I've been travelling for the last couple of months. I'm currently in Japan. I've learnt a lot about myself; what I like, what I don't like. I have learnt so much of this through food. Food is a powerful force, living and breathing in every culture. Food is beyond language, beyond routine. Love, history, emotion, experience, physical reactions, that is what food generously and aggressively imparts. There is little more that is as beautiful or important to share with the people you love, and in some cases... even the people you can't love.

Saffron and Brown Butter Gnocchi with Szechuan Pepper Almonds, Pistachio and Shiso -- 

I’m finally home after a few weeks of travel and have found a few quiet hours to myself. Over the past week or so, I’ve been thinking about some dear friends and their incredible energy, spirit and love of life. This one is dedicated to you, Kristy and Catie. --

The comfort of soft, light gnocchi (without egg!), the textural contrast of the toasted almonds and pistachios, the exciting hum and anaesthetic qualities of the szechuan pepper, and the slightly tangy, earthy shiso all combine to bring balance, wonder and comfort. 

Scallops with Curry Leaves and Radish Cream - - 

The lesson for this weekend is ‘keep it clean, keep it simple’.

Happy Saturday! Pork with braised cabbage, just and smoked apple. Clean and simple. Loving that smokey flavour. 

Steak tartare with house-made saeujeot (pickled tiny shrimp, sometimes uncertainly identified as krill), egg yolk, caviar, chilli, fried eschallots, spring onion. Beef is marinated in a mixture of soy, fish based stock and sesame oil.  Steak tartare. Goes well with drinking too much. 

I’m learning the importance of treating yourself gently some times. We just had a 4-day working week and it felt like aeons. Waking up on a Saturday an feeling less than fine, I surprised myself with this divine breakfast. It is simply rejuvenating.

The poetry in this breakfast is that it is descriptive of my life, my home. This is my home made sourdough bread and ricotta, with homegrown thyme, Sarawak pepper (from the home state of my family in Malaysia) and beautifully mellow Australian honey. What a harmony of sweet and savoury.

My first homemade sourdough, slathered in creamy, rich, whipped truffle butter.

Last week, I created my first sourdough starter. I named her Helga (get it? Haha). 

Today, I’ve created Helga’s first loaf of beautifully fragrant, tasty bread. Check out that crumb! The middle is so wonderfully soft but chewy, slightly tangy and elastic. The crust is aromatic and crispy. This loaf is by no means perfect, but I am very proud of my first attempt! 

Fresh handmade, silky pappardelle with savoury, creamy pork and greens. Top it with garlicky pangrattato and you’ve got yourself some all-healing comfort food. 

Confit Potato in Miso and Chicken, Braised Cos Lettuce and Prawn Terrine

Playing around with techniques and flavours. 

The potato was confit’d over a long period of time in smoked miso, rendered chicken fat and chicken stock. It turned out to be a wonderfully savoury, buttery texture with a delightful crispness on the edges. 

The lettuce was braised in chicken stock, butter and garlic.

For the terrine, I sliced prawns and formed them into thin sheets with celery salt, star anise and white pepper. This was then fried quickly at a high heat. 

Roast pork ribs with steamed wholemeal bao. 

This is an easy, no fuss meal idea. Perfect for a weekend where I’m super short on time. 

My aunt works at a butchery and she picked out a beautiful rack of pork ribs - small bones, even layers of fat, beautiful pink meat. Since I’ve been experimenting with different bread recipes lately, I thought it would be great to serve spicy, salty, sticky, sweet pork ribs with some steamed buns! 

Bucatini with Truffle and Lobster. Decadence.

Pumpkin, Kale and Camembert Agnolotti with Spiced Almonds and Pumpkin Seeds

Reposting my tuna tartare with beetroot, soy, sesame, mirin, and nori 

Prawn Ballotine in cured egg yolk butter with Braised Cucumber and Truffle Sauce - - 

Creating a balance between decadence and humble ingredients

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Happy Valentines Day <3

10 Hour Lamb Ragu. 

Scallops with basil pesto, pine nuts and scallions pickled in citrus

Lamb with pesto and pickled beetroot