Damn Good Food with Fehmz

 IT ALL started with San Sebastian cheesecake.

Fehmz the foodie had been posting food content since 2012, but it was the cheesecake post that went viral on Instagram in December 2022 that cemented her status as someone to watch.

That cheesecake recipe received two and a half million views, 97,000 downloads and 200 online comments.

Also known as Basque cheesecake, Fehmz believes that apart from the taste, it was the simplicity of the recipe that got her followers excited.

“You make it in a blender, girlfriend, and there’s nothing for you to do — you’re done,” she laughed.

Since then, her star has continued to rise, and she now has more than half a million followers across her social media platforms.

It all culminated in a book, DAMN GOOD FOOD, as vibrant and colourful as her personality. Speaking to the Independent on Saturday ahead of her book launch in Durban this weekend, Fehmz, also known as Fehmida Jordaan, said it was inspired by her love of home-cooked meals that her family would enjoy.

“The one thing I love to do the most is to make food that’s everyday food. I don’t like to overcomplicate my life. I stick to what’s nice to make, filling for my family, and a good meal.”

She says her aim is to give readers a basic recipe that they can adjust as needed.

“Even if I share a recipe with you, my biggest thing is to make it yours. Figure out what flavours you love the most; add in an extra bit of this. And instead of using yogurt, replace it with buttermilk. I love that anything is change-aroundable,” she said.

Fehmz grew up in Lenasia, Johannesburg, on a diet of traditional Indian food. It shows in her recipes such as aloo fry, Bombay Crush, methi bhaji and sweetmeats like gulab jamun and chana magaj. However, she says her husband expanded her gastronomic horizons, and, horror of horrors, even reminded her that a toasted tomato and cheese sandwich is also food.

In DAMN GOOD FOOD she pays tribute to all the people who taught her recipes as she honed her cooking skills; her mum, dad, Aunty Pinky and Roshen Maasi.

“I’ve often picked up the phone to my aunties in Durban to ask them how to make something,” she said. “I get to lean on my aunts and say, ‘Hey, what can you teach me? You know, I want to taste this, I had this at your house.’ Those are the things I love, and it’s amazing.”

The book also contains “fakeaways” like Chicken Licken-style wings, her version of fast foods recreated at home.

“It was a decision to eat better, but also, financially, takeaways can cost you a lot of money. And fakeaways became such a lovely thing to make because I had fun tasting recipes and trying to figure out what they were making.”

Fehmz might have studied interior design, but she says she felt like she was “coming home” when she turned to cooking and carved out a new career for herself.

From her time as a contestant on the cooking show, Ready, Steady, Cook, to her social media platforms and now her book, she has truly carved out a niche.

Currently, she is hard at work expanding Fehmz Mocktails, a personal brand of drinks she developed, now available at specialty stores.

“In the Islamic world, everything’s non-alcoholic, and I thought the one thing we didn’t have was exciting drinks in the non-alcoholic field. I wanted to make drinks that were still exciting, which is why they’re bottled in glass — because I want them to look pretty.”

DAMN GOOD FOOD is a 192-page softcover book retailing for R420.

You can follow her on Facebook at Fehmz, visit www.fehmz.com, or find her on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube at @fehmz.

CHICKEN LICKEN’-STYLE WINGS

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

Oil, for frying

1kg chicken wings, skin

Marinade

1 cup milk

1 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic

1 tbsp lemon juice

Coating

1 tsp salt

½ tsp smoked paprika (or normal)

2 tsp chilli powder

4-5 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp crushed garlic

½ tsp garlic and herb spice

½ cup self-raising flour

Method

1. Mix all the marinade ingredients together and soak the chicken wings in it.
2. Mix all the coating ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
3. Add the marinated wings to the bowl – they need to be wet from the soaking.
4. Use your hands to work the wings and coating until it forms a paste that sticks to the wings. Use gloves if you prefer, but get it all mixed in. Press the marinade on if you like. 
5. Leave for at least 2 hours or toss these straight into a ziplock bag and place in the freezer for when you are ready to cook them.
6. Fry in hot oil for 12-15 minutes. Try to keep them submerged for the entire time, like pressure frying. They must be browned and crispy.

Serve with a delicious hot sauce or ranch sauce, anything to dip them into, and don’t forget to have spicy chips and coleslaw on the side.

DIPPING SAUCE OPTIONS

• Mix the Dynamite Hot Sauce (page 31) with lemon juice.
• Or use a hot honey dressing with sesame seeds.

BURNT BASQUE CHEESECAKE

Makes 1 X 20cm cake

Fehmz says this is her most viral recipe on Instagram.

Ingredients

1 tin (385g) sweetened condensed milk

4 extra-large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup fresh cream

250g cream cheese

125g mascarpone cheese

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.
2. Spray and line a 20-cm diameter baking tin with baking paper. Take a large square of baking paper and push it into your pan. This creates more height, and those little paper folds that give the cheesecake its signature look.
3. Blend all the ingredients together until smooth. Pour into the tin.
4. Allow it to stand for 5 minutes to let the airiness reduce.
5. Bake at 180ºC for 35 minutes.
6. Crank up the heat to 220ºC and let it toast for about 10 minutes.
7. Remove and cool completely.
8. Set in the fridge for 6 hours, or preferably overnight before serving.

Variation

Serve completely smothered in good quality melted chocolate OR not. It is freakin’ delicious and the texture is velvety, creamy and smooth.

NANI’S MUTTON AKHNI

Serves: 6

Ingredients

⅓ cup ghee

1 cinnamon stick

½ tsp cumin seeds

2 onions, ground/grated

Pinch of salt

60ml water

1kg mutton

1 tbsp red ginger garlic paste

1 tsp green chilli/masala

2 tsp cumin powder

1 tsp coriander powder

1 tsp salt

Method

1. Add the ghee to a pot with the cinnamon stick and cumin seeds.
2. Sauté to release the aroma.
3. Add the onions, salt and a little water. Sauté until the onions are translucent.
4. Add the mutton and brown lightly on high heat.
5. Turn down to medium and add the remainder of the ingredients (except the rice, salt and water).
6. Cook until the mutton is soft and 80% cooked (about 45 minutes).
7. Add the potatoes, salt and water.
8. Add extra chilli powder, to taste.
9. Cook for 15 minutes on medium heat.
10. Then add the rice, salt and water.
11. Mix and cook on medium-high for 10 minutes until the rice sticks a little to the bottom of the pot. Make sure there is enough water in the pot to cover the top of the rice.
12. Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.
13. When the rice starts to stick, give everything a good mix.
14. Tear off a piece of wax paper (the size of the pot lid), crumple it in your hands and run it under some water to soak. Pull it open and place it carefully over the top of the rice inside the pot. Make sure to cover all the open areas. Close the pot with foil and then close the lid of the pot to create a good seal.
15. Place in the oven to steam the akhni for 40 minutes to 1 hour.
16. Garnish with coriander. Serve hot.

Variations

• For chicken akhni, you can add the same spices, minus the vinegar, but do not pressure cook the meat. Just sauté it in the pot, then continue with the rest of the method.

• For veg akhni, leave out all the meat, and add veggies of your choice such as butternut, cauliflower, sweet potato, etc.

• For mince akhni, add the same spices as for the mutton, but do not pressure cook the mince.

ethod

1. Add the ghee to a pot with the cinnamon stick and cumin seeds.
2. Sauté to release the aroma.
3. Add the onions, salt and a little water. Sauté until the onions are translucent.
4. Add the mutton and brown lightly on high heat.
5. Turn down to medium and add the remainder of the ingredients (except the rice, salt and water).
6. Cook until the mutton is soft and 80% cooked (about 45 minutes).
7. Add the potatoes, salt and water.
8. Add extra chilli powder, to taste.
9. Cook for 15 minutes on medium heat.
10. Then add the rice, salt and water.
11. Mix and cook on medium-high for 10 minutes until the rice sticks a little to the bottom of the pot. Make sure there is enough water in the pot to cover the top of the rice.
12. Preheat the oven to 180 ºC.
13. When the rice starts to stick, give everything a good mix.
14. Tear off a piece of wax paper (the size of the pot lid), crumple it in your hands and run it under some water to soak. Pull it open and place it carefully over the top of the rice inside the pot.

Make sure to cover all the open areas. Close the pot with foil and then close the lid of the pot to create a good seal.

1. Place in the oven to steam the akhni for 40 minutes to 1 hour.
2. Garnish with coriander. Serve hot.

VARIATIONS

• For chicken akhni, you can add the same spices, minus the vinegar, but do not pressure cook the meat. Just sauté it in the pot, then continue with the rest of the method.

• For veg akhni, leave out all the meat, and add veggies of your choice such as butternut, cauliflower, sweet potato, etc.

• For mince akhni, add the same spices as for the mutton, but do not pressure cook the mince.

PRAWN COCONUT CURRY

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

Step 1

3 tbsp peri-peri oil

⅓ cup ghee

½ tsp cumin seeds

Handful of curry leaves

1 tsp salt

1 large garlic clove, crushed

1 level tsp turmeric

1 tsp Universal Red

Magic Masala Paste

1 tsp cumin seeds, crushed

⅓ cup desiccated coconut

½ tsp coriander powder

Pinch of garam masala

1 heaped tsp tamarind paste

1 heaped tsp chilli powder

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 stalk chopped lemongrass (optional)

2 onions, grated or blitzed in the food processor

Step 2

2kg prawns, peeled and deveined

2 tomatoes, liquidised

Pinch of sugar

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tin (340g) coconut cream

To garnish

Chopped coriander

Squeeze of lemon

Method

Step 1

1. In a large saucepan on medium heat, add the peri-peri oil and ghee with the cumin seeds and curry leaves.
2. Heat gently, then add the balance of ingredients except for the onions. Fry the spices and marinade until slightly fragrant.
3. Add the onions to the same pot and sauté for about 2-3 minutes.

Step 2

1. Now turn up the heat. Add the prawns and fry for 1 minute on each side to sear and release the flavour. Remove the prawns from the saucepan.
2. Now add the tomatoes, sugar and tomato paste. Simmer into a curry.
3. Return the prawns to the saucepan once the oil skims to the top.
4. Pour in the coconut cream to complete the cooking.
5. Garnish with chopped coriander and a squeeze of fresh lemon.
6. Serve with jasmine rice or turn this into a delicious pasta by folding in 1 packet of freshly boiled al dente linguine plus 1 ladle of pasta water.