Sandanathi Mashita inspired by her grandmother's cooking

For chef Sandanathi Mashita, whose love of cooking was inspired by her grandmother, there is no place like home.

Mashita from Maletswai (previously Aliwal North) in the Eastern Cape, left SA aged 18 in pursuit of the cooking adventure of a lifetime at the prestigious Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland in Le Bouveret, on the shores of Lake Geneva, where she  obtained her bachelor’s degree in culinary arts.

“Oh, I love SA,” Mashita says. “I was in Europe for five years, and I realised that there is nothing like home. I really want to succeed in the place where I grew up, and so it only made sense to bring all the knowledge that I had gained back home and to reinvest in the country that made me.”

In her quest to improve her culinary knowledge abroad, Mashita’s friends encouraged her to enter cooking competitions, but she was met with rejection at her first attempt.

Now aged 24, and in her first year since returning to SA in 2024, she was last week crowned the season four winner of the SABC2 cooking show Colour Your Plate with KOO.

“It was surreal,” Mashita says. “Like, did I really just do that? Thinking about it is so crazy because I have the trophy sitting in my room, and I look at it every day, and say to myself, ‘I can’t believe this is my life’.

“I was confident since day one [of the competition] in my expertise and knowledge, win or lose. But I was very proud of myself to take it as far as I did.”

Mashita extols the nutritional benefits of canned produce and the versatile, flavourful offerings they can add to beloved family dishes.

The judges of the fourth season of the cooking show included seasoned chef and restaurateur Reuben Riffel, nutritionist Arthur Ramoroka and actor/media personality Thembisa Mdoda-Nxumalo.

“Perhaps what people don’t know about the show is that we were cooking under [the pressure of] time; this is where the convenience of KOO canned produce comes in,” Mashita says.

“People want to be healthy, but they want to do everything from scratch, like TikToker and food influencer Nora Smith. But you don’t have to, [with canned produce] everything is pre-made for you; all you need to do is just mix it, put it in the oven and get it prepared. Oh, and the added health kick is amazing,” she says. 

Mashita’s bold decision to go abroad was inspired by her grandmother’s approach to cooking.

“The memory I keep deep in my heart is my grandmother’s scones. She never used measurements; I think she measured with her heart, which I loved, because they always came out great. I would sit there watching her bake, waiting until she offered me the bowl to lick, and I remember it made me so happy,” she says. 

“My initial love for food came from my grandmother and being around her. The big idea to become a chef came to me at 17 and I knew I wanted to learn the fundamentals of cooking.

"For me, that meant going to culinary school and learning from chefs who could teach me and give me an in-depth experience in a professional kitchen. I was blessed with this amazing opportunity.”

Mashita is slowly building her Food by a Foodie business and has a stall at the Prison Break Market near Kyalami in Midrand, where she sells “pastries and things of the sort”.

“It’s just introducing myself. I don’t just want people to know me just from TV and not have tasted my cooking,” Mashita says. 

KOO Apricot & Basa Crudo

Ingredients:

• 150g sea bass (sashimi-thin slices)
• 1 tin KOO canned apricots (thinly sliced)
• 1 red chilli (thinly sliced)
• 1 lime (juice)
• 1 lemon (zest only)
• 1 tsp olive oil
• Pickled ginger (julienne)
• 1 tsp fresh dill (finely chopped)
• Micro herbs (for garnish)

Method:

1. Arrange sea bass slices on a chilled plate.
2. Top with sliced apricot, chilli, and pickled ginger.
3. Drizzle with olive oil, lime juice, and lemon zest.
4. Garnish with dill and micro herbs.

* This article forms part of a commercial collaboration with KOO