Jake and the Zainab Chapati

I walked into the kitchen last night to find Jake standing over the stove with Farida and Zainab, watching as a fresh chapati sizzled and snapped in the frying pan….For the past week, Jake has been wanting a cooking lesson or two from the most amazing sisters in Uganda, Zainab and Farida. Originally from Northern Uganda, Zainab has had a life marked by tragedy and loss that spans the globe from Sudan to Cypress…..She has spent her life as a cook, in and out of several embassies (including the American embassy), traveling around the world, a student of many kitchens and many different types of cuisine…..She is larger than life in her traditional African dress and head scarf with an infectiously kind smile and laugh. Farida is her younger sister, who lives here with her 2 year old daughter, Najjat, who runs around the compound naked, chattering and laughing, poking and pulling at every little curious thing she can find….. Anyway, last night Jake learned to make chapati’s under Zainab’s careful instructions. As they kneaded the dough and sprinkled the flour by candlelight (the electricity was out AGAIN), Zainab told Jake the story of her life, starting with fleeing her home in the North for the Sudan, her emotions unfolding, uncontrolled for a rare and quiet moment…. The master of the Ugandan chapati, the Zainab chapati, instructed Jake like a son while she told the story of her own son’s death….It was a profound and routine at the same time…..and I don’t think Jake will ever forget how to make Zainab’s chapatis….