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Patrick Lewis spent several days in the company of some brilliant chefs, restaurateurs and rather charismatic foodies at Tasting Australia, the biennial event that has been celebrating everything food-related, hosted in South Australia, since 1997. Although 2012 saw the final Tasting Australia hosted in SA, it is possible that the event will be turned into something even greater with plans to shift it to Western Australia. In the meantime, enjoy some fascinating insight into the minds of some of the world’s – including Australia’s – most trusted food authorities.
MIGUEL MAESTRE
Restaurateur (Apertif) and TV Presenter
You’re hosting a dinner party for your closest friends. What do you cook?
Paella. It’s big, easy, and simple. Sharing is caring.
Best thing / worst thing about Australian cuisine?
Best: our multi-cultural philosophy. Where in the world can you find the best food and the chefs in that field? We have Manu, Tetsuya, Gary Mehigan… The best types of food at the highest standards from French to Turkish. You name it we got it! The worst thing about Australian cuisine? It depends on the city. The attitude of some customers. Some people think they know too much; they think they’re food critics and expect too much.
Your three favourite types of cuisine?
Japanese, Spanish, and Italian.
Three cookbooks every serious food lover has to have…
Larousse Gastronomique – it’s written by chefs from all around the world. There’s a lot of terminology; it’s an encyclopedia. Also A Day At El Bulli by Ferran Adria. He’s my idol. El Bulli is the best restaurant in the world. Amazing. Oh, and my book called Spanish Cooking. It’s all the recipes I got from my mum and grandma and I have to give them credit. If you want to cook real Spanish food, you have to have it.
What do you listen to in the kitchen?
Flamenco and the Gypsy Kings. I don’t just listen to them in the kitchen. I listen to them in the bath, when I’m sleeping… I have them on all the time!
What’s been your highlight at Tasting Australia?
The atmosphere is amazing. To have all these people together in a short period of time is wonderful. The produce in South Australia is something I could only dream about in Sydney. We caught fresh trout in the morning and had it for breakfast. The lamb is so tender here… Are they spending the day massaging them? What’s going on? From a chef’s point of view, that alone is amazing.
BILLY LAW
Masterchef Finalist and Author
You’re hosting a dinner party for your closest friends. What do you cook?
An Asian banquet. It’s Malaysian; usually 10 courses. I start with Yee Sang (raw fish salad) and include dishes like Cereal Prawns.
Best thing / worst thing about Australian cuisine?
Australian cuisine? What is it? You can’t define Australian cuisine. English heritage with Asian influences? The worst thing about Australian cuisine? We focus on our produce and we ignore what they’re doing in other countries. We need to step outside the box.
Your three favourite types of cuisine?
Definitely Malaysian. Then Mexican – you can’t go wrong with tacos. Is dessert a cuisine? Anything that features salted caramel or chocolate.
Three cookbooks every serious food lover has to have…
Bourke Street Bakery: The Ultimate Baking Companion. That’s my bible. Coco: 10 World Leading Masters Choose 100 Contemporary Chefs. And Maggie’s Harvest by Maggie Beer. If you want to learn from scratch, that’s one of the best as it covers sauces and a lot of the basics.
What do you listen to in the kitchen?
I don’t listen to music. I prefer to listen to the sounds of the kitchen like chopping and sizzling. The sizzling lets you know when the meat is done.
What’s been your highlight at Tasting Australia?
The Limestone Coast, especially Coonawarra two years ago. We watched a chef fillet a whole shark and we did some cool touring where we got to see seals and a dinosaur cave. It showcased the amazing produce and tourism opportunities that South Australia has to offer.
STEPHANIE ALEXANDER
Restaurateur (Stephanie’s Restaurant) and Author
You’re hosting a dinner party for your closest friends. What do you cook?
I cook something that means I’m not in the kitchen. A roast or something on the BBQ. I want to spend the time with my friends.
Best thing / worst thing about Australian cuisine?
The best elements are its diversity and the authenticity of our ingredients. When you go to the US and you see what can happen to a salami, you realise how fortunate we are to live here. The worst thing about Australian cuisine? We are a young country and there are a lot of young chefs who use, borrow and blend ingredients without any real understanding of what they belong to or the history of the food they’re using. You can get some real abominations.
Your three favourite types of cuisine?
French, Italian and Thai. I love Thai. I don’t cook it but I appreciate that it’s clean and fresh. I like someone else cooking it.
Three cookbooks every serious food lover has to have…
The Cooks Companion written by me. It’s the ultimate research tool. After four million people have come up to me said it’s their bible, it’s something I can be proud of. French Provincial Cooking by Elizabeth David. That shows my age. No chef under 45 would have heard of it, but too bad! And Simple French Food by Richard Olney. This book is particularly lovely and really speaks to me.
What do you listen to in the kitchen?
No music. I’m thinking in the kitchen.
What’s been your highlight at Tasting Australia?
The friendships. In the early years, Tasting Australia brought some wonderful people here. I met Carol Field, a great authority on Italian food at one, and then saw her again in San Francisco.
RICHARD FOX
British TV Presenter and Author
You’re hosting a dinner party for your closest friends. What do you cook?
I put something in the middle of the table that everyone can pile into. A slow roast pork belly on a bed of veg with beer. The sauce makes itself. Or a big bowl of steamed mussels with fresh bread. The classic mistake home cooks make is attempting something too fancy. They get their Gordon Ramsay cookbook out and try something fancy that’s just too difficult for them.
Best thing / worst thing about Australian cuisine?
Australian cuisine is a melting pot. You have Malaysian and Chinese and everything else and it’s all done properly. In England we talk about ‘fusion food’ but everyone in the UK, with the exception of Peter Gordon, gets it wrong. Australians are masters at fusion cooking. Worst thing about Australian cuisine? There may be a tendency to over-elaborate. There are stunning ingredients but perhaps spend more time on presentation. In saying that I haven’t had a bad experience here.
Your three favourite types of cuisine?
Japanese – I love sushi. Traditional British – a superb piece of sirloin with béarnaise sauce and big chips. It’s simple, great food. And Spanish – I love the tapas concept.
Three cookbooks every serious food lover has to have…
Great British Classics by Gary Rhodes. He has such a strong passion. It’s his own voice and he gives you a story and not just the recipes. Dean and Deluca Cookbook related to the famous deli in New York. There are no photos. Again it’s just their stories behind the food, and I love that. And Canteen Cuisine by Marco Pierre White. That’s my bible.
What do you listen to in the kitchen?
I put on Radio Three. Classical music. I find it inspiring and cathartic.
What’s been your highlight at Tasting Australia?
Meeting up with great friends that I made on previous Tasting Australia events. And the camaraderie.
MARK HIX
Restaurateur (Hix Oyster and Chop House, London) and Author
You’re hosting a dinner party for your closest friends. What do you cook?
I always shop for the main ingredient on the day. I never have predetermined ideas for a dinner party. The last time I had a dinner party was in LA for New Year’s Eve. My friend is vegetarian and I produced 10 courses. I did a zucchini risotto and an Asian mushroom salad. No-one noticed it was all vegetarian.
Best thing / worst thing about Australian cuisine?
It’s eclectic. Australian food picks up accents from all over the world and you have great chefs. Your produce is pretty good and it has to be for your eclectic tastes. The worst thing is that it can be represented badly. Like in England, there can be too many flavours and too much on the plate.
Your three favourite types of cuisine?
Japanese – I went to Tokyo twice. It was a crash course in Japanese food. Italian – Britain takes a lot of influences from Italian. Turkish – I like the simplicity.
Three cookbooks every serious food lover has to have…
Food Of Italy by Anna Del Conte. It’s a great reference book. I really respect her as an Italian food writer. Wild Food by Roger Phillips. It’s a repertoire of wild food with very good photography and it was published back in the ’80s before wild food took off. Anything written by Elisabeth Luard. She’s a great author and she’s very important.
What do you listen to in the kitchen?
Whatever is on the radio. Usually Radio Two.
What’s been your highlight at Tasting Australia?
The Barossa Valley. It was incredible. The wines were great.
MAGGIE BEER
Restaurateur, TV Presenter and Author
You’re hosting a dinner party for your closest friends. What do you cook?
It’s got to be seasonal, so at the moment it might be a warm salad of pheasant and pomegranate. Or something with quince.
Best thing / worst thing about Australian cuisine?
Energy and simplicity at its best. It speaks of a new nation. The worst thing about Australian cuisine? People who don’t understand food – that could be anything from fast food [manufacturers] to people who make food without care or knowledge or love.
Your three favourite types of cuisine?
Italian, Italian and Italian. It’s earthy, it’s simple, snd it’s Mediterranean which is my climate!
Three cookbooks every serious food lover has to have…
French Provincial Cooking by Elizabeth David. It was my first ever cookbook. On Food and Cooking: The Science And Lore Of The Kitchen by Harold McGee. And The Cook’s Companion by Stephanie Alexander.
What do you listen to in the kitchen?
Opera or jazz, and it has to be loud!
What’s been your highlight at Tasting Australia?
There have been some great Tasting Australia festivals. I love the ‘Cooking With Kids’ demonstration shows we’ve done. It’s great to see kids excited about food. I think the best Tasting Australia was when the media came to the Barossa Valley. I hosted them at my house and cooked different courses.
IAN PARMENTER
TV Presenter and Author
You’re hosting a dinner party for your closest friends. What do you cook?
Things I can pre-prepare. Slow-cooked winter dishes. Osso Bucco or Eggplant Parmigiana. There is nothing worse than spending the whole time in the kitchen. My partner Ann grows tomatoes and zucchini so in summer we’ll use that in our salads.
Best thing / worst thing about Australian cuisine?
The best thing is we have easy access to brilliant ingredients. The worst thing about Australian cuisine? The adoption of American food and our easy acceptance of McDonalds.
Your three favourite types of cuisine?
Italian, French and Thai. Italian for me is more about vegetables than meat. French is more about meat than vegetables. And Thai is just to die for.
Three cookbooks every serious food lover has to have…
French Provincial Cooking by Elizabeth David. My first cookbook. Complete Asian Cookbook by Charmain Solomon. And Larousse Gastronomique. They’re all seminal cookbooks.
What do you listen to in the kitchen?
Radio National. I like listening to the talking more than listening to music.
What’s been your highlight at Tasting Australia?
My partner Ann being here for the last event. She also came to the first. She’s lovely. She’s the backbone of everything I do. I have been talking about making Tasting Australia an annual event but I don’t think it could be done on the same scale if it happened every year. While this may be the last Tasting Australia in South Australia, we’re currently talking about taking the concept to Perth which is very exciting.
Main food photography by Toni De Coninck.
Profile photographs by Patrick Lewis.
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