This fresh and vibrantly coloured salad is a great accompaniment to barbecued meats or Tex Mex style dishes.  I like it as a healthy alternative to rice as a side for my chilli con carne.

Ingredients

1 cob corn

1 small red capsicum

1/2 cup red quinoa

baby cos leaves – about half a lettuce depending on how big they are.

1/4 cup coriander leaves, roughly chopped

For the dressing

juice of half a lime

2 small red chillies, seeds removed & finely diced.

2 tbslp extra virgin olive oil

Method

Cook the quinoa in 1 cup of water in a small saucepan with the lid on.  All the liquid should evaporate. Separate the grains with a fork and spread out to cool/dry whilst you get on with the rest of the preparation.

Slice the sides off the capsicum and cook on a hot grill pan or bbq for 2 minutes then turn and cook for a further 2 minutes.  You want the capsicum softened but still quite firm.  Remove and once cool, roughly chop into 1cm dice.

Remove the outer husk and silk from the corn.  You have a couple of option for cooking it.  If your bbq is on, cook it over the grill, turning regularly for about 10 minutes.  If you are cooking inside I tend to put it in the microwave on high for 3 minutes.  Don’t overcook it.  Overcooked corn loses it beautiful sweetness and takes on a less than fabulous texture.  Remove the kernels from the cob with a knife.

Roughly chop the cos leaves and place in a large bowl with the quinoa, corn, capsicum and coriander leaves.  Gently toss through to combine then pile on a flat plate.  Combine dressing ingredients and drizzle over the top.

This should be enough for a side dish for 4-6.

When the days get colder, wetter and darker the answer is soup.  This takes no time at all which makes it perfect for after work and days when you don’t have the time or inclination to slave away in the kitchen.

Ingredients

1kg butternut pumpkin, cut into smallish pieces

500ml vegetable stock

200ml coconut milk (2 tblsp reserved for garnish)

2 tblsp green curry paste (homemade is best, use the bought stuff for the quick option)

1 small brown onion

1 tblsp olive oil

small red chilli

handful coriander leaves

Method

Finely dice the onion and fry it off in a large saucepan over a medium heat along with the curry paste.  When the onion is soft add the pumpkin and stir it around so it is well coated in the onion and curry paste.  Add the stock, bring to the boil and cook for 15 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft.  Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool down a bit.  Using a blender or food processor, puree until the soup is an even consistency.  Return to saucepan, pour in coconut milk stir through and re-heat.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with extra coconut milk, coriander leaves and finely sliced red chillies.

This will make two hearty meals or four entree sized serves.

It’s more than a little bit retro, but I love this dish.  Since it is my take on this classic hailing from 19th Russia, I cannot claim that it is authentic or traditional.  I can promise that it will taste wonderful.  According to that font of all information, Wikipedia, the traditional side is actually crispy matchstick potatoes, not the pasta or rice that we see more frequently these days.  I may have to try it with them next time.  Since I loathe having a meal with no vegetables, I tend to have a green vegetable as a side.  As pictured here, the much maligned Brussels sprouts are a favourite choice of mine.

Ingredients

500 gm rump steak

1 medium onion

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 tsp hot paprika – steer clear of Spanish paprika for this as it doesn’t impart the flavour you are after

1 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tblsp plain flour

150 gm mushrooms

1 tblsp lemon juice

2 tblsp red wine

2 tblsp tomato paste

300 ml lite sour cream

olive oil

pasta and parsley to serve

Method

There is very little preparation for this dish, just a bit of chopping, so I like to be cheffy about it and get it out of the way first – mise en place!  Thinly slice the rump, much as you might for a stir fry.  Cut the onion in half and finely slice so that you have little moons.  Slice your mushrooms about 3mm thick – if they are too thin they will get lost in the sauce.

Put the strips of meat into a freezer bag with the flour and spices.   Tie the bag and shake vigorously until meat is evenly coated.

Saute the onion and garlic in a little oil over a medium high heat.  Before the onion browns start adding the meat in batches to brown.  Remove each bath as its done – be careful not to overdo the browning as you will be cooking the meat further and don’t want it to become tough .  Add mushrooms and cook until soft.

Add all the lemon juice, red wine and sour cream and simmer for a couple of minutes on a low heat.

Return meat and cook for a further minute.  It truly will not need any longer than this.

Serve with hot buttered pasta.  I make my own parsley and black pepper fettuccine and roll it really thin so that it is light and the meal as a whole does not become too heavy.   Store bought fettuccine is of course fine, you may want to mix chopped parsley through it with the butter.

Wash it all down with a gutsy red.

Serves 4

Vietnamese cuisine has long been a favourite of mine.  Crisp and clean flavours often punctuated by selective use of spice, it’s food that makes you feel good when you eat it.  I certainly felt good after enjoying the signature dishes Ms Vy presented in her Melbourne Food and Wine Festival dinner at Dandelion.  Trinh Diem Vy is the poster girl for modern Vietnamese cuisine.  Hailing from the quaint and colourful town of Hoi An on the central coast of Vietnam, Ms Vy is behind the popular and iconic Cargo, Mermaid and Morning Glory restaurants, and an internationally famous cooking school.  Her passion is evident and expressed through fresh ingredients, imaginative flavours and her personal interpretation of family recipes, street foods and local specialties.    The well designed, intimate and elegantly casual surrounds of Geoff Lindsay’s contemporary Vietnamese restaurant Dandelion provided a fitting venue for Ms Vy to showcase her skills.

Diners were greeted with glasses of Huda Beer and Geppetto NV Brut from Crittenden Estate – who provided the wine matches for each course.  Then, after a short greeting from Geoff Lindsay, it was on to the food.  Later in the evening we heard from Ms Vy herself and from the winemaker at Crittenden.

Cabbage Leaf Parcels with Shrimp Mousse in Broth

2010 Los Hermanos Tributo Savignan

Such clean, delicate flavours in this dish.  I was particularly taken by the story that accompanied it, which Ms Vy shared with us:  apparently it is tradition for prospective wives to cook cabbage for their mother-in-law to be, as a sort of test.  The basic premise is that it is easy to make good dishes from seafood, meat and so on, but to make cabbage taste great requires true skill and mastery.

Beef Salad with Fragrant Herbs, Peanuts and Lime

2011 Pinocchio Rosato

Travel around the outskirts of the historic town of Hoi An (as I did last year) and you cannot miss the fields of variegated green on long well tended rows.  These herb gardens provide the wide array of fresh and fragrant herbs that are the backbone of many classic dishes such as this one.  The layers of light but pungent flavours are balanced and easy to enjoy.

Hoi An Fried Wontons with Crab Meat Topping

2010 Crittenden Pinot Gris

A Hoi An specialty,  these crisp delicate wontons are the perfect showcase for the sweet crab meat. Despite being fried they are neither oily nor heavy and were well matched by the pinot gris.

Stuffed Squid with Pork and Shrimp

2010 Crittenden Pinot Noir

This dish reminded me of the afternoon we spent with the fishermen from the small eco-village just outside Hoi An.  They made a version of this after teaching us how they fish using enormous nets and how to manouevre the basket boats “THÚNG CHAI”.   My Vy’s squid was tender, the sauce sweet and the combination of pork and shrimp is a Vietnamese classic.

Warm Shrimp and Pork Watercress Salad with Soft Boiled Duck Egg

2010 The Zumma Single Vineyard Pinot Noir

Vietnam’s ingredients reflect it’s geography and climate.  The central coast is well known for growing the best vegetables and herbs, and has an abundance of beautiful seafood.  Here, Ms Vy has brought the two elements together in this wonderfully balanced salad.  The crunch of the ever present peanuts and fried shallots provide a welcome textural contrast to the watercress.

Tapioca, Mango, Strawberry and Coconut Cream on Spoons

2011 Pinocchio Moscato

Regular readers will know that I am not a big sweet tooth, so these mouthfuls of dessert were perfect for me.

Just as the MFWF dinner at MoVida returned me to the streets of New York City, Ms Vy’s Morning Glory dinner at Dandelion took me back to our trip to Vietnam and reminded me of the diversity of the culinary delights this country has to offer, and it’s rich tradition in eating out.  One day I will get around to writing up our trip…

Kohlrabi.  Strange name, strange shape but fantastically tasty vegetable.

I fell in love with kohlrabi after the first time I bought one from a farmer’s market.  I had no idea what to do with it at the time, but it has since become a favourite vege during the cooler months.

Despite looking a lot like a turnip, kohlrabi actually belongs in the brassica family.  It’s flavour is somewhere between broccoli and cabbage but milder and sweeter and the texture is akin to that of broccoli stems (which I have been known to chew on whilst making dinner).  The name comes from the German and roughly means cabbage turnip  kohl – cabbage, rabi – turnip.  It’s equally tasty raw or cooked.  I am particularly fond of it as a gratin.  In this recipe I double the brassica goodness with the addition of tuscan kale.  Its great for vitamins K, A & C and is really easy to grow.

Ingredients

1 large kohlrabi – any colour will do, I used a green one this time

4 medium potatoes – I like Dutch Cream for their creamy buttery flesh

1 tightly packed cup tuscan kale leaves

12 slices hot sopressa salami

1 small red shallot

1 clove garlic

few sprigs thyme

3/4 cup milk

3/4 cup chicken stock

1/2 cup grated mature cheddar

1/2 cup rough fresh breadcrumbs

salt and pepper

olive oil

Method

Preheat your oven to 200 celsius.

Peel and thinly slice the kohlrabi and the potatoes.  I use a mandolin (v slicer) as it makes the task so much easier.  If you don’t have one, I highly recommend getting one, you will wonder how you lived without.  The Beloved bought me mine for Valentine’s Day one year.  What a sweetheart!

Keep the sliced potato in a bowl of water whilst you get the rest ready so that it doesn’t discolour.

Pile all the salami slices together and cut into strips about 3mm wide, then finely dice the garlic and shallot.  Put a frying pan on medium heat and sauté the salami, shallot and garlic.  As it is cooking slice the kale leaves in 1 cm strips.  i find it easiest to do this the same way as the salami.  Make a pile of the leaves then slice from the top of the leaf down towards the stem.  Add the kale to the pan and stir through.  Cook until the kale is just soft.  You don’t want it completely wilted.

Lightly grease a 20cm x 30cm rectangular ovenproof dish and start layering your ingredients.  I did a layer of potato, then a layer of kohlrabi, then scattered half the kale mixture, then repeated it, ending with a layer of mixed potato and kohlrabi.

Pour the milk and stock over the sliced vegetables, then scatter the top with the cheese and the breadcrumbs.  For my breadcrumb, I hand tore/crumbled the end of a sourdough loaf I had.  It meant I got nice big rustic crumbs which add a good textural element once it is cooked.  Sprinkle with some thyme leaves and a crack of pepper and salt.  Many gratins call for knobs of butter to make the top go crispy.  I have opted for a healthier version and simply gave the top a light spray of olive oil.

Cover with foil and cook for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and cook for a further 30 minutes or until the top is golden and crisp.

This dish is easily turned into a vegetarian option by omitting the salami and substituting the chicken stock with vegetable stock.  If you make it this way you will need to check the seasoning of the kale.  I didn’t season mine, letting the salami do that  for me.

On Sunday October 16 last year, at around 7pm, The Beloved and I landed at JFK in New York City after nearly a full 24 hours of travelling.  We collected our bags, grabbed a cab, went to our hotel, had a much anticipated shower, donned clean clothes and went straight back out the door and made a beeline for 163 First Ave in the East Village.  The destination:  Momofuku Ko.  The much talked about 2 Michelin star, 12 seat restaurant in the David Chang stable.  Two years ago when we were last in NYC we missed out on dining here thanks to Ko’s reputation still being white hot and the online reservation system being nearly impenetrable.  This time we were luckier.

this is a reservation for momofuku ko at 163 first ave. please print this out and bring it with you. Joanne , you reserved 2 seats on 10/16/2011 at 09:30 pm  if you cancel this reservation less than 24 hours in advance of your seating time or do not attend this reservation, you will be charged $150.00 per person. to cancel click here: ko is located at 163 first ave. between 10th and 11th please note we will do our best to accommodate special needs and food allergies however because our menu changes from day to day we will sometimes be unable to significantly alter your meal. due to ko’s size and out of respect for other diners, photography and phone calls are NOT allowed at ko.

Ko is a great experience and takes the open kitchen concept to a whole new level.  Sitting at the bar you can see everything that goes on as the chefs (there were four on the night we went) prepare your dishes.  Most are happy to chat to you as they go about their work, but there is still a hint of “too cool to talk”, which was a pity because with no written menu and no phones or cameras allowed I needed all the help I could get to remember the details of the dishes we ate.  I tried to scribble them down when we returned to our hotel, but I think being full of food and wine and the onset of jetlag may have conspired against me.  Highlights include the raw flounder with black bean puree, chilli and coriander cress, an oxtail consommé with daikon tortellini and oxtail meat, hand cut pasta with snail and chicken sausage, chicken skin and pecorino and a smoked egg with caviar and sous vide onion covered in a cloud of microplaned fois gras.  Just as interesting as the food was the beverage match for each course which ranged from a plum gin sourced  from upstate New York, to a rare sake to a particularly herbaceous local beer, to champagne.  In all, an excellent way to kick off our food adventures in this diverse city.

The following night, after an enjoyable but not strenuous day walking around the city, our destination was another small eatery:  Torrisi Italian Specialties.  Deli by day and unashamedly Italian-American restaurant by night, this little gem takes no bookings and offers only a seven course prix fixe menu.  At a mere $50 when we went, it was a bargain.  The menu changes daily and follows the Italian tradition of antipasti, then pasta, followed by a protein of some sort and finishing with something sweet.  It is not simple fare though, the technical skill and creativity is unmistakeable.  I still clearly remember what we started with: warm, just made mozzarella sprinkled with salt and drizzled with olive oil that we happily smeared on the rich garlic toast that accompanied it.

These were easily two of the best eating experiences we had in New York, so it is easy to understand that I was rather excited to see that David Chang and the boys from Torrisi (Mario Carbone and Rich Torrisi) were joining forces for a dinner at MoVida as part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.  The chefs, when they weren’t actually in the kitchen, were generous with their time talking to the lucky diners who came to enjoy the seven courses with matched wines.  They spoke of how exciting it was to have access to ingredients they had never before cooked with – seafood in particular with eel and marron given as examples.  The menu for the dinner wasn’t finalised until that day after the chefs, with Frank Camorra accompanying them, visited the markets.  During the brief chat I had with Mario and Rich they were blown away that there was someone present at the dinner who had eaten at their restaurant.  They had seen themselves as “David’s support act”.

Here is what we ate.  I would happily eat the entire menu again.  I thought it was a little obvious for Chang to include his steamed pork buns, which he readily acknowledged.  Adding that they are so well known that it is a damned if you do damned if you don’t situation.

clockwise from bottom left:   Smoked Eel     Eggplant Parm    Mochi Balls    Scallop Tabasco

08 Telmo Rodriguez “El Transistor” Verdejo

The eel was turned into a mousse, piped into beautifully crisp brik pastry and dusted with freeze dried apple – amazing.

Mackeral Giardina

Cauliflower, Almond, Paprika

10 Muller Catoir “Trocken” Riesling

This dish was all about texture

Steam Bun

Pork Belly, Hoisin, Cucumber

09 Dveri Pax Pinot Gris

Yes, they are good!

Hand Torn Pasta

Goats Cheese, Thai Basil, Mint

10 Maranones ‘Picarana’ Albillo

Possibly my favourite of the night – I want to work out how to make this at home.

Sea Shell di Mare

Cuttlefish, Marron, Tasmanian Clams

11 Mas Donis Garnacha Rosat

Apart from the unmistakeable Australian ingredients I could have been in Mulberry St New York eating this

Short Ribs

Onions, Chilli, Italian Eggplant

09 Plageoles Duras

All ribs should be as good as these

Pistachio Sorbet and Blackcurrant

10 Saracco Moscato d’Asti

I would not have thought much of pairing pistachio and blackcurrant together – until now

It was a good day for Melbourne when these guys came to town.   I love Melbourne’s food and restaurants and believe we easily hold our own on the world stage, but we can only grow when we get exposure to talent like this through events such as the  Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.

If you are lucky enough to get to New York – visit their restaurants.  Chang has many (Ko, Ssam, Noodle Bar, Milk Bar) and Carbone and Torrisi have opened their second venture Parm.  It is essentially an extended version of what they used to do at Torrisi Italian Specialties at lunch – taking lunch standards and making them heroes.  I will be back for the meatball parmigiana hero – from what I hear its not to be missed.  The original site on Mulberry St now focuses solely on Prix Fixe menus.  Joining the home style menu that we enjoyed is a 20 course, reservations only “chefs’ tasting menu”.  At $125 that sounds like a tasting menu I need to try.

Don’t let the long list of ingredients put you off this chilli recipe.  It is easy – just needs a bit of chopping and a lot of time.  I always think it is best a day or two after its been made when the flavours have really had some time to do their thing.  This will feed 8 – 10 or keep your freezer very well stocked for the cooler months!

Ingredients

1 kg minced beef

500gm pork shoulder (or similar cut – I have also used rump steaks) cut into 1/2 cm dice

2 hot chorizo cut into 1/2 cm dice

1 large  brown onion, finely diced

2 stalks celery, finely diced

1 medium green capsicum, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, finely diced or grated

2 cups beef stock

400gm tin chopped tomatoes

400gm tin red kidney beans

50gm dark chocolate (70% cocoa) chopped

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1-2 hot chillies finely sliced – jalapeno if you can get them.  You could also soak some chipotle and slice them up.

2 tblsp dried oregano

1 tblsp coriander seeds toasted and ground

1 tblsp cumin seeds toasted and ground

1 tblsp hot chilli powder

1 stick cassia bark

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 cup chopped fresh coriander leaves

salt and pepper

olive oil

I have made this chilli with great success both on the stove top and in a slow cooker so I will explain the two methods.  The recipe is inspired by one on Gourmet Traveller.

Stovetop method.

In a large casserole dish, brown the chorizo, pork, onions, celery and capsicum one at a time in a little oil, removing each as it is done and putting on a plate to the side.  Then brown the mince.  Doing the mince last allows the liquid from the mince to get all the lovely caramelised flavours off the bottom of the dish.  The chorizo, pork and onions are now returned to the casserole and the garlic added.  To the dish add the stock, tin tomatoes, chillies, chocolate, vinegar and spices.  Cover, bring to the boil, then reduce heat to the barest of simmers and leave on the stove to cook for about two and a half hours.  With half an hour to go, add the kidney beans and season to taste.  This is a good time to check the heat of the chilli and see if you wish to add more.  Stir through the coriander leaves right before serving.

Slow cooker method.

In a frying pan, brown the chorizo, pork, onions, celery, capsicum and mince one at a time with the mince going last, placing each in the slow cooker when done.  Add the garlic, tin tomatoes, stock, chocolate, vinegar and spices and chillies and give it a thorough stir through.  Pop the lid on and cook for four hours on high, or overnight (8 hours) on low.  Half an hour before you want it, add the drained and rinsed kidney beans and check your seasoning.  Add the coriander leaves and stor through just before you serve

To serve.

I usually have this with soft flour tortillas, sour cream and home made guacamole and have a quinoa and corn salad on the side.  I will add a link for the salad recipe, once I have written it up.

What is it about slow cooked meals that is so synonymous with comfort?  I love a dish that simmers away, slowly releasing its layers of flavours whilst wafting amazing aromas throughout the house to remind you what is in store later.  This veal and porcini sauce recipe calls for not one but two bottles of wine to be opened.  So, if you feel compelled to undertake some quality control whilst you are cooking, it would be perfectly understandable.

Ingredients

Extra virgin olive oil

1 small brown onion finely diced

1 clove garlic crushed

20 gr dried porcini mushrooms

1/3 cup tomato paste

1 cup dry red wine

1 cup dry white wine

1 kg osso bucco veal pieces

2 stalks basil (leaves removed – you can use these later for garnish)

2 stalks sage (leaves removed)

2 star anise

¼ tsp freshly ground mace

Really good Italian pasta – I like penne or large maccheroni

Fresh parmesan

Method

The very first thing to do is soak your porcini mushrooms.  Put them in a small bowl with just under a cup of boiling water.  You want them well covered but not swimming in water.  They need to soak until they are soft – the longer the better.  If you can leave them for an hour that is ideal.  Next, pre-heat your oven to 160 C

Lightly dust the osso bucco pieces with seasoned flour and brown in a large heavy casserole dish.  Remove the veal and set aside.  Sauté the onion and garlic over a medium heat for five minutes or until the onions begin to soften and turn translucent.  Remove the porcini mushrooms from the soaking liquid, but keep it for later.  Add them to the dish along with the tomato paste and cook, stirring the mixture constantly, until the tomato paste begins to caramelise (about 3 minutes).  Add both the red and white wine and mix well bringing the mixture to a simmer.  Return the veal pieces to the dish then add the herbs, the star anise and grate the mace directly into the pot.  I find it easier and less messy this way but it means you have to guess the quantity.  Add some of the reserved porcini liquid – this is now a very tasty aromatic stock and cook covered in the oven for 3 hours.

Allow to cool slightly and remove the veal pieces from the casserole dish.  The meat should be falling off the bone and very tender.  If it isn’t, pop it back in the oven.  When ready, using two forks, roughly shred the meat and return to mixture.

Heat through on stovetop over low heat, season to taste with salt and pepper and combine with al dente penne scattered with fresh parmesan.  Garnish with basil leaves.

This dish can also be adapted a couple of ways.  For a less intense flavour add some tomato passata (this can also be done to stretch the dish if you end up with more mouths to feed than anticipated).  I have also used the sauce to make a filling for tortellini.  After shredding the meat put it and the porcini mushrooms in a food processor and blend adding a small amount of the left over liquid at a time until you get a paste like consistency.  The remainder of the cooking liquid can be reserved and used as the sauce for the tortellini.

A dish such as this needs a gutsy, spicy Italian red.

After the disappointment of my first Melbourne Food and Wine Festival event, I was oscillating between not wanting to get my hopes up and being very eager for my next foodie foray, the Crawl ‘n’ Bite.  The Crawl ‘n’ Bite, now something of a signature event for the festival reminds me a lot of the progressive dinner parties my parents used to go to in the 70s.  Except in this case, instead of fundraising for the kindergarten, we were “dancing down laneways” between three Melbourne restaurants in order to feast on a signature plate and “cleverly matched drink”.

Our evening started at the newly renovated Sarti, in Russell Place.  Greeted warmly by our hosts we donned out wrist bands and settled with drink in hand.  An apperitif of Rosso Antico, prosecco and lemonade was well received by our group.  Sarti presented us with three “bites”.  The first was a carpaccio of kingfish.  Lightly dressed this was an excellent piece of fish.  Duck and provolone polpette followed.  Mine was a touch dry, but great flavour made that easy to forgive.  Our third bite was zeppole with anchovies – hot crispy Italian doughnuts with the unmistakeable flavour of anchovy.  The waiter initially struggled to describe these tasty morsels, thinking that people might be put off my the idea of fish doughnuts.  His hesitation  was unfounded as everyone loved them.  Even a devoted no-fish eater in our party was pleasantly surprised.  I am going to hunt down a good recipe (maybe I should ask chef Riccardo Momesso!) and try to make these at home.

We left Sarti and made our way to Flinders Lane for the second stop for the evening, Coda.  In true Melbourne style you enter Coda down a laneway (Oliver Lane) and watching the progression of thirty or so people down the bluestones was exactly the visual I had in mind for the Crawl.  It was a mild evening, people were in good spirits and having a bit of fun and adventure which is, in the end, what food to me is all about.  Bite of the night award goes to the first offering at Coda – a crispy prawn and tapioca betel leaf.  I could have happily eaten just them.  A delicate prawn filling inside a betel leaf which has been folded in half then dipped in what must be a tapioca tempura batter and fried until super crispy.  Wow! Another dish that I will try to recreate.  Next we enjoyed a sweet and succulent piece of pork belly with fresh and crunchy Coda  slaw.  The last bite at Coda was a very fragrant duck curry with rice.  It was good to have something a bit more substantial  as part of the Crawl’s menu.  Our matched drink at Coda was an aromatic white wine from Marlborough NZ.

A short trip down Flinders St and we arrived at our final destination, MoVida Next Door in Hosier Lane.  A tall sherry spritzer was there to quench our thirst as our final plate of bites was served.  A crispy crouton with cauliflower puree, quail egg and avruga caviar sat happily on a plate with fine layered pastry topped with pulled ox cheek and one of MoVida’s most famous  tapas – the bomba.  A chorizo filled Catalan potato bomb with spicy sauce.

I finished the evening sufficiently sated not groaningly full which was perfect.  At a well priced $50 per person it is easy to see why this event sells out so quickly.  It is an excellent showcase of some of Melbourne’s well known restaurants and to me, captures the right feel for the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.

It wasn’t my first choice.  It wasn’t even my second or third.  It was booked on my fourth attempt to find a Melbourne Food and Wine Festival dinner to go to with friends.  Juggling availabilities, location and my late foray into finding something, I knew it was a big ask to get a booking for something I was truly excited about, but I still held out hope for good food and a pleasant evening.  And so it was that the Anglo French 100 Year War Dinner at Fenix was secured as the first festival event I would attend this year.  Taking its cue from the series of wars waged from 1337 to 1453 between the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet that changed “not just Europe but the way we eat and drink”, the premise of the evening was, led by Gary Mehigan and Manu Feildel, to explore the similarities between the two cuisines that “have adapted over time and have profoundly influenced Australian culture”.

The idea sounded interesting: head to head dishes highlighting the best of English and French cuisine and the chance to learn a bit more about history.  Or so I thought.  My warning bells failed to go off.  I gave nary a thought to the type of person who might be attracted to such an dinner, or to how it might be staged (and staged it was).  And we paid for it.  One of our party remarked that it felt like paying to go a wedding at which we knew no-one.  Fenix is a lovely venue in a beautiful setting, but that could not make up for what I found a very disappointing evening.

We started in the foyer with Australian sparkling wine and canapés.  From the English corner; a mini chicken and leek pie, from the French; a crouton topped with what they claimed was steak tartar but appeared more like a mystery mix with crumbled boiled egg on top.  Neither hit the mark.  Roaming amongst the gathering guests was a guy in shorts and a VB singlet with a tray of obviously plastic hors d’oeurves.  I am not sure what the point of his presence was, but I ended up wondering if his offering was the one I should have gone for.

It as as we were ushered into the main dining room and I took in the reception like setting that it slowly dawned on me what we were in for: a staged event designed to flout not the food but the personalities involved.  I could appreciate the large French and English flags above the microphone’s podium, and the effect of the alternating flags as place cards on the table setting, but when the MC formally commenced proceedings in an English accent reminiscent of a cast member of the British sitcom On the Buses I had a flicker of  worry.  Then Gary entered the room dressed as Nelson, and Manu followed in his best impersonation of Napoleon Bonaparte and the flicker grew.  We were treated not to a discourse on the origins of food but to a pantomime like act full of cringe worthy quips on what each country had given to the world.  In short we learnt that England gave us Spotted Dick and we can thank France for the bikini.  Amongst all of this frivolity, dinner was served.

First course hailed from England.  Confit trout with horseradish cream, pickled cucumber, crisp bacon, radish and watercress.  The matched wine was a very enjoyable 2010 Domaine Joseph Cattin Pinot Blanc from Alsace, France.  The trout was beautifully cooked   although I found the portion was a bit large for a six course dinner.  Missing from the plate was the crisp bacon, which would have added a nice textural element, but I liked the finely sliced radish.

The second course was my favourite of the evening; escargot ‘snails’ pastisse cassolete served with a 2009 Maitre Renard Chardonnay from Burgundy.  The pastry was flaky and golden.  Perfect with the escargot that had the delicate aniseed scent of the pastisse.

The third dish was “pork peas and onions” pork belly with slow roasted onions, smashed peas.  It was matched with a 2010 George Duboeuf Beaujolais-Village.  It looked okay on the plate but I found the pork a bit dry and the peas bland and under seasoned.

We travelled back across the channel to France for the fourth course; beef cheek bourguignon with carrot purée.  No need for Manu to ask “where’s the sauce” on this tasty dish.  I enjoyed the cheek but again wished that the portion was smaller.  At this point there were still two course to go and I was wondering how I was going to fit anything else in.  It was well paired with a 2009 Les Courtilles Cote du Rhône.

Back to the “infotainment” part of the night.  By now the MC had returned to his microphone, this time attempting a French accent.  However, his was not the only accent we had to endure.  No celebrity chef is without a cookbook these days.  Where better to promote it than to a captive audience such as the one assembled at our dinner and how better than with a bit of audience participation.  A roving microphone went around the room and sought out diners who were willing to put their best pompous Brit or arrogant Frenchman to the test in a bid to win a copy of either Gary or Manu’s latest book.  Giveaways over, it was time for a bit of Q & A.   Sadly I learnt nothing much about food or the impact of the 100 years war, but did chuckle along with the rest of the room when Manu answered with a resounding “yes” when asked if Thomas (from MKR) was as awful in person as the TV series portrayed.  All was not lost if you missed out on the free books as both chefs set up tables in the foyer where for a mere $40 you could get their latest book and have it signed.

Sussex Pond Pudding was our fifth course and first of two desserts.  Rich and heavy this pudding is traditionally made by covering a whole lemon with butter and sugar and encasing it in a suet pastry.  It is then steamed or boiled for several hours turning the insides into a thick sauce which flows out to form the ‘pond’ when the dessert is cut open.  No whole lemons in the small versions we were served and one of ours had to sauce at all.  I’m far from a sweet tooth so this held no appeal for me.  A nice contrast to the richness was the accompanying Delemere Sparkling Rosé from the Tamar Valley.

The final course for the evening was a perfect chocolate tart pore belle hélène.  It was a chocoholic’s delight.  With a beautiful texture and intense in flavour it could have come close to its claim of ‘perfect’, but ending a large dinner with two such heavy and rich desserts is not my preference so I only managed a mouthful or two.

The dinner was $150 per person for the six courses with matched wines.  I didn’t leave hungry, but nor did I leave satisfied.  The whimsy and commercialism of the night overtook left no room for focus on the food, and this is something I expected as part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.  In this Anglo French war I think the winners were the chefs’ egos and the books’ publishers.  Disappointing, yes, but fortunately I have quite a few other Festival events to look forward to, so here’s to the next one.