potatoes

There aren’t many foods that can pull off being mashed, fried, roasted, boiled, chipped, and still come out universally adored – but the potato does it all, and then some. On 30 May, we mark the second official International Day of Potato, a day declared by the UN to honour the spud’s contribution to nutrition, culture, income generation, and food security. In other words, it’s the potato’s time to shine – and we think it pairs best with a sizzling cut of meat.

We tend to take the humble potato for granted, we see it as a mere side act to the far more important star of the show – a delicious meat or Halaal fish dish from our favourite Johannesburg and Cape Town meat wholesalers. But the potato is so much more than just that, so much more in fact that the United Nations declared 2008 the International Year of the Potato (IYP).

Sunday 17 March, people all around the world will don their very best (green) attire and hit the streets and pubs for parades and beer to celebrate St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. For those of you that aren’t too familiar with this holiday, here are a few quick facts about the national festival celebrated in more countries than any other.

While we know that N1 offers the best Halaal meat South Africa has to offer, have you ever wondered how food has changed over the centuries – when did we first begin cooking for instance, or when did we first discover figs? Some things are easy to imagine – a world before McDonalds, or a time when roast boar and suckling pig were par for the course, but if we were to draw a timeline, what would the evolution of our food look like?

We love all things food and when we’re not preparing it or eating it, we love talking about it, as do many of the greats in the culinary world – who could forget Julia Child’s ‘if you’re afraid of butter, use cream’ or her fabulous take on healthy eating ‘the only time to eat diet food is while you're waiting for the steak to cook.’

Here are a few of our other favourites:

‘First we eat, then we do everything else.’ – M.F.K. Fisher

‘Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.’ – Ernestine Ulmer

While food is part of our daily lives and naturally provides sustenance, it’s become so much more than that when we look back through the years. The food modern man has enjoyed over time, has formed part of our identity, it’s taken on a life of its own and become iconic markers on our timeline.

Today we take it for granted that a good many restaurants will cater for our children in terms of palate choices and portion sizes, but has this always been the case? I’m sure if you think back to when you were a child, there didn’t seem to be that many eateries that encouraged visits with little ones, but in today’s modern society a growing number of restaurants are realising that if they want the parents to dine out, then they should cater for the children as well. So when did the idea of the kids’ menu begin?