Umngqusho — nostalgia in a bowl

I was chatting to my cousin, Rabia, and we were extolling the virtues of sumac in relation to my last column about the sumac-rubbed chicken when she asked me the ever-challenging question: “So, what food are you going to write about next?” Me: *sings* Release the Pressure.

Anyway, as I recovered from the daunting question and she rattled off  possible options before we hung up, she asked, “Why not something we grew up with? (though in my food-loving family that really leaves me with loads of options). She then said, “What about samp and beans?” That hit me in my nostalgic soft spot! I mean, umngqusho is larger than the paltry term of “samp and beans”.

Umngqusho is a food movement all on its own. A lifestyle in a bowl, a mood, a state of being and honestly a delicious delight that supersedes mere words. That first spoonful from a steaming bowl of umngqusho truly is a feeling. Insert many sounds of delight here; a few “hmms”, a dash of “aahs” and a sprinkle of “mm mm mms”.

It’s a story, I must say; I didn’t land up voluntarily cooking a pot full of umngqusho on a dreary lockdown day, it’s all because my older sister had no desire to do so. A strange thing about me is that I will happily delve into the strangest and most complex of recipes from far-off lands, but certain simple traditional dishes I’ve just left to the professionals in my family. My mother’s scones, for example; she has the right touch for the fluffiest, most buttery scones. My sister was my hookup for umngqusho — she had the touch, but unfortunately, often lacked the will and therein lay my quandary.

Lockdown struck and as it happened for so many of us, food became a prominent preoccupation. I found that I craved these simple dishes I grew up with and in all my grown years of cooking, I could not believe I had never tried to cook this simple dish of samp and beans. My hookup, though her “ngqush” (nickname for umngqusho) slaps, was not a very reliable source. Especially in winter, when her hips may hurt at random.

On a random Tuesday, work was working and I was like, “I need something that will soothe my soul to end this day”. I was really nervous; this stuff is the stuff I do not want to mess up. Yes me, the savvy sprinkler of sumac. But give me some dried beans and samp and I’m shaking in my apron.

I wasn’t going to go the boiling-it-with-bones route that my granny used to do, but yes, oh yes, I did make my own bone broth. Insert roasted marrow bone broth here. I’d made a batch, as one does. I soaked my beans and samp overnight, as I’ve seen all through my childhood. We must be thorough in these endeavours. Once cooked, to say it was delicious is an understatement. Dare I say, I was exalted.

Fast forward to 2022. I’ve cooked a number of times, really just seeking perfection in every bowl and testing different broths (chicken is not the one). I shared cooking notes with my good friend who tried it out and, well, he said his husband may have shed a tear on tasting it.

This dish makes me a little bit of an evangelist; I wanted to share the virtues of umngqusho far and wide. I packed some for my dear friend who is not South African to try and he sent me a message later saying, “ Is one meant to eat all of that in one go? It was so good.” Therein lies my point. Never has a bowl of variants of brown tasted so, so much better than it looks.

And please people, I am a purist. I eat my umngqusho plain. No stew, no meat, definitely no gravy, nothing but that bowl of slow-cooked goodness and a spoon. I know this is a matter of contention among my Xhosa peeps, but we move.

So here is the recipe that dire desperation drove me to. I’m grateful, because this really is a most special honour to now know how to cook this and I look forward to feeding it to my own children one day. A right of passage, as it were, and, well, it’s good for you. Especially the way I make it. Those who know me, know I rarely do things in halves, so this version of this traditional dish has my flair and also it’s umngqusho, but organic.

RECIPE | Roasted bone broth

Ingredients:

• 1.5kg of bones — beef, marrow (if you’re fancy) or lamb bones (this version will blow your mind/taste buds)
• 1 x red onion, quartered
• 2 x carrots, roughly chopped
• 1 x red chilli
• 1 x bay leaf
• 2 x cloves of garlic
• 1 x handful of celery stalks and leaves
• 1 x teaspoon of whole peppercorns
• 1 x clove
• 1 x sprigs of rosemary/thyme
• 3 x tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
• A good sprinkling of salt
• 1.5l of water — gauge if you need a little more

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 210°C
2. Place the bones in a glass baking dish. Allow enough room so the bones can roast well
3. Roast the bones for about 30-45 minutes depending on your oven, turning them half way through
4. Place the roasted bones and fat drippings into a deep pot on a stove at medium heat. Place the vegetables and herbs on top. Pour over apple cider vinegar and then cover everything with water and bring to a boil
5. Once boiling, lower the heat and place the lid on and cook for a minimum of four hours, but eight is the ideal. If you have a gas stove, leave it on the stovetop, checking every hour or so for water levels and skimming the fat that rises to the top. If your stovetop is electric, put it in the oven at 180°C and check water levels and skim every hour or so. Leave in the oven for three hours if you can.
6. Once ready, strain and bottle or use immediately.

RECIPE | uMngqusho — Samp & Beans

Ingredients:

• 1 x cup of red speckled beans
• 1 x cup of samp
• ½ teaspoon of white pepper
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 500ml of bone broth
• 1l of water
• Knob of butter

Method:

1. Soak the beans and samp in water and a splash of apple cider vinegar overnight
2. Heat a deep pot on medium heat
3. Place the rinsed and drained samp and beans into the dry pot and stir with a spoon
4. Pour in the broth
5. Then pour in the water to cover
6. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix to combine. Bring to the boil and lower heat
7. Cover with the lid and simmer for about four hours, checking it and stirring it every hour or so
8. Before serving, stir in a generous knob of butter once off the heat
9. Serve in a bowl, sit at your favourite spot at your table and simply eat with a spoon