Slow Cooked Lamb Shoulder

Ironically putting this dish together takes all of five minutes. The waiting kicks in once you pop your casserole into the oven for at least three to four hours ensure your lamb shoulder is nice and tender, and falling off the bone when you’re ready to serve.

Step 1: Sear off the lamb

Step2: Season and add oil, balasamic and garlic

Sear the lamb shoulder in a heavy based casserole for about 5 minutes and then add a good splash of extra virgin olive oil, about half a cup of good balsamic vinegar, 4 -5 whole pods of garlic with the skin on to allow it to get nice and sweet, a liberal sprinkle of coarse salt flakes and freshly ground pepper and your ready to rock and roll. Simply chuck the casserole into a moderately hot oven and laze in front of the tele!

Served with a side of endives, rocket, Kalamata olives, tomatoes, cucumber and red onion, caramelised onions, gravy rendered from the casserole (de-glazed and modified of course) oven roasted potatoes and ciabata.

Waiter Rant

Absolutely loved this book, it had me flicking pages into the wee hours of the morning. The American service industry from a 30 something waiter’s perspective, communicated in simple, raw anecdotal humour reveals yet another shocking account of the dirty world of commercial cooking. What is unique however to the usual chef telling the tale is the front of house voice that provides an interesting commentary linking the chefs to the food that is plated up all pretty and brought out to waiters that oil the wheels of the immaculate experience that restaurant delivers – one that we all enjoy yet are unfamiliar with the enormous effort it takes to makes it all happen.

This book had me thinking for weeks about the power of communication and how forums such as blogs have become such a powerful mode of transmitting ideas and gaining publicity. Waiter Rant started off as a blog motivated by passion but designed merely as a hobby. With successive years, popularity and readership grew, and able to maintain his anonymity Waiter Rant was offered a book deal. This is truly an inspiring story of how hard work and perseverance can take you a long way.

Food for thought

"Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are" - Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

My passion for food and my love of writing has brought me to Australia to pursue a Masters in Gastronomy, the one and only course offered by Le Cordon Bleu in this subject is here in Adelaide. So why in the world did Australia get this privilege? The country fuses people together through their food and culture, allowing a platform for dreams to come true, giving migrants a chance to start life afresh and build businesses from scratch. Australia multi-cultural society has come to be home to the Greeks and Italians to Vietnamese and Thai as well as everyone in between Asia and Europe, be it the Sudanese and Brazilian, you can find all kinds of people and their food here Down Under. Australia is truly a melting-pot, and this goes far beyond the myriad of cultures, traditions, race and religion that live in harmony and more importantly share and relish each other’s food! The unique intricacies of migrant lifestyle are apparent in the local food culture, one that prides itself on being called Modern Australian. You are probably as puzzled as I was when I first arrived trying to decipher what exactly that meant. Modern Australian is an amalgamation of ideas and inspiration from the migrant communities that can be found across Australia. Cooking techniques from one corner of the globe incorporate recipes from another and chefs constantly borrow and adapt flair and style from different parts of the world to create something truly unique: fusion food as it is broadly known, although Aussies don’t exactly love the term!

The shores of this vast continent have welcomed migrants seeking out new homes, running away from the dangerous perils of war, fighting and natural disasters such as flooding and droughts. With them they have brought their foodways, their culinary heritage in the form of recipes and intricate know-how, weaving spice and diversity to an already colourful kaleidoscope of cultures. In this way Australia has become a home away from home, recipes reminiscent of childhood days are the preserve of migrant peoples, tracing their journey. The familiar accustomed aromas of their homelands continue to flavour their homes, allowing them to hold onto their intrinsic identification and be proudly Australian at the same time.

A visit to the local Aussie farmers market, the grocer around the corner or food-court gives an insight in to the acceptance of migrant lifestyles into mainstream white Anglo-Saxon Australian lifestyle. The abundance of fresh produce ranges from European favourites like blueberries, blackberries and currants to exotic Asian fruits like durian, star-fruit and passion-fruit and Indian varieties, the mango and guava. All these are available all year round thanks to Australian’s coming to love and consider these fruits and vegetables familiar, demanding them to be stocked, and owing to the fact that the country’s vast terrain and alternating seasonality allows for it.

The first white settlers: the British convicts brought with them their love for steak ‘n’ kidney pies and fish ‘n’ chips. The Greeks and Italians, referred to as the WOG’s (welcome overseas guests) have made mezze and anti-pasta a way of savouring a meal here in Australia, and that all important glass of vino has become imprinted in local lifestyle. The Eastern Europeans: Germans with their baking skills and mastery of meat products has ensured a large variety of smoked and cured delicacies. The Asians, (refers to anyone with Oriental features from Taiwan to Thailand) dominate the markets with interesting varieties of Chinese green, leafy veggies and about three-hundred kinds of noodles and rice have made stir-fry a national Aussie favourite! Spices and chillies have found their way into all sorts of dishes thanks to the Curry’s … yes the official Indian nickname here in Australia!

I must admit when I first got here and people asked me if I was fresh off the boat and if I were a ‘Curry’ I was confused, then upset, quick to anger and finally disgusted at the flippant usage of labels to identify and differentiate people. After all I never came on a boat, and being widely travelled it seemed like an insult to refer to me in that context!
However, it seems second-generation Aussie born-Indians are more than happy to be referred to as Curry’s. While I am still not comfortable with these labels I have come to realise that while migrant cultures have the food of their roots it is perhaps the only connection to their heritage or ethnic history, since most have never visited their ethnic county or been back since they migrated.

To wrap this up I must say to each to their own – to some having a mate that’s a curry might be quite normal, however, I’m an old-fashioned kind of girl in this respect and still prefer my curry in a bowl thank you very much!

Mantra on King William

Fellow gastronome, Marion suggested Mantra on King William for an early dinner mid week. Of course I jumped at the opportunity to spend some quality time with this interesting former ABC television journalist that is currently working with Bottega Rotolo, an upmarket provodore located towards Norwood.

Who said life can't be simple and sophisticated at the same time? Still water, good olive oil and bread

The menu looked absolutely tantalising, with a creative array of tapas and entrees piquing our interest we were having serious trouble deciding what to order. We concurred finally that the best idea would be to get a smattering of different tapas and entrees to share. Doesn't the saying go, the more flavours the merrier!

A glass of Uber Riesling from the McLaren Vale to enjoy with the green Manzanilla olives stuffed with white anchovy and seared scallops with zesty lemon and pesto. The scallops were to-die-for and had us diving in to dip up the delish aiolo style pesto with our bread.

Succulent smoked duck with a delicate orange sauce and rocket salad

Poached Rabbit and pistachio terrine wrapped in prosciutto with apricot and Orange chutney, served with olive oil crisp bread that complimented perfectly

Sharing bits and bites turned out to be a very wise decision, leaving ample space for dessert and cheese, that truly was the crowning glory of our meal. Lucky for me, Marion's current job has made given her a deft ability to pick out the best varieties of cheeses and pair them with just the right wine.

Marion my dinner date digs into dessert, ensuring me of another smart pick

Vanilla Bean Panacotta with Cherries: The highlight of my meal and perhaps the best pannacotta I have eaten

Cheese hits the spot: Brie and Blue served with Muscatel grapes, fig slices and lavosh cream crackers

Saint Agur, a French Blue made from cow milk, (Auvergne) has balanced saltiness with mild blue-green veins that are offset by a rich, creamy texture. The other is a triple Brie also from France (Seine-et-Marne), a soft, surface ripened cow milk cheese, oozing delicious centre with a slight mushroom smell to it.

To accompany the cheese a Barossan Tokay

Lunch at Linda's

I have learned recently that birthdays with Jackie's extended family are a big, big affair - mostly because there are so many people - kids, parents, uncles, aunts and close friends like moi, involved. This month there were three birthday celebrations crammed into one afternoon. This of course called for a mega cook-off. Chris stepped up to the plate and readied the Weber, making sure it was fired up, hot and raring to go.

Chris loads up the barbie with some juicy, tangy marinated chicken fillets

Time to take off the grilled lamb chops

Carne Asado - Mexican beef steaks ready to be slapped onto the grill


Good old Aussie favourites - minced beef cutlets and sausages

Hmmm.... meat! My eyes are glazing over...

Behind every spectacular meat dish is the best supporting actor, in this case the buttered tatters with parsley and sliced white bread

There's just no going wrong with a classic combination of peppery wild rocket, crunchy pear and creamy Parmesan shavings

Grilled sliced eggplants marinated lightly in Eastern spices

Asian inspired vermicelli glass noodle salad with sliced grilled chicken, bok -choy, cashew nuts and red peppers - treat to the taste buds

Linda's speciality: Roasted butternut squash pumpkins with ripe, plum tomatoes, kalamata olive, haricot -verts, chick-peas and sliced boccocini.

Chocolate cake for the birthday boy Gabriel! HOORAY!

Cake # 2: Lemon-Semolina Cake with Flaked Almonds, Happy Birthday Linda!

Last but not least: Jhonty's birthday treat would sure have made Homer Simpson green with envy!

The Oriental

This is a popular weekend watering hole that busies up as soon as office hours end. Make the perfect entrance cirqua 6.30 and casual-chic is the look that most people rock at this trendy resto-bar. The open-air courtyard with ample sunshine pouring in paired with the Indonesian inspired island cane furniture exudes a laid-back charm. Placing an order however is far from a relaxing jaunt with at least a good 15 minutes minimum to process the mandatory self-placed orders. The day I was there the Riesling I had wanted was out of stock and the wait-staff just took their own sweet time! Hiking up to the bar to fetch your own bottle is just all too much effort for me, after all what makes it any different from your corner bottle'o? I'm especially averse to this when the bill is running $ 40 upward per head!

Finally armed with a bottle of chardonnay I can rest my tushy, looking forward to a truly Asian adventure!

Oysters Naturale. The woven steamer basket is just for aesthetic value.. love it or hate it? Is rather misleading and a very feeble attempt at trying to add Asian inspiration... try harder!

My mate's salt and pepper squid, a classic Aussie favourite, notice the side of rocket, carrot, cherry tomatoes, lemon wedge, steamed rice and sweet-chilli sauce.

Pan-Seared Thai spiced Barramundi Fillets with pretty much the same sides as the other dish!

It's been a year since I've been living Down Under, and believe it or not, I still haven't tried Barramundi, which is ridiculous since it is a national obsession. This experience however was far from what I had in mind. Overall a very passe` evening and the service not worth mentioning. A classic example of the majority of Australia's run of the mill restaurants serving Modern Aussie grub... uh huh, not my cup of tea!

Sparrow Bar & Kitchen

Kate and Jackie were my dinner compadres helping me get into the groove with the Adelaidian restaurant scene. In the three months while I was away it seems that the cities restaurant frontier has taken a beating. A combination of a decline of customers and the increasing difficulty of paying bills, staff and meeting deadlines has become excruaiting thanks to the hard hitting effects of reccession. Travel and Living's, My Restaurant Rules 2003 winners, Greedy Goose (also where I did some part-time work) on Melbourne Street shut down over Christmas as well as Number Ten, a chic Italian restaurant on O'Connell Street. The Sparrow Bar & Kitchen seems to have sprouted up overnight in the place of Number Ten. Boasting an open air courtyard in pale blues and greys, the place is super-chic and very inviting with the view from the trendy suburb making it a definite place for the cities 'it' crowd to be spotted.

The place piqued my curiosity over the weekend when I popped up in to the neighbourhood for weekly groceries. The very same week I was experienced a truly unforgettable tasting menu.

Having taken the time to browse through the menu the day before I had a narrowed my selections down to a few with much difficulty. This is always a good thing in my opinion - visiting a restaurant and being spoilt for choice that is. If a menu can tease you and entice you back for more this can only mean one thing - the beginning of a new relationship!

Accompanied by food loving friends a unanimous decision to sample the tasting tapas platter at $ 65 per head settled our dining arrangements for the evening. With that, we sat back realizing on a bottle of fine Spanish Wine that Jackie ordered after consulting Dan the friendly in-house sommelier.

Tuna tartare, carrot and ginger emulsion

Perfectly balanced the ginger is not overwhelming, instead interestingly it adds complexity to the simple yet fresh carrot flavour. The texture of the firm tuna bits in this dish is an extraordinary contrast to the smooth emulsion of root veggies and the highlight in this appetiser.

Octopus carpaccio, potato foam, paprika

The paper thin slices of octopus carpaccio showcase the chef's mastery and skill of his knives. The beauty of this dish lies is in the unique subtlety of taste. Potato and octopus are naturally mild in flavour, potato starchy at most and octopus more radiant in terms of texture. However the addition of just the right amount of paprika brings the dish to life, accentuating dimensions to the dish that seem to be underlying, yet dormant without the activation of the spice. This clever combination of potato puree on top of the slippery slivers of octopus and finished with paprika is the penultimate textural marvel and most unique component of the tasting menu.

Duck doughnut, porcini salt followed by Gorgonzola arancini

The duck doughnuts will blow you away. The meat is packed with smoky flavours and eaten with the porcini salt you will die and go to heaven! The deep-fried Gorgonzola dumplings were tasty, but too heavy for my liking.

Chicken liver parfait, fig and fennel crostini, pickled walnuts

Normally not one for chicken liver pate I was bowled over by this ultra-smooth pate. Served up with the most delightful combination of fig and fennel crostini and pickled walnuts, the flavour is sublime and powerful you hesitate to try anything else for fear or the taste leaving your palate.

Smoked eel croquettes

A crisp, golden breaded crust yields a soft, fleshy bite of eel, and with a generous dip into the garlic aioli dip you will be hooked.

Salt cod puree, mache salad, cornet

The filling of salted cod puree is just so good, however unfortunately the dish fails to come together because of the cornets. The pastry is too buttery and this reflects in a salty, rich contrast all too overwhelming for the cod to hold its own. Replacing the cornet with a crisper, thinner cracker would do the dish much good.

Beef crudo, 62 degree egg

Love at first sight: I am a fan of anything tartar so this dish is God sent. I am still inquisitive though why 62 exactly?

We enjoyed not just one but two bottles of the 2006 vintage, Telmo Rodriguez ëLZí Tempranillo, Rioja, Spain

A peppery pick the bold flavours held their own against they array of samplers we experienced over the course of the evening. A lovely food wine, perfect for bold meaty dishes, so it fared very well with our mains.

Braised rabbit leg, gaunciale, tomato, chorizo, raddichio

Braised pork tail, pedro ximenez, bay, thyme, petit herbs

Braised goat leg, green olive, sherry, parsley, shallot

We tried one of each and got tasting platters to try a bit of each. The goat was fabulous, the tender melt-in-the-mouth meat blowing me away. The rabbit was just passe, actually far too reminiscent of chicken. Lately, I haven't enjoyed a good rabbit dish! The pork was absolutely hearty and the textured fat on contributed deep and intense smoky flavours.


Gorgonzola ice cream, pickled celery, muscatel followed by Churros, gianduja chocolate sauce

To finish the night in the luxurious style that we relished our meal in we opted for a beautiful regional South Aussie Tokay to accompany our multiple dessert platters. Just when I thought life couldn't get any better the chef invented Gorgonzola ice cream - hello, this is just beyond amazing. Forever perplexed with the option of dessert or cheese I just found the answer to my prayers! The churros were marvellous, perfectly hot, sugary, delightful with a bit of chocolate.

Torched to a gentle brule ressembling crust the lemon tart was a perfect treat and is well balanced with just the right amount of sweetness! Go ahead, don't think about, book a table quick and try the mind-boggling menu for yourself...

Lemon tart, mascarpone