Shane Sauvage, chef patron of La Pentola in Pretoria, chats to Malu Lambert about how he stays inspired, strange things he’s had to cook, and what people are eating.

What do you say to people who say fusion food is confusion food?
Fusion is a delicate combination of exactly the right amount of ingredients to create an overall new flavour based on solid culinary principals. If you want to eat true fusion food, it must be with a master of this cooking style. You wouldn’t take your Ferrari to a VW mechanic and expect the best results. Like any cooking style, it takes time, patience, dedication and lots of practice to perfect.

What does the name La Pentola mean?
It’s Italian for “the saucepan”.

Your restaurant’s been open a long time. How do you remain inspired?
This year the restaurant will have been open for 16 years. I stay inspired with regular getaways into nature and by constantly searching for new ingredients.

Where did you study?
I did a formal cooking course in the army, when military service was still compulsory. I was 17 at the time and feel like I made the best out of a bad situation.

What’s the oddest thing anyone has ever asked you to cook?
I can name quite a few dishes! Kangaroo, giraffe, lion, suckling pig and even bat!

What do you cook for your wife when you’re trying to impress her?
Nothing impresses my wife more than a big plate of fresh oysters. No cooking necessary.

What are people in Pretoria eating?
People want home-style comfort, value-for-money food. It also seems like people are eating a lot less than before.

What’s the best meal you’ve eaten lately?
It has to be the spaghetti vongole that my son made recently.

Tell me about your books.
I have published two books, The Edge of Fusion and Infusion. The latter won Best Chef’s Book at the World Gourmand Cookbook Awards last year. In my recipe books I share my passion for food, wine and our beautiful country. My photographer Sarie Pretorious and I go to great lengths with step-by-step photography to clearly show the reader how to prepare each dish. My books are very visual and were created to inspire people to cook.

Shane is married to Janet they have a son, Falcon, and a daughter, Willow. They also have three dogs that also enjoy his cooking, particularly his beef mince risotto.

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