswatini’s Sive Bhembe.
Following the festival, Mahlangu took to Facebook to thank the organisers and patrons for embracing his presentation.
“What an incredible experience at the Luju Food & Lifestyle Festival! Bringing Nguni foodways and indigenous culinary heritage to the stage was an absolute honour. Celebrating the richness of our history, traditional flavours and the stories passed down through generations is at the heart of everything that I do.
“Huge gratitude to the Luju team and every single person who came through, tasted, listened and shared in this journey. Our food is our story, and continuing to share it with you all is a true blessing,” he wrote.
The invitation to the Luju Festival further cements Mahlangu’s growing reputation as a leading advocate for the preservation and celebration of African culinary heritage through storytelling and traditional cuisine.
Fresh from the regional showcase, Mahlangu now shifts his focus back home, where preparations are at an advanced stage for the launch of the second season of Magriza Made Me Cook. The new season will premiere with a live screening of its first episode at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo on August 8.
