While mandarins are still in season we thought we’d introduce you to these delicious Duck Breasts with Chinese Five-Spice and Mandarin. It’s an easy recipe but you’ll need to begin the day before by curing the duck breasts overnight in spiced salt, a process that helps crisp up the skin and enhances the tenderness and flavour ....
Our beef short ribs, slowly braised in the oven with a simple paste of fresh garlic, ginger, coriander and onions, some chicken stock and sherry, will make a very tender and succulent stand-alone dish. But when topped with its Hot and Sour Salad it will zing with chilli, fresh herbs and lime …
Winter Pesto is great to have on hand to enrich a wintery soup, serve as a pasta sauce with some freshly grated parmesan, pancetta and peas or use wherever you fancy some extra tasty, green flavour ….
This no-fuss recipe is a handy stand-by when you really need a great meal to cook itself. In 5 hours, and in one dish, it delivers all the flavours of a classic Greek Roast Lamb - fall off-the-bone meat, lots of garlic, lemon and oregano, and onions and potatoes as well …..
Traditional with a bit of a twist. That’s our suggestion for your main meal this Christmas. We’re offering a rolled and stuffed pork neck cooked slowly in apple cider, accompanied by vegetables …. with a bit of zing ….
There is absolutely no fuss with this dish. After sourcing the tasty ingredients, marinating the chicken and parboiling the potatoes everything goes into one baking dish and forty minutes later dinner is on the table. How easy is that? ….
In the Southern Hemisphere it’s time for food to warm us up and our delicious Pollo, Porcini and Parmigiano Pies for lunch or dinner will do just that ….
Here’s a quick and tasty recipe, delicious at any time of the year - Rice Noodles with Prawns, Chilli and Lime. It’s spicy, fresh, healthy and takes little time or effort to achieve a big flavour ….
After a dash to the fish co-op one afternoon we produced this delicious dinner of a Barbecued Snapper served with Spicy Mango and Avocado Salsa and accompanied it with the best friend of white fleshed fish - potatoes - simply steamed and tossed in butter. It was spectacularly simple and delicious ….
Our Tomato, Fennel and Sausage Pasta al Forno is a very easy, family-friendly, prepare-ahead recipe. And unusually for us it contains pasta. Penne actually - gluten-free of course ….
This meal started out with the intention of clearing out the vegetable crisper, and indeed it did, but the result was a very good Roast Vegetable Curry which deserves to be repeated ….
This classic recipe for Beef Bourguignon does take a bit of time to make, even if most of it is spent enjoying the aromas emanating from the simmering pot ….
Here’s our gluten-free Spinach Prosciutto and Ricotta Gnocchi. It’s a very easy and very tasty recipe which makes a perfect entrée or lunch dish when paired with some blistered cherry tomatoes, a dash of home-made tomato sauce, and/or a salad ….
There’s going be a crowd of us around the dinner table this Christmas so the menu has been decided, not just with a nod to tradition, but by what we can fit in the oven and how we can actually deliver a hot meal! One whole turkey was never going to cut it, so the plan arose to cook several turkey breasts, rolled and roasted ….
Flamiche aux Poireau is a classic French dish from Picardy, the region directly north of Paris. The word flamiche was originally Flemish for ‘cake’ but by the 18th century it had turned into a tart – specifically, as anyone who knows their pommes from their poireaux would tell you – a leek tart ….
Our recently published Cornbread recipe had me thinking about a main meal to go with it. Mexican seemed the logical direction but it came with a proviso that it would be flavoursome and easy to prepare. (Much sought after those two characteristics.) And so Spiced Chicken with Chorizo and Chickpeas came about ….
Flavoured with orange, and garnished with roasted walnuts, our Orange-Scented Oxtail is an excellent example of a less-utilised cut of meat, cooked slowly to produce a tender, succulent meal ….
This delicious, Indonesian Beef Rendang ‘curry’ is not a saucy affair. The cooking liquid is reduced to an unctuous gravy which thickly coats the tender, slowly cooked meat. It’s unashamedly spicy and rich ….
It’s winter in Australia and lockdown in Sydney is now in its fifth week. We can exercise outside without a mask and the sun does shine a lot in sunny Sydney, even in winter, but still the highlight of the day does seem to be dinner! And I’m delving deep to keep it interesting. Last night I made a Roast Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry and served it with Tofu in Chilli Sauce ….
We were heading off to spend a few days in Orange recently, and in the process of planning meals what should spring to mind but that cordon-bleu classic - Duck a l’Orange! Given the dish has been described by Gordon Ramsay as the culinary equivalent of flared trousers, the temptation to go there was impossible to resist. Somehow in the process, though, the duck became good old Aussie chook ….
When I was a child my mother cooked. My father only ever did so when, decked out in one of Mum’s floral aprons and with tongs in hand, he’d hover over the barbecue blackening sausages and chops. They were the days. Despite this evidence to the contrary, Dad claimed to be a cook of quite some accomplishment, and he was always just on the cusp of creating for us his most famous dish – a Sea Pie ….
According to the old proverb: ‘the nearer the bone, the sweeter the meat.’ Leaving metaphorical meanings aside, when we’re talking about the long, slow cooking of meat on the bone, the culinary experts couldn’t agree with the ancients more. There’s not only the buttery bone marrow, they say, but the collagen in the bones themselves that melts to create gelatin. Both end up adding texture and body to carry and enrich the more complex meaty flavours …
Crêpes are lovely things to have as a lunch dish, a light supper or a family meal. They’re easy and fun to make and most people really like them. Especially children. With a delicious nutty flavour, soft texture and crisp edges, our Gluten-free Savoury Buckwheat Crepes could soon become a favourite dish in your household ….
For a slice of Italy at home, go no further than our Ricotta, Cavolo Nero and Salami Torta. Filled with classic Italian flavours and encased in our Revenge Gluten-free Cream Cheese Pastry it’s perfect with a salad for lunch or dinner and could even wing it for brunch, perhaps replacing the salami for bacon or speck ….
Our Marinated Roast Spatchcock with Date Harissa is very easy to prepare and is impressive enough to serve to friends. We’ve made our own Harissa for the marinade but you can use a purchased variety and blend fresh dates into it, but be cautious, Harissa can be VERY hot ….
Adapted in a few ways from a recipe by Phillip Searle, the talented Australian chef who introduced his fellow Australians to so many wonderful flavours and dishes, the Warm Roasted Pork with Spicy Cucumber and Peanut Salad is now a popular meal amongst our friends and family ….
Sang Choy Bau, meaning ‘lettuce’ and ‘wrap’ is a tasty, spicy mix of minced meat - commonly pork but believed to be originally pigeon – that is designed to be spooned into lettuce cups then ‘wrapped’ into small parcels that disappear in a couple of bites ….
It’s our eternal mission to design the perfect, no-fuss-on-the-day Christmas main meal. And we think we’ve done it ….
If you, like lots of us, have trouble enticing children to polish off traditional Christmas fare then we have a solution for you - our Christmas tree shaped Spaghetti Bolognese Frittata. It’s a very simple idea ….
It might seem strange but we’ve only posted one other recipe for risotto on our blog. There are so many out there we’ve wondered if the world really needs another … until now. Our Asparagus and Pea Risotto with Stuffed Zucchini Flowers is a celebration of the spring vegetables that are abundant (and cheap) in our markets right now …
A curious legacy of the British raj in India, kedgeree became a popular breakfast dish in the U.K. in Victorian times. Combining cooked rice and smoked fish, traditionally haddock, with curry spices, onions, boiled eggs and parsley, kedgeree remains an eccentric mix but a delicious one …
Duck breasts have a lovely balance of tender, juicy, lean breast meat with a wonderfully rich layer of duck fat just under the skin ….
Enokido Miso is a Sydney based, artisanal producer of high quality Japanese miso, soy and teriyaki sauces many of which are gluten-free. Which is where we come in ….
Tomato Kasaundi is a thick, rich, spicy Indian tomato concoction described variously as a relish, chutney or pickle. It has become a bit of a ubiquitous standard in my fridge due to its myriad of uses ….
Everybody loves a meatball. Whether they be called polpettine, gehaktballen or albondigas, they’re a world-wide favourite ….
Feeding a crowd always provides its challenges. Having decided to serve a simple dish of roast chicken for the dozen friends getting together for a Sunday lunch, the first step was secure the best organic chickens I could find ….
Biryani or pilaf or pilau? Let’s not debate. We’re just going to call this week’s recipe a chicken pilaf and trust that you can sense the wonderful colours, flavours and aromas and be inspired to try it, no matter its culinary heritage ….
With its use of olive oil and butter with tamarind and soy sauce this Warm Prawn and Tomato Salad is a little bit western and a little bit eastern and it satisfyingly ticks the boxes for rich, sweet, sour and umami tastes ....
A good curry can be hard to beat. Sometimes restaurant versions can be oily and a little heavy, so we’ve designed this Malaysian Style Fish Curry to be light and clean, while the coconut milk gives it a lovely touch of richness ....
Along with sushi, teriyaki is one of the staples of Japanese restaurants in Australia. It’s been popular in Japan too, since the 17th century, when cooks began to heat soy sauce with sake or mirin, together with some sugar or honey to create a marinade and dressing ....
A generously laden Christmas table needs a main event, a dish or two around which all others are planned, and here we have two suggestions which will make very handsome additions to your festive feasting. The first is a whole fish which is perfect for feeding a crowd. The second is a butterflied, pork neck which is first marinated then stuffed and rolled ....
Here we have a butterflied, pork neck which is first marinated then stuffed with a delicious combination of mizithra or ricotta cheese, lots of herbs, bacon, garlic, onion and pistachio nuts. We’ve served it with a yoghurty sauce enriched with nut brown butter and tiny gerkins ....
Here’s the scenario. Coeliac goes into a restaurant and scans the menu. Everything is tempting, but gluten-free pickings are thin. Helpful wait-staff come up with the solution: I know, how about the risotto! So, who needs another one, right? ....
I love Singapore and not just for the noodles. A very old friend and her husband have been living and working there for ten years and we love to visit. They live in Tiong Bahru an old, historic part of Singapore which has lately become a very trendy part of the city. There is a wonderful Chinese wet market there full of a vast variety of the freshest produce. It’s hot and noisy, bustling and busy and I love it ....
Deliciously succulent pasta tubes filled with aubergine, ricotta, spinach, parmesan and smoked Fior di Latte, topped and bottomed with home made tomato sauce ….. salivating yet? This week’s recipe is a home-cook’s dream as it can be prepared well ahead of time and gently reheated to serve topped with fresh basil leaves. It can be made in very large quantities for parties and freezes well ....
Are you ready to kick back for a casual but impressive meal? This dish of crabs cooked in beer has its origins in Southeast Asia but it easily slips into Australian cuisine when you use some local, vibrantly fresh blue swimmer crustaceans and a Victorian brewed gluten-free pale ale ....
This recipe is ideal for the thin edges or ends of large white fish fillets like ling or barramundi that are left over when you trim up serving portions, or if you happen to have fish of different kinds that you can mix together ....
I recently bought some king prawns because they looked so very fresh, with bright colour and long perky antennae. I took them home and looked in the fridge and pantry for something to go with them. I found tinned tomatoes and some feta. A memory of a tasty Greek meal from years ago flooded in and I had my dish. Baked prawns, tomatoes and feta. Not trendily innovative but a true classic and a delicious combination of seafood and cheese ....
This beef-in-broth dish is a good one for your repertoire. It is easy to make, can be prepared the day before and is handy for large numbers. With the ingredients of ginger, garlic, pepper, soy, star anise and cinnamon, it sings of the flavours of Asia ....
The chicken rolls in this recipe can be stuffed the day before and stored in the fridge. All other ingredients can be thrown together in no time. The potatoes are already cooked and can be 'par browned' in the oven before the chicken goes in and, while the chicken is resting, popped back in to finish browning. All the salad ingredients can be prepared before hand and tossed together at the last minute ....
This is actually a very easy recipe to prepare and serve. The duck breasts are very quick and easy to marinate. All the components for the salad can be prepared the day before and tossed together at the last minute and the rice noodle rolls sautéed while the duck is resting ....
On a recent excursion to the Tramsheds at Harold Park, a new food and restaurant complex in Sydney, I was impressed with the gathering of some top Sydney restaurant operators, new bakeries and groovy cafes and bars but what really caught my eye, in the supermarket no less, was a packet of gluten-free lasagne sheets ....
This is a great way to serve chicken. Thigh fillets are a very economical cut. When stuffed with a little of whatever you fancy, rolled with slices of prosciutto and sliced to reveal their succulent filling, this ordinary cut becomes a little more distinctive ....
Yesterday, at the Food and Words 2016 seminar in the atmospheric Mint complex in Macquarie Street Sydney, we were encouraged to eat more vegetables and less meat. The thread of the presentations throughout the day stitched together ideas about local food, global systems, ethical production, health and sustainability. All interesting and important stuff....
On a recent cold and blustery afternoon I headed to my local corner store to look for ingredients to make a warming, vegetable soup, my version of minestrone.....
I was in Singapore recently visiting a friend who lives a stone’s throw away from the old Chinese wet market, a marvellous cornucopia of Asian produce in Tiong Bahru. The variety and freshness is remarkable....
Wanting to use some fish stock I had in the freezer, I planned to make a seafood soup for a simple Saturday night meal for the family. Nothing special. My partner had offered to go to the market so I added some prawns, a piece of fish and two crabs to the shopping list...
Our new daughter-in-law loves fish and so the main course at the wedding recently held at home was baked ocean trout fillets in an Asian marinade....
Coming home after two yoga classes, back to back, yesterday I decided something quick and simple was in order for dinner. And even if it was just a salad with an egg, it was completely delicious.
I’m very lucky to live near the Sydney fish markets. I try to time my shopping to avoid the weekend rush and the madness of the carpark, but in the middle of Chinese New Year...
