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It’s Soweto Kota Festival time once again and the spotlight is about to fall on South African street food. The festival team switched things up this year and instead of hosting the media launch at the Ubuntu Kraal as has been the custom for the past few years, the event was held at the Soweto Theatre on Wednesday 19 August. The annual festival is entering a momentous 9th year.
The Kota evolution
This township delicacy has come a long way from its early days of mince, atchaar and potato mash stuffed in a quarter loaf of bread; hence the word Kota.
Some hilarious debates have been had by locals about whether or not the Gauteng favourite is a spin-off of Durban’s legendary bunny chow. But both dishes are delicious and more importantly, carry a cultural heritage significance for South Africans.
Cultures evolve and determined not to get left behind, the Kota gradually shifted to include new flavours. Chips (or fries depending on your geographical location), different sausage variations and even eggs entered the mix.
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Times kept changing and the Kota levelled up. Nowadays we even have “Kota that went to private school,” whose ingredients include lettuce, burger patties, toasted bread and other upgrades.
Atchaar and bread are the only two original ingredients that remain part of the Kota. But sauces have also entered the mix, attracting eaters who are not so keen on the pickled mango and chilli concoction.
What to expect from the festival
The main event isn’t changing location as organisers SID Entertainment Pty Ltd confirmed that foodies will assemble at the Elkah Cricket Oval in Rockville, Soweto on 5 and 6 September.
Paypal joins the festival as a sponsor this year to facilitate its transition toward a cashless offering and main sponsor Sasko has committed to support the festival’s 10th edition next year.
““We grew up eating Kota at school but the ingredients have now evolved to something even more exciting with additions of chips, cheese, polony and other meats,” said festival founder Sidwell Tshingilane.
Since inception, the family friendly festival has attracted an average of 10 000 people annually and creates employment for about 40 vendors each year.
The cultural celebration’s entertainment offering this year includes Lamize Holworthy, Tracy, Mr X, Uncool and Jobe London among many others.
- What: Soweto Kota Festival
- When: 5 and 6 September
- Where: Elkah Cricket Oval, Rockville, Soweto
- Cost: From R200 for children, R250 for students, R300 for adults, R800 for the VIP section, tickets on Webtickets
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