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When a young man dumps a macho career in engineering for a decidedly soft career in the kitchen, he must be onto something. Amateur gastronome BABALWA SHOTA steps into chef Lusizo Henna's kitchen.

IN A TONE that I would assume carries a touch of arrogance, Lusizo Henna of Henna Cuisine declares: “You won’t find a single samoosa on my finger-food menu.”

We are standing in the tiny kitchen of his Sunninghill, Jozi, townhouse on a rather chilly Monday evening. Well, I’m standing; Henna on the other hand is buzzing.

He goes from kitchen counter to microwave to table with manic speed and the occasional “Lwanda! Plate please!” doing little to break the flow.

“You guys are gonna love this. This is my food: Henna Cuisine!” he says. “I make my food with love and passion.”

Henna is a protégé well on his way to becoming a culinary genius. His food is fresh, fragrant, beautifully presented and most importantly, finger ‘lickin’ good.

For a 24-year-old South African male, and a native of Bhisho in the Eastern Cape, he is quite impressive.

“I’ve been doing this for just over four years and can’t see myself ever doing anything else. I love cooking, creating delicious dishes that can be enjoyed by anyone from the parents at a family dinner to the director of a big conglomerate,” he says.

It’s true, for the short time that this young man has donned an apron, he has fed everyone from English royalty to South African business royalty.

No wonder he has no qualms about tooting his own horn – this guy has earned his stripes.

Henna, younger brother to Sisanda – the star of SABC1 drama Tsha Tsha – dropped his plans of studying engineering to satisfy his wanderlust.

He ended up in the UK as a fresh-faced 20-year-old where he landed a job as a waiter.

That lasted exactly two months before fate threw him at the Bank of America as a junior chef; read kitchen skivvy.

“The environment was new and a real shock to the system. I was kicked around so much there. The first day is a blur. I just remember a lot of shouting and wanting to cry.

“The kitchen is like an army – there is a lot of shouting and instruction. Every day is a new day in there.”

Lady Luck smiled again when he landed a job as head chef at an insur- ance company which subsidised his studies at Walthamstow College, where he eventually graduated as a professional chef.

“I was working as a breakfast chef at the company and attending school five times a week.”

Certainly it was back-breaking stuff and it’s great that Henna did not throw away the opportunities afforded him.

Home beckoned last year and he instantaneously landed a plum position at Nedcor.

“Yes, having a CV that states you have worked overseas does help pave the way. But I also had to prove that I was worthy of the job – that the talent was there,” he points out.

His baptism of fire came in the form of catering for an exclusive dinner where England’s Prince Edward was the guest of honour.

He had to deal with 600 guests, about 30 waiters and numerous food stations.

“What I know is that I bowled them over because I got the job,” he beams.

We move to the dining room where Henna’s dishes await us.

I dive for the Scottish wild salmon lying on a bed of fresh crushed peas, grilled cherry tomatoes and lemon cream sauce.

I move on to the chicken breast, which is stuffed with spinach and wrapped in pancetta. It lies on a bed of red onion marmalade which Henna has made from scratch.

My meat-loving partner dives for the Karoo lamb chops with vanilla mashed potatoes, red wine sauce, and cream mushrooms.

Words fail to describe the party in our mouths.

We almost don’t make it to the oriental style chicken and creamy curry fish. But we do, finish our perfectly indulgent dinner with ?rasberry and sparkling wine jelly.

Chef Sizo, as his friends call him, can toot his horn all he wants as far as I’m concerned. He is the chips plus the dip!

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