The emergence of social media has made it possible for me to follow and interact with some of the greatest chefs online. One such chef is Sous Chef Tefo Tshepiso Mokgoro who works at an upmarket restaurant in Sandton creating great and creative dishes. Tefo is a multi talented creative who has put filmmaking on the side in order to focus on being a chef full time. As a graduate of the culinary arts Tefo is making his mark in the food industry one dish at a time and having had the pleasure of being invited to taste some of his dishes, I can testify to his greatness in the kitchen. Eating is one of my favourite things to do in the world and I never say no to food invitations, so I obviously said yes when Chef Tefo Mokgoro invited me for lunch; trying out some of his signature dishes
Soft music was playing when I walked into Chef Tefo’s home ready to eat my heart out. A glass of gin and tonic was handed to me to have while I waited for the starter which was a mutton tongue. In my family the tongue of any slaughtered animal is exclusively reserved for the men so when Tefo told me about the starter I was obviously excited. The mutton tongue with white cheddar, bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, mint and honey splashed around and on top of the tongue. The contrast of the sweetness of the honey and saltiness of the mutton plus the cheddar made the taste spectacular and I really enjoyed it and it was filling enough to last me while we waited for the main meal.
While waiting for the main meal I got a chance to see what kind of DJ I would be should I ever want to go down that part. Chef Tefo and I engaged in a battle of the DJs challenge through the Virtual DJ app, I selected the best songs but fell short in queuing the songs properly so Chef Tefo won in that department. I swore that I would never ever eat rare steak but that day had me singing a different tune when I indulged in a rare flambé Ostrich fillet on a bed of green beans served with Bombay Sapphire butter Dijon mustard sauce and onions on the side. I have never tasted a steak so soft, delicious and mouth watering and I realised that I truly have been missing out on many a delicious steak by always choosing well done steaks. I am grateful to Chef Tefo for insisting that I have a rare steak for the first time. I don’t have a sweet tooth so for desert we settled for Magnum ice cream.
Over 3 years of culinary experience has served as fortifying foundation for Chef Tefo to confidently combining ingredients that wouldn’t normally be paired together and producing meals that taste delicious. It is always great to be in the presence of black people who are breaking boundaries in their industries; there is always that sense of pride and renewed confidence in one’s own ability of breaking new ground in one’s one endeavours. Hanging out with Chef Tefo was super amazing it felt like we had been friends for a long time. Even though he works for a private company, Chef Tefo can be available to cater for private events.
Chef Tefo can be contacted via his Instagram Page on @ttmokgoro for private bookings.
Afrikan Princess 