Chef Sophie Khumalo on her journey and love of cooking

YOU might have seen or tasted the amazing creations she makes, but now it is time to get to know chef Sophie Khumalo, the person behind the magic at one of Durban’s most popular shisanyama spots, Mojo’s Car Wash and Shisanyama and Mojo’s, on Davenport.

Khumalo has been entrusted with developing the menu and the food styling, two things which have allowed her to showcase her talent and passion for food.

Born in umlazi, Khumalo was raised by her grandmother who was a domestic worker. Her grandmother would come home tired after cleaning and cooking for her employer but she would still take the time to cook them a proper meal. That is where Khumalo’s passion to cook stems from.

She started by cooking at funerals and parties and has been passionate about cooking for more than a decade.

“In 2008, I installed a container, selling amagwinya (vetkoek) and inhloko (cow’s head). In 2011, I was employed by ethekwini Municipality. To improve myself I studied business management and further narrowed it to human resources management. There was still a void inside. That was when I made a decision to join a culinary school. I joined Capsicum Culinary School and graduated with a diploma in cookery, as well as a City and Guilds Certificate that is internationally recognised,” she said.

Khumalo also worked for The Oyster Box Hotel, which she said was a dream come true.

She said her wish is to make people healthy through food and the use of sustainable fresh produce.

“Making people smile through

food is what I always aim for. To continue this, I will showcase my food styling and presentation skills by creating dishes that are out of this world,” she said.

She said in the past, eating at a shisanyama was different from going to a restaurant, but things had changed.

“A shisanyama is mainly about having meat weighed and braaied on a fire over wood or coal… To handle the pressure is to keep up by being consistent and on top of the game, and always setting the trends. One needs to keep creating delicious and colourful food,” she said.

Last year, Khumalo launched her Youtube channel, “Cooking with Sophiemojos”. She said its focus was to teach viewers how to make the world’s most renowned dishes.

“It is an exciting way to learn because I explain the reasons behind techniques that I apply as I give the lesson. The aim is to teach the specifics on how to get the greatest and desired end results,” said Khumalo.