Images by Richard Swingler

First published on 11/02/24

Growing up in Ghana, making homemade food from scratch has become second nature to 20-year-old Mary Kukua Anderson, who learned how to cook from a young age. After moving hundreds of miles away to start a new life in Pontypridd however, she found that there were hardly any restaurants or takeaways that offered African food like back home. Mary moved to Wales in 2021 to study for a business degree at Cardiff Metropolitan University. And after having her son, the graduate wanted to find a flexible way of working that would allow her to pursue her passion for cooking and working with food.

Although she is not yet at a stage where she can open a restaurant there, Mary has now started selling takeaway African dishes from her own home and says she works “very hard” to keep it as organised as any other food establishment’s kitchen. Her business is called Ronen's African Kitchen, which she named after her 10-month-old baby boy, Ronen, who she often cooks with in her home kitchen on her back in a baby sling. Mary's kitchen is always full of life, with orders rolling in after lunch time and into the evening.

Dishes take her around an hour to perfect, says Mary. She says: "Some take longer than others but a lot of them is a process which requires lots of food preparation."

As well as making all of the authentic dishes herself on a daily basis, Mary is also up bright and early each day to look after her 10-month-old. She noted: "It does take up time but I enjoy it."

Reflecting on what moving from Ghana to Pontypridd was like, Mary noted: "It is not as social here. There is more of a community in Ghana, and more people are keen to chat but here it is a bit different.

"Less people want to stop and talk to you as much, and people are a bit more isolated. I have found that I haven't met many people here yet, being a young mum with a baby and running a business as well, as it can be a bit isolating but cooking is something that will always feel like home."

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