Barbecue Madness

Thanks to the people at MLA and Horseman Hausmann Communications (neeeeigh! It's Hausmann NOT Horseman!), I got to spend a lovely Saturday morning down by the docks at the Sydney Morning Herald Growers' Market in Pyrmont to celebrate Barbecue Madness. What is that you say? Well if you replace 'madness' with 'super awesome deliciousness' the name pretty much speaks for itself. 

An opening Crave event of course has to start with a bang. There were eleven Sydney chefs, eleven dishes, six barbecues, seven sittings, the highly respected David Tanis - cookbook author and head chef of Alice Waters's restaurant Chez Panisse in California, with two Southdown Lambs from Oberon slowly rotating over spits for five long tantalising hours thrown in.

I got to hang out with Matt Kemp for a bit (he's an ex-Banc boy who ran the highly successful Restaurant Balzac which has since closed and re-opened as Montpellier Public House). Nice guy. Awesome skills. While most other chefs had a supporting chef or apprentice by their side, Matt was all lonesome and a total gun behind the grill. He whipped up epigramme of veal breast with crushed carrots, watercress and madeira jus; a dish which he described as a playful rendition of a fancy veal schitzel. Gotta love the man! (A little birdy tells me that there's a recipe on the way!)

The remaining talent pool included: Alex Herbert (Bird Cow Fish), Alex Kearns (Glebe Point Diner and ex-Billy Kwong chef! What a small world this is), Dan Hong and Jowett Yu (Lotus & Ms G's), Darren Robertson (The Table Sessions), David Tsirekas (Xanthi), Joe Pavlovich (Glass Brasserie), my awesome ex-boss Kylie Kwong (Billy Kwong), Lauren Murdosh (Felix) and Martin Boetz (Longrain)...

... ... ...Sorry, I was just you know, reminiscing about all the mouth-watering dishes I got to stick my fingers into over the duration of the morning.. I love that it's held at the Pyrmont Growers' Market every year where the farmers, growers, bakers, artisan whatevers pride themselves on sourcing fresh, local and seasonal produce. It just fits in so well with the sustainability flag that was being waved around this year. 


The importance of sourcing sustainable produce and supporting the people behind the sustainable agricultural movement is being dragged into the limelight in a timely fashion. An increasing number of Sydney chefs are on-board with boycotting GMOs, and sourcing local, seasonal produce but sustainably produced organic fruit and veg still only make up a tiny minority of the present market. We can change that you know. Consumers have the ULTIMATE POWER! Ask for it, demand it, buy as much as you can afford. It's damn delicious!

But back to serious business.. I just can't get over how succulent that spit-roasted Southdown lamb was... Droooool... There's no need to fret if you missed it. There are only 359 days to go before Barbecue Madness comes around again next year... Could someone please tell the woman upstairs to stop sobbing so loudly? It's distracting, and you can breathe a sigh of relief (I can't help being cruel sometimes). Crave Sydney International Food Festival runs for the entire month so there are plenty more opportunities to get some tasty meat in ya! :P~

www.cravesydney.com

Sydney Morning Herald Growers' Market

Pyrmont Bay Park, Pirrama Road

Pyrmont NSW 2009

see more delicious photos!

Got Beef?

Sustainable development may seem like an oxymoron of sorts. Leading scientists like David Suzuki believe that infinite exponential growth is impossible, yet we continue to pursue it like our entire existence is ready to collapse the moment we slow down, even if only for a moment... Hmmm.. Something to ponder over...

It's an exciting time to be in the thick of learning all about environmental science and the flow-on effects of human activity. For the first time in human history, more people are now living in urban areas than anywhere else. While many of us may never see a productive plot bigger than a 2 x 4m terrace yard or splash knee-high through a spring stream teeming with fry, we all eat and agriculture is central to all of our lives whether we choose to acknowledge it or not.

Pick a supermarket. Any supermarket. Traipse down an aisle and already we're completely overwhelmed trying to make head or toe of the nutritional content of breakfast cereals let alone delve into the complex world of sustainable food production. Luckily we have Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) to do the dirty work for us. They invest bajillions of dollars a year into improving and refining the sustainability of our country's meat production. 

MLA copped a fair bit of flack in recent months over the live export shit in Indonesia which is a little silly if you ask me. Solutions have to be culturally appropriate if they're going to work out in the long term without requiring constant babysitting. Jumping the gun would be like giving my 90 year-old grandpa (shrivelled hippocampus, dementia and all, who has taken to waltzing around his home naked) an iPad to read the paper with and then wondering why it's hiding in the dishwasher two months later. But anyway... As usual, MLA is a proud supporter of homegrown Aussie produce and soldiers on with what it does best - promoting sustainability and better industry practices. 

With a global population of over 6 billion, we have a huge influence on the wellbeing of our habitat, and we have an inherent responsibility to minimise the environmental impact of our everyday lives. As an omnivorous species, each and every meal we consume provides another opportunity to support environmentally friendly practices and steer away from those that do more harm than good. According to food writer Richard Cornish, one of the most practical ways to eat more sustainably is to have a relationship with the butcher. Not on the side of course. The milk man would never get over it. Mortal enemies they are. 

Jokes aside, Richie makes a solid point. Laughing at the occasional joke, smiling, asking about a favourite recipe and building a rapport with the people behind the counter allows you to sneak in special orders for butcher's cuts, beautiful sweet meats and things that may normally be harder to find like venison, wild rabbit, marrow, brains (if you swing that way), dry-aged beef and whatnot. An animal is killed every time we want to eat and what we don't buy gets pulped and goes into rubbish like pet food. Venture out of the pre-packaged cuts and experiment with lesser known parts. Give every part of the animal the respect that they deserve. Try something new! Be bold and daring!

Secondary cuts such as brisket, flat meats, neck, shin and shank are all beautiful and can be braised gently for hours and hours and hours until they're melt-in-the-mouth tender. As a general rule, darker parts of animals contain a higher level of myoglobin and are more flavoursome. They've had a bit more of a workout and take a little more love and care to prepare than overly popular (bland) cuts like steak and fillet, but they're more forgiving and the rewards can be bloody amazing. I promise you'll be pleasantly surprised and if you're lucky, you might feel the twinge of a warm and fuzzy feeling creeping into your belly after eating a little more sustainably. :)

Preserving Winter Fruit

Hey you, yes you in the kitchen, holding that bowl of orange peels left from the bounty of winter citrus that were nurtured so lovingly by your favourite producer down at the weekend farmers' market. I can see what you're up to. You were planning to upend the entire contents into the waste bin that'll undoubtedly go into landfill and contribute to our already warming atmosphere weren't you? 

Shake your head. Lie to me. That's right. 

There's something else that we can do with these that'll add another awesome secret ingredient to your pantry and have your neighbours peeking over the fence with jealousy as you entertain your friends and family with beautifully perfumed renditions of Italian classics.

Preserved lemon is an ingredient that I know you're familiar with. Tangy. Robust. A burst of floral citrus and acidity all in one. It's proved to be quite versatile, contributing to some of the great culinary masterpieces and traditional peasant dishes of our time, providing a subtle backdrop or Kill Bill-style smack in the face.

Luckily for us, orange peels have just the same potential if not more. Google preserved oranges and what you'll find is 2.47 million images of sugar-laden, diabetes-inducing goodness. This is not what I'm suggesting.


Preserved orange peel

orange peel (with or without pith, whatever)
cheap rock salt (preferably local, organic and sustainably harvested)
aromatic spices and stuff
fresh orange juice/lemon juice/apple cider vinegar to cover

Pay close attention. This recipe is deceptively simple.

Stuff a sterilised jar with orange peel and handfuls of rock salt.

Throw some cinnamon quills or peppercorns or bay leaves or whatever in.

Cover with juice and/or vinegar.

Screw on the lid.

Chuck it in a dark place for a couple of months.

Jars must be stored in a cool, dark place as excessive heat and UV light can cause degradation of citric acid which is BAD. Reconstituted orange juice and any other non-fresh juice that is heat treated during processing should not be used as heat destroys acidity.

Fresh lemon juice has a pH that lies somewhere around 2-3, fresh orange juice typically has a pH of 3.5 and apple cider vinegar has a pH that falls between 4.25 and 5. For safe preservation, the pH should ideally be maintained below 4.6. 

If using apple cider vinegar this can be achieved by mixing it with a substantial amount of lemon juice to increase the acidity. If you don't have citrus juice, you can try adding powdered citric acid (no more than 8% of liquid weight). Palm vinegar is an inappropriate dress to wear to this occasion. White vinegar will have you thrown out.

Preserved orange peel will take your dinner parties where they never dared. If a riot breaks out when you hit the bottom of the jar, don't blame us.