Cornerstone: Food at Cornerstone

The food at Cornerstone is fascinating to watch being prepared, but less interesting to eat. While Brenda and her family were here they got to a point where they started to prepare food for themselves.

Cooking in the children's home kitchen

The kitchen facilities consist of a wooden shack with corrugated iron roof, open at the sides except for rattan strips. There are no work surfaces. Food preparation is done outside as a communal activity. Cooking is done on a mud-built stove, fed by firewood. As the kitchen is open to the elements, if it rains the cook gets wet and sometimes the fire is extinguished.

A few days ago I watched the stove being re-lit following a downpour. A girl went to fetch a piece of white hot charcoal from another kitchen. She then tore some of the rattan wall down and used it to make a fire. The burning rattan was then put into the stove as kindling.

Typical meal of bean stew and posho

For breakfast we have ‘bread’ which are really small doughnuts. For other meals the local staple is called Posho. It is a type of thick porridge made out of maize (sweetcorn) flour. The consistency is similar to thick mashed potato. It is almost tasteless and is never salted. Sometimes we have rice instead. Usually the posho is accompanied by a bean stew. It is also sometimes served with a glutinous vegetable dish. Sometimes we also have either fresh or dried fish. If we are really lucky, there is a beef stew or grilled chicken. The beef and fresh fish are delicious. The chicken is caught in the compound and has had an extremely free-range existence, hence very tough. There is a complete absence of fresh fruit in the children’s home diet, although these are easily obtainable at the local market.

Food is bought at the local market, very close to the children’s home. The market is a joy to wander in. Below are some photos.