For a healthier greener home, consider using more natural cleaners than the commercial ones. Unfortunately, the ever-expanding arsenal of home cleaning products now includes several dangerous weapons, loaded with harsh cleansing agents like bleach, ammonia and acids. These chemicals can produce indoor air pollution by off-gassing toxic fumes that can irritate eyes and lungs. (Children and pets are most at risk.)  Even the biggest messes and toughest stains can be attacked effectively with baking soda, borax, lemon juice and other simple ingredients, but without the harmful side effects.

Seven essentials:
These seven items make up the basic ingredients for nearly every do-it-yourself cleaning recipe.

Baking soda: A natural deodoriser and mild abrasive which also provides grit for scrubbing and reacts with water, vinegar or lemon by fizzing, which speeds up cleaning times.

Borax: disinfects, bleaches and deodorises; very handy in laundry mixes. It also inhibits the growth of mildew and mould

Distilled white vinegar: disinfects and breaks up dirt; choose white vinegar over apple cider or red vinegars, as these might stain surfaces. It contains about 5 percent acetic acid, which makes it a mild acid.

Lemons: contain citric acid which cut grease; bottled lemon juice also works well, although you might need to use bit more to get the same results

Olive oil: picks up dirt and polishes wood; cheaper grades work well

Vegetable based (liquid castile) soap: non-petroleum all-purpose cleaners

Washing soda: is a sodium carbonate decahydrate, a mineral. Its a stain remover, general cleaner and helps unblock pipes; should be handled with gloves due to its caustic nature. Washing soda is usually found in the laundry aisle of grocery and drug stores.

For common household tasks, try these nontoxic strategies using the above ingredients:

All-purpose cleaner can be made from a vinegar-and-salt mixture or from 4 tablespoons baking soda dissolved in 1 litre warm water.

Disinfectant means anything that will reduce the number of harmful bacteria on a surface. Practically no surface treatment will completely eliminate bacteria. Try regular cleaning with soap and hot water. Or mix 1/4 cup borax into 2 litres of hot water to disinfect and deodorise.

Oven cleaner: Make a paste out of baking soda and water, and apply it to tough, stuck-on grime in your oven. Let it stand for a while (dependent on how tough the stain is) then wipe clean.

Stovetop and Oven Grease Remover : 1/2 tsp washing soda, 1/4 tsp liquid soap and 2 cups hot water. Add washing soda and soap to hot water in spray bottle. Since washing soda is caustic, wear gloves.

Kitchen tiles:

Baking Soda and Water: Dust surfaces with baking soda, then scrub with a moist sponge or cloth. If you have tougher grime, sprinkle on some kosher salt, and work up some elbow grease. 
Lemon Juice or Vinegar: Spray or douse with lemon juice or vinegar. Let sit a few minutes, then scrub with a stiff brush.
Disinfectant: Instead of bleach, make your own disinfectant by mixing 2 cups of water, 3 tablespoons of liquid soap and 20 to 30 drops of tea tree oil.

Use as a glass cleaner: Put a fifty-fifty solution of vinegar and water into a spray bottle. Spray vinegar solution on windows and wipe clean. If you use crumpled sheets of newspaper to wipe with, you will be left with a streak-free shine.

Clear minor clogs in drains: Put a couple tablespoons of baking soda (another natural cleaner) into a clogged drain, and follow up with a little bit of vinegar. The two will react to each other, and will start fizzing. This fizzing action can clear up minor clogs. Follow up with some boiling water to remove any leftover clog residue, and you’re all set.

Deodorise sink drains: Use the baking soda and vinegar trick, from above, even when you don’t have clogs to make drains smell fresh.
Clean and sanitise wood cutting boards: Cut a lemon in half, and push the cut end into some salt (yet another natural cleaner). Use the salted end of the lemon to sanitise wood cutting boards by rubbing it across the board. The abrasiveness of the salt will scour any impurities out of the wood, and the lemon juice will disinfect. After scouring, rinse with water and let dry.
Deodorise garbage disposals: Once a week, put a halved lemon into your garbage disposal, and let it run. It will deodorise and disinfect it.
Kitchen counters
The room where food is prepared, stored and often enjoyed requires constant vigilance. Splatters, spills and errant crumbs can build up and collect out of sight, encouraging harmful bacteria.
Baking Soda and Water: Reclaim counters by sprinkling with baking soda, then scrubbing with a damp cloth or sponge. If you have stains, knead the baking soda and water into a paste and let set for a while before you remove. This method also works great for stainless steel sinks, cutting boards, containers, refrigerators, oven tops and more.

Kosher Salt and Water: If you need a tougher abrasive sprinkle on kosher salt, and scrub with a wet cloth or sponge.

Natural Disinfectant: To knock out germs without strong products, mix 2 cups of water, 3 tablespoons of liquid soap and 20 to 30 drops of tea tree oil. Spray or rub on countertops and other kitchen surfaces.

Wickedfood Cooking School is an ideal venue for corporate entertaining, whether it be team building, a relaxing way of rewarding staff, building relationships with customers, or getting to know colleagues. In anticipation of the world cup, for those who are not particularly interested in soccer, but still want to get into the spirit of things, from now until the end of July Wickedfood Cooking School has developed a unique competition cooking concept, the 2010 Wickedfood Culinary World Cup Challenge.

2010 Wickedfood Culinary World Cup Challenge

Wickedfood Cooking School has identified the 10 participating soccer teams with the most interesting cuisine and drawn up a representative 6-dish menu for each national team. The class is divided into two groups, each representing one of these national teams, and cooks the relevant menu. We supply the ingredients and recipes for each team. Apart from the fun aspect, this is also a novel way of entertaining clients, a great form of teambuilding, or ideal opportunity of assessing various staff members’ abilities to work together and solve common problems. Once all the dishes are cooked, our judging panel, will choose the winning team and then the participants sit down and enjoy the 2 respective meals they have prepared.

What is included in the price?

• A set of recipes for each participant to take home;
• All ingredients and the use of aprons to wear while cooking (we also have branded aprons for sale and with enough lead-in time can have these embroidered with company logos);
• Teas, coffees (on request) and soft drinks in the morning classes; limited white and red house wine by the glass, and soft drinks in the evening classes;
• The meal at the end. Bring only your enthusiasm.

About Wickedfood Cooking Schools

(see our website for more information)

Wickedfood Cooking School is an educational facility, offering tuition in a wide range of culinary skills to the public and corporate world in a fun, safe environment. We run classes (subject to a minimum of 12 people) throughout the year at our purpose-built cooking studios, in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week. The venue is also available for corporate and private functions – birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our classes are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups these classes are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Our first classes were run from restaurant premises in Illovo in October 2001. In May 2002, the school was moved to a purpose-built kitchen in Fourways. Our newest school opened in Sunninghill in August 2007. The school can accommodate up to 60, in hands-on classes in state-of-the-art, purpose-built, teaching kitchens and offer over 30 classes (including special halaal options) specifically for the corporate and group market.

See the Programme section on our website for a list of the wide variety of classes available.

For more information on the 2010 Wickedfood Culinary World Cup Challenge, please contact Wickedfood Cooking School - Tel: 011 234-3252.

Africa is a vast continent, three times the landmass of Europe, and with over 1,000 different languages. Its history is incredibly ancient, its cooking styles grand and majestic, with food flavors that shift dramatically from north to south, east to west. Unfortunately to date, very few of these mouthwatering flavours have been accurately captured in cookbooks.  Here are a few of Wickedfood Cooking Schools favourite African themed cookbooks:

The Momo Cookbook by Mourad Mazouz – a sensual feast of the perfumes and flavours from North Africa . The author is a restaurateur of Algerian extraction and has an extensive knowledge of the food from the region. This beautifully produced cookbook features over 90 authentic recipes from Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria, many supported by mouthwatering photographs. In addition the book includes interesting travel notes and background on the region.

If you’re looking for a book that truly represents modern South Africa, as a special present for overseas clients or a homesick friend, then African Salad – a portrait of South Africans at home, should receive your serious consideration. The book is a delicious portrait of real South Africans in their homes, and their favourite recipes. It is supported by beautiful design and some spectacular cityscape photographs. A real gem.

Life Soweto style – an intriguing look into Soweto, it’s warmth of energy, community spirit and people with some stunning coffee table photography by Mark Lanning. And what makes this book more intriguing is the selection of ethnic recipes at the back of the book, real gems.

West Coast Cookbook– edited by foodie, Ina Paarman, this book is a collection of recipes from the West Coast fishing community. Apart from the easy-to-follow mouthwatering recipes, the book also weaves an interesting tale about the trials and tribulations of living at a hand-to-mouth existence from the sea.

Africa cookbook – Jessica Harris explors the continent’s diverse cuisines and rich history. An erudite discussion of regional food differences among North, South, East and West Africa is followed by a glossary of African ingredients and utensils and a list of mail order sources for ingredients in the USA, for whom the book is written. While Harris challenges readers to move beyond preconceived notions of African food as “hot,” “spicy” and limited to “soupy stews,” her lofty intentions fall somewhat short as her recipe collection covers mostly these very types of preparations. Virtually all of the 200-plus recipes are “one-pot” dishes, which showcase just one ingredient that is boiled or fried then seasoned.

In Cooking from Cape to Cairo, Dorah Sitole, long time editor of True Love Magazine, has put together a mouthwatering collection of recipes drawn from around the continent. …

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built cooking studios. Classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our classes are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

This wonderful chicken and peanut stew, with a thick spicy tomato base is typical of West Africa. Make it as spicy as you like by adding cayenne pepper, and for extra heat, a chopped chilly or two. This recipe is based on one that we teach at Wickedfood cooking School in our West African cooking class.

8 to 12 chicken pieces

±3T oil for cooking

2 onions, peeled and chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

2T fresh ginger, finely chopped

1 tin chopped tomatoes

2T tomato paste

1 ½ cups peanut butter

1 stock cube dissolved in 2 cups hot water

2-3t cayenne pepper or to taste

salt and sugar to taste

garnish with chopped chilly or spring onion

1. Trim the chicken pieces of extra fat and skin, and season with cayenne pepper and salt.
2. Heat the oil in a deep pot or casserole dish. Add the chicken in batches, skin side down and fry on both sides until it is browned. Remove and set aside. (Chicken cooks best if the chicken pieces do not touch each other while frying.)
3. Fry the onions until they just start to change colour, then add the garlic and ginger.
4. Stir in chopped tomatoes and paste. Reduce heat and simmer for ±5 minutes.
5. Stir in peanut butter and then the stock and stir well.
6. Return chicken to pot, bring to the boil and simmer on a low heat for 40 minutes. Adjust the spices by adding more cayenne pepper, salt and sugar to taste.
7. Garnish and serve with Fufu, pounded yam, a classic accompaniment to most West African stews, or rice.

Serves 6 to 8

Click here for some other interesting African recipes

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built cooking studios. Classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our classes are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.