JUST ADD RICE
“I WAS THREE when my family emigrated from Tainan, Taiwan, to South Africa in 1991. When I look back, I admire how brave my parents were to embark on this journey to provide better opportunities for their children.
They settled in Bloemfontein and worked incredibly hard to provide for us. They had spent everything they had getting us here, so we weren’t too well off – we lived at my aunt and uncle’s house in the beginning until we could afford a small townhouse.
“TAIWANESE MEALS ARE NOT CENTRED AROUND MEAT BUT RATHER MORE ACCESSIBLE AND CHEAPER PROTEINS (AND SMALLER PORTIONS) SUCH AS SEAFOOD, PORK, EGG, TOFU AND OFFAL”
I have many vivid memories of our meals at home. My mama would cook humble dishes with what we could afford, and we’d set the table with bowls of rice, a few communal dishes, maybe a soup and, of course, chopsticks. Mama would tell me that Papa was actually the better cook, and with his fussy palate, she had to up her game. Her copy, by Huang Su-Huei (first published in 1972), written in both English and Chinese, served as the ideal reference for us immigrants, especially when one’s reading of traditional Chinese is quite limited (like mine).
