Love & Lobola

A MODERN AFRICAN ROMANCE TOLD IN RECIPES AND RITUALS BY NEO NONTSO

‘Love & Lobola honours the meals that shaped our love story. Modern love often feels disconnected from heritage.

These recipes show that you can be contemporary, well-travelled, curious, adventurous – and still be deeply rooted in tradition. In our kitchen, chakalaka can sit beside a French style cordon bleu chicken. Umngqusho can share a table with crusty Lazy Boy beer bread. A December sheep roasted over fire can be followed by a delicate apple galette. Our love is layered. So is our food.’

From first meals together and cooking for the parents to hosting friends and date night, along with the food served over the lobola weekend, and more, this cookbook tells a story that goes beyond ingredients or techniques.

NEO NONTSO, widely known as Dine with Neo, is an award-winning chef, cookbook author and TV personality. Known for her luxurious yet relatable approach to food storytelling, she has built a community of over one-million food lovers.

Her debut cookbook, @dinewithneo: my insta feast, was published in 2022. It won two international Gourmand Awards, and was loved by readers all over the world. Whether you’re cooking for someone you love or simply looking for food that feels like home, this book is inspiring, empowering and rooted in both a modern and traditional South African lifestyle. At the heart of it all, Neo believes that food has the power to bring people together and transform lives.