Sara Assad-Mannings: “I needed to explore being Palestinian in my own way”
The baker on creating armour for herself, Palestinian flavours and exploring her heritage on her own terms
Hi, welcome back to Mixed Messages! This week I’m speaking to baker and Bunhead Bakery founder Sara Assad-Mannings, who is of mixed white British and Palestinian heritage. I first met Sara at South London’s Salad Days Market, where her buns consistently sold out at record speed. Since then, I’ve made a beeline for Sara’s sourdough buns with Palestinian flavours, while also standing by Sara’s commitment to fighting for Palestinian liberation. Ahead of the opening of her first standalone store, I was excited to catch up with Sara about what her heritage has meant to her, especially at this moment in time. Read her story below.
How do you define your racial identity?
My mum is Palestinian, my dad is British but lived in Gaza in the West Bank for years. The majority of his friends are from that time and he’s fluent in Arabic. I would never have called myself mixed-race growing up, I didn’t think I could claim it. I still just say that I’m half-Palestinian.
I’ve had the force of that culture coming from both sides. It was instilled in me from a very early age, but I rejected it for a long time. It’s something I’ve reflected on a lot, especially over the last few months. I can’t remember there being any Arabs when I was in school, and before the last few months I didn’t have any friends who were Palestinian or Middle Eastern.
Even though that part of my identity has always been there and I’ve always attached myself to it, especially through food, it felt like it was quite private. It wasn’t a part of myself that I shared with my friends. Now, I’m much more attached to my Palestinian side.
So there was never that clash of cultures for you?
My mum was single for most of my life, and my dad met my stepmum when I was two. She’s from New Zealand, so I have siblings on that side whose dad is from Spain. When you’re experiencing it at the time you don’t really know what’s going on, but I do always remember feeling quite different.
My parents were so proudly pushing Palestine and I went regularly, up to a certain point, so the confusion about my culture didn’t come from them. It might have come from more secondary environments like school and step family.
Has your sense of self shifted over time, particularly with the war on Palestine right now?
Absolutely. It was already happening through Bunhead, which has been my way of exploring it on my own terms. Even though my mum and dad never wavered from me being Palestinian, it’s important for me to do it in my own way. I don’t like to be taught, but now I’m much more open to asking my mum about falafel or hummus recipes. At first I just needed to learn on my own.
Food is a huge topic on Mixed Messages, and a big way you’ve connected with your Palestinian identity. How else have you explored that culture?
Food has been the most important one. It’s the thing that I always felt welcomed into and was always there. My dad would cook fuul all the time for breakfast and I’d spent weekends rolling vine leaves with my mum and stuffing courgettes. Food is the biggest gesture of love, so from a really young age I was always so connected to it. It’s the memories of it as well, going to Palestine and my grandma making these big trays, everyone sharing around this big table sitting on the floor. To me, food means home, comfort and love. I guess it felt safe for me to explore that because it was familiar waters.
I like hip-hop and rap music, but I’ve never given myself enough time to explore what that meant in Palestine. There’s such a vibrant hip-hop scene there, and a skateboarding scene, so I want to explore outside of the confines of what my mum likes, which is quite traditional. I’d love to spend an extended time there. When my Arabic is a bit better, I can solidify it. Language was a big barrier for me as I don’t speak Arabic, it’s the biggest thing I’m angry with my parents about.
There’s cinema, too. I went to film school and wrote my dissertation on the representation of Arabs in Western and Middle Eastern cinema. I was watching modern independent cinema, my favourite film is Paradise Now. My dad and I would also make a point to go and watch a Palestinian film at the London Film Festival each year.
I’d love to hear more about Bunhead and how your heritage has influenced your baking.
It’s a constant journey. When I first started, it was off the cuff. I had two Palestinian flavours, rose and cardamom and baklava buns, alongside cinnamon and lemon buns. At first people will go with the cinnamon bun, and then they start to explore, the flavours they keep coming back for are the ones that are just a part of my everyday life.
Even though people don’t always say the right thing, or they're a bit clunky and awkward, people are generally curious and want to learn about Palestinian flavours. Then I started making the Ka’ak bread, which I remember having in Palestine but never considered baking for myself. I make this tahini and grape molasses bun, which is something you’d have in Palestine with tahini and pouring grape molasses over it, but nobody used to buy it before October 2023. Over the last few months, it’s become a really popular bun. People were so resistant to try it before they were forced to open their minds a bit or pushed into actually wanting to explore Palestinian flavours.
I was making semolina cakes the other day, mixing semolina and olive oil in my hand, and I felt so connected to my ancestors.
Do you feel like you can be white presenting?
I would say that I've been quite racially ambiguous. I always felt like I wasn’t entitled to claim being Arab or say that I was mixed-race. There was so much that I felt I wasn't allowed to do which really stunted me exploring being Palestinian. I don’t speak Arabic, so there’d be some teasing, that I was the white girl. I’m also the only one in my generation outside of the Middle East. I was very much on the outside. I’ve come to be safe and comfortable with it a lot later in life.
When I'm out, people are like “where are you from?” I’ve had everything from Indian to Romany Gypsy to a quarter Black… When I said I was Palestinian, I’d get “don’t you mean Israeli?” “that doesn’t exist,” or “you don’t look Palestinian.” But Palestinians are so diverse and I look Palestinian because I am Palestinian. It kind of became a game to me, but I didn’t notice at the time how that had hurt or affected me. You just create this armour for yourself, but actually there are so many points throughout your life where you never felt safe or able to fully explore.
What’s the best thing about being mixed for you?
I don’t know if this is being mixed-race or being fortunate with my parents, but I think it’s a complete openness to new things and learning. Knowing that the rest of the world isn’t scary removes a fear around things that you can develop if you haven't been around different cultures growing up. Learning new things, trying new foods, learning new cultures, immersing myself in different areas of life comes from having that in my bones, in my blood.
Can you sum up your mixed identity in one word?
Rich. It’s a rich experience.
Head down to Bunhead Bakery at 145 Dulwich Rd, SE24 0NG from this Sunday, May 19th. Find out more of this month’s mixed happenings in our very first Mixed Messageboard. Next week, I’ll be speaking to author Maxine Mei-Fung Chung. Subscribe to get Mixed Messages in your inbox on Monday.
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Mixed Messages is a weekly exploration of the mixed-race experience, from me, Isabella Silvers. My mom is Punjabi (by way of East Africa) and my dad is white British, but finding my place between these two cultures hasn’t always been easy. That’s why I started Mixed Messages, where each week I’ll speak to a prominent mixed voice to delve into what it really feels like to be mixed.