The commercial commemoration of heritage day in South Africa is to light up a fire and throw some meat onto the braai. This is firmly part of the South African lifestyle, but there’s so much more to what constitutes a South African flavour than meets the eye or taste buds.

What’s on your dinner plate? Did you ever think what you decided to cook for supper reflects a lot more about your heritage and culture, than just preparing what you're in the mood for?

Food, like art and culture tells a story of who we are, where we come from and how we relate to the world.

This is affirmed by a walk through ‘kasi’ (township) on a Sunday afternoon. The air is engulfed with all types of mouth-watering smells. From gravy simmering on a stovetop, to a fiery grill at a local chisa nyama (braai spot), townships are filled with distinct and wondrous aromas that are a reflection of how communities grew and bonded, where meals were dictated by circumstance and affordability.

From pap and chakalaka to mopani worms and steamed spinach. Many of these dishes have become family favourites, that have been passed through the generations. Similarly, if you visit an Afrikaans home you could find yourself enjoying a plate of bobotie, potjiekos or a braai followed by a dessert of homemade milk tart or koeksisters.

Let's not forget the infamous Durban bunny chow that seems to have transcended provincial boundaries.

Unlike many national dishes around the world, South African food is not defined by a single dish or flavour. Like its people it's a mergence and evolution of tastes and cultures, mixed and matched over the decades.

Celebrated food expert Anna Trapido says you can tell a lot about a person through their food, their upbringing, experience and ethnicity. We are increasingly becoming a nation of foodies. This is evident in the number of culinary programmes broadcast on local screens.

We've emerged from a past that includes the oppressive and divisive Group Areas Act. Not only did this act separate race, but it removed an understanding of other societies and cultures.

Post-apartheid South Africa paints a different picture entirely. With the breaking down of barriers, came a sharing of cultures. It wasn't long before the country's citizens started sharing recipes and saw Indian women dinning on samp, young black men feasting on sushi or even a 'tannie' cooking morogo.

It’s almost a new food order in South Africa that embraces the old and new in our kitchens. It's in this new world that the foreign mealie plant’s by-product pap has transcended through cultural and racial differences, to become one of the country’s most loved foods.

Aside from the indigenous foods, South African kitchens have embraced the cuisines of cultures of immigrants like the Portuguese, Greek, Indian and other Asian countries. Whilst we embrace other cuisines, Trapido is concerned that the authentic preparation of indigenous food is slowly dying. It's for this reason she feels the need to introduce a programme that passes this legacy onto the next generation. She wants young people to completely embrace their food history and showcase how they grew up, so this food heritage has a place in South Africa for decades to come.

As we celebrate another heritage day, perhaps a challenge would be to be have a gastronomy adventure and learn a little more about a traditional dish that has its place firmly entrenched in local cuisine. We're fusing music, language, culture ... so why not food?

For Anna Trapido this fusion truly defines the country’s heritage. “A lot of ethnic groups think they’re different from each other but if you walk into their homes and look at their dinner plates, you’ll realise that South Africans are the same, we are unique.”