David Higgs can normally be found at the helm of Marble and Saint restaurants in Johannesburg. During the lockdown he has been very active on Instagram. When not giving cooking demonstrations by video, Higgs makes up recipes for people who send him pictures of the contents of their fridge. Using the hashtag #whatsinyourfridge he then demonstrates the recipe on his IGTV channel. Higgs says the inspiration came after comedian Anne Hirsch sent him a picture of her fridge which contained chicken that had been in there for slightly too long and lots of vegetables. He advised her to get rid of the chicken and make vegetable soup and the movement was born. He enjoys the challenge of spontaneous meals made with available ingredients. A few other famous faces have joined the challenge but the majority of are ordinary South Africans looking for inspiration.

There have been requests from Greece and Hungary. In between demonstrating simple recipes that are easy to replicate via video Higgs likes to invite other people to chat with him on Instagram. Recent guests include Andy Fenner, Maps Maponyane and celebrity chef Siba Mtongana. 

Higgs and his business partner are aware that nothing in the hospitality industry will be the same and are constantly chatting about what this will mean in terms of looking after their staff and finding ways to adapt. 

“I’m also doing this to encourage a community spirit of generosity and sharing.” 

David Higgs. (Photo: Supplied)

Karen Dudley closed her Cape Town restaurant, The Kitchen, after the President’s first address so the restaurant has been shut for longer than the lockdown. Initially she avoided social media because she felt there was very little hope that the business would survive the closure. 

“It felt a bit indulgent to be posting when there was so much uncertainty and so many people were worried about their livelihoods.” 

After spending some time focusing on living simply with her family Dudley began to get a deluge of messages from people asking her what to do with the contents of their pantries. Her work is driven by community and especially supporting small farmers so the focus became on making vegetables the star of the meal. Instead of doing demonstrations herself Dudley listened to requests from people on Instagram then sent a personalised recipe to the follower wanting assistance. 

In this way she hopes to show that when prepared correctly vegetables can be delicious as a stand alone dish. The recipes she shares emphasise the texture and flavour of fresh produce and finding the perfect condiments and relishes to compliment. Dudley says the foundation of good cooking is getting basic tools such as sharp knives, a large chopping board and high-sided pots that will contain splashing. Moving forward Dudley says she is looking forward to her next book and is aware it should also be available digitally.

Lesego Semenya. (Photo: Supplied)

Twitter is where chef Lesego Semenya, popularly known as LesDaChef, interacts the most with his followers. The affable guy is always ready to advise followers why their magwinya are not as fluffy as they could be and save stews from disaster with the right flavouring.  

Since we have all been home he has noticed an increase in questions about nostalgic dishes like stews and curries as well as township staples like ledombolo (steamed dumplings). 

“People seem to be craving comfort foods that remind them of happier times.” As someone who believes that people need to understand that chefs are real, everyday people and not just food obsessed creatives, Semenya normally has a 50/50 ratio of food vs lifestyle content on social media. During this unusual time he decided to make it a 80/20 ratio of food content vs reality because filling the timeline with stresses and worries isn’t going to help. He has also created an Instagram account for his adorable rescue puppy named Porridge. 

Semenya’s advice for those not too familiar with the working side of a kitchen is to understand the basics, start off by following recipes to the letter then change things up once you are more comfortable and keep tweaking until the recipe feels like your own. Like other chefs Semenya acknowledges that the industry will change significantly when we return outside. He speculates that establishments will have more online engagement with clientele to get people back on seats and restaurants might pivot to online orders and food delivery. 

Overall he remains optimistic: “We South Africans are a resilient bunch and also very supportive of each other when we want to be, I have a feeling there will be a big drive by the public to eat out more and try to get our establishments to recover.” He also foresees a continued interest in reading recipes online and purchasing cookbooks.

Pork trotters with sweetcorn dumplings and kale. (Photo: Supplied)

While there are a lot of prominent chefs taking up space online currently the increased number of people looking for culinary inspiration online is allowing younger chefs to also have a moment. Marumo Tladi works at the Saxon Hotel, enjoys learning from the greats in the industry and dreams of branching out into food styling for magazines. She has noticed a definite surge in interest in the recipes she posts on her Instagram page since the lockdown. Tladi’s’s technique is to post creative recipes using the affordable ingredients in her home kitchen. She then answers questions about adjusting servings or alternate swaps for foodstuffs not available.

One of her most popular dishes recently was inspired by homesickness: she made a traditional dish of trotters and steamed dumplings, a dish that sparked nostalgia in many of her followers. Tladi  says she is looking forward to eventually going back to work, joking that it will be nice to cook in a bigger kitchen. She plans to keep posting recipes and answering questions after lockdown is lifted.

Salmon poké bowl with prawn crisps and stir fry vegetables. (Photo: Supplied)

Henry Vigar from La Mouette in Cape Town is focusing his online cooking on feeding his family and sharing the dishes on Instagram stories. “As humans we find comfort in food and as parents we have to make a conscious effort to keep calm for our kids, so that is our biggest daily responsibility right now. Cooking wholesome family food is my effort to maintain that calm.” 

He is enjoying the change of pace, trying to be present in small everyday moments, taking time with peeling, chopping, cooking, enjoying setting the table, putting music on, drinking nice wine, lighting candles and using the fancy napkins. The majority of his lockdown menu is Asian inspired meals which are easy, healthy and light. Vigar shares recipe ideas via DM and says the response has been lovely. Going forward he anticipates that a lot of restaurants will run on minimal staff with reduced menu offerings to stimulate some sort of cash flow into being able to stay alive as winter looms. “Time will tell but until then we will do our best to make content that is easy, delicious and speaks of the heart.”

It sounds as if the restaurant industry will revive in a slightly different form when trading is allowed again. In the meantime recipes abound on social media. DM/TGIFood