Blog
Sharing Stories and Recipes from Home
In October 2022, our celebration showcased a tantalizing array of dishes from all over the world, cooked by our young people, that caught the attention of Culture Leicestershire. Intrigued by the flavours cherished by our young people, they reached out to us, sparking an inspiring initiative to share these delicious foods with the wider community by creating a Baca recipe book.
The book is important for new young people coming to Baca, when they learn the recipes and eat it, they will have a good feeling about the food.
Kamal
For our young people, the idea of a Baca recipe book was not just about sharing recipes; it was about sharing the meaning of food as a universal language of connection. Food, deeply ingrained in their identities and childhood memories, symbolises warmth, hospitality, and cultural heritage.
However, beyond exchanging delicious foods and cultural traditions, this recipe book will be particularly significant for new arrivals at Baca. Many children seeking refuge in the UK arrive with little to no culinary skills, particularly among our young men, as traditional gender roles often limit their exposure to cooking in their home countries. At the beginning, learning to navigate the kitchen can be an overwhelming experience.
While our dedicated residential support workers provide basic cooking lessons, the meals they prepare can still seem distant from the comfort of our young people's favourite home-cooked dishes. Turning to online tutorials in their native languages becomes a means of support, helping them rediscover the flavours that evoke special memories.
The Baca recipe book is now coming together and from this collaboration is a testament to each young person’s journey to learn how to cook, their resilience and pride in their cultures. Each recipe is a cherished memory, a favourite flavour, a story of home. By including translations of recipes into the contributors' mother tongues, we hope that new arrivals can connect with the familiar tastes, finding comfort and belonging in the shared experience of cooking and savouring meals which remind them of home.
The recipe book is important because a new young person can learn how to cook something they remember from their country from a recipe in their language.
Samiullah
The recipes, spanning regions like Tigray, Afghanistan, Kurdistan, Eritrea, and Sudan, are more than just mouth-watering dishes; they are ways of telling a story. With each dish, our young people share stories of family gatherings, cherished moments, and the journey of mastering the art of cooking.
As the aromas waft through our young people’s kitchens, and the flavours of their favourite dishes dance on our tongues, we are so excited about the book coming together. We are also reminded that this book isn't merely about food; it's about preserving heritage, fostering understanding, and building bridges between cultures—one delicious bite at a time. Keep tuned for more updates coming soon!
