recipe

ARIA’s Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto

April 24, 2013

We recently celebrated our first wedding anniversary and took the opportunity to reminisce about our wedding day. There was all that stress in the preceding 3 months, and the Co-pilot is quick to remind me that I did at times transform into a fire breathing nightmare dragon lady.. But all the stress seemed worthwhile when [...]

Read the full post →

Foraging for abalone and a recipe for abalone and chicken congee

October 9, 2011

Foraging is the new black. No longer solely a pastime of individual or community hippies, herbalists, naturalists or ethnic groups – foraging is going mainstream and from the highly specialised and exclusive kitchens of Noma to local commercial kitchens, foraged food is finding its way onto menus and plates everywhere. It’s encouraging but not entirely [...]

Read the full post →

DIY black Perigord truffle feast

September 7, 2011

“A friend of mine owns a truffle farm – do you want some truffles?“ So said the Chi Master, a good friend and former colleague that I’d worked with for about 2 years. Did I want truffles – what sort of stupid question is that? And more importantly, what’s this about a truffle farm? Two [...]

Read the full post →

Getting reacquainted with my old friend Tequila

August 9, 2011

I’m reminded that at the beginning of the year, I declared it was to be one of learning and new experiences. And I’m reminded also that you should be careful of what you wish for, as just before we went to New York, an opportunity presented itself to overcome my long standing rivalry with my [...]

Read the full post →

The Impatient Cook’s Corned Beef Reuben Sandwich

July 30, 2011

Having a Reuben on rye in New York, the city where the delicious sandwich of layered meat heaped with tangy sauerkraut, creamy sauce and molten Swiss cheese was first concocted is special; having it at Katz’s Deli was just inspirational. That Reuben was so hypnotically good and left a lasting impression on us. I think [...]

Read the full post →

Paddock to Plate: Pulled beef and pine mushroom cannelloni

April 8, 2011

There are plenty among us that have heard of mock meat or the more “appealingly” named, meat analogue where things like soy protein, wheat or vegetable protein are moulded, flavoured and transformed into the likeness of your everyday meaty goodies. My intriguing local mock meat store sells a mind boggling array of curious meat phonies [...]

Read the full post →

Musa Dagdeviren’s eggplant and lentil stew with pomegranate molasses

February 23, 2011

Once upon a time I had a love affair with far away Turkey. I was intrigued by the exotic silhouettes of domed mosques with proud minarets; cafes alive with chatter, the smell of coffee and the curling wisps from bubbling hookahs. I had long romanticised the idea of exploring the cave dwellings in Cappadocia with [...]

Read the full post →

Curiosities of saffron and a recipe for saffron and pea risotto

September 13, 2010

My curiosity about saffron was piqued by a trip to an Asian grocery with my parents plodding behind me. I was browsing the shelves and spotted some ludicrously cheap saffron in the spice aisles. I studied it for a while and having not cooked with saffron threads before, decided I would find a recipe to [...]

Read the full post →

Singapore Chilli Crab – one for the crab lovers

September 8, 2010

Crabs provide so much culinary pleasure for me and they easily make the list of my top 5 foods I couldn’t live without. One of my all-time favourite meals to indulge in is a massive, messy pile of delicious crab – great when devoured at restaurants; but most preferably done at home, with a very [...]

Read the full post →

The tastiest lasagne recipe ever

August 4, 2010

Sometimes, on long drives, we play games to amuse ourselves and keep the driver alert. One game we played on a long drive with friends DanW and Katie, was “identify five foods you’d take to a deserted island“. My intention was to simply identify the 5 foods you couldn’t ever live without. The brief sounds [...]