LG Kitchen School @ South Melbourne Market

Stall 90, Cecil Street, South

Melbourne Market

Recent Australian culinary trends haven’t been kind to the humble potato. Currently my Gen Y compatriots are more likely to dish up quinoa, freekah, polenta or couscous than a delicious creamy mash. The spud has become the enemy of the low carb dieter; the tracksuit pants of the vegetables, you’ll always turn to it for comfort but just not in front of your friends.

Perhaps the hunt for the latest trendy ingredient has created somewhat of an abyss of cooking skills regarding more traditional produce and many may be ignorant regarding just how good the potato can be. Last week I was very fortunate to be a guest at the LG Kitchen at the South Melbourne Market for a class on “Spud Heaven – Amazing Tasmanian seasonal potatoes; star of every dish” presented by Georgie Dragwidge of Georgie’s Harvest (remember her here) and chef Emma Mackay.

The LG Kitchen class is a good balance of a little hands on time and a lot of sampling of the dishes!  Our class of ten consisted of a mix of dedicated spud lovers, a couple of bloggers and a former Masterchef contestant. And unlike some cooking classes I’ve been to, this time I learnt a lot of useful things. The best tips I learnt included:

·    Always buy unwashed potatoes – the commercial washing process involves nasty detergents;

·    Boil your potatoes with their skins on, or else the flavour will leech out and your spud will become waterlogged;

·    If you have to rest cut potatoes before use, put them in cold water or they will discolour like apples;

·    Puree any soups containing potatoes if you wish to thicken the soup;

·    When cooking something in a French style, use white onions rather than brown; and

·    If you’re cooking anything with tomatoes, add brown sugar to the tomatoes to bring out the sweetness and reduce acidity.

 



Energetic Emma





LG screen gave you a bird's eye view of the action!
Check out the bowls of the different types of potatoes at the
top of the screen.



The basic key to spud success is choosing the correct variety for your purpose. Some are great for a creamy mash, some for roasting, some for a gratin, others are best for chips. For example, why mash your Kipfler when it is so much better roasted? And, if you don't know what you are going to cook, buy the Nicola potato - she's the best all rounder.

Our Tasmanian potato lesson plan consisted of: 

·     Seafood Chowder (Pink Eye potatoes)

·     Nicoise Salad (Pink Fir Apple potatoes)

·     Gnocchi Napoli (Blue Zhar and Viking potatoes)

·     Lamb Moussaka (Nicola potatoes)

·     Georgie’s Yia Yia’s skordalia (Blue Zhar potatoes)

Seafood Chowder





Nicoise Salad served with Emma's Tuna Cake
and Yia Yia's Skordalia



Many of the delicious potato varieties we used are hard to find and are definitely not going to be at your local supermarket, so pop down to Georgie’s Harvest at the South Melbourne Market for a visit and quiz her for the perfect potato for your dish.

 


Georgie's Yia Yia's Skordalia, Blue Zhar potatoes,
garlic and olive oil all from Georgie's Harvest

The food was absolutely delicious, and the gigantic portions cried out for over-indulgence. Aside from the fantastic food, a great aspect of the class was the interaction between class members both with each other and with Georgie and Emma. The class is a great way to meet with other like-minded "foodies", so don't be afraid to attend without your plus-one. In fact, it's hard to think of many ways this class could be improved, other than perhaps making the recipe notes a little more detailed, as some of the tips were not included in the notes.

After experiencing just how good gnocchi can be, I decided to try out my newly acquired skills. Emma and Georgie had taught me that hot potatoes are the key to good gnocchi; if the temperature is not above 70°C the starch in the potato will set. Also buy a potato ricer, it makes the process a lot quicker and means you don't burn your hands trying to mash the hot potato. I paired my gnocchi with a simple tomato sauce with Tasmanian Huon Valley mushrooms (also from Georgie's Harvest) and Pork Chorizo from T.O.Ms. I’m pleased to report my guests found that the results were delicious!





Gnocchi, my way.

I had a fantastic evening at the LG Kitchen cooking school, and as you can see from the photo above I've subsequently enjoyed recreating gnocchi at home. Perhaps rather than looking for the latest 'it' ingredient, we shouldn't lose sight of looking to create more with what we have at hand and sharpening our knowledge of, and cooking skills, using produce from our backyards.

Check out the very tempting class schedule here.  Upcoming classes feature topics as diverse as the celebration of truffles, Japanese fusion, inspirational dishes of Vietnam with Geoff Lindsay from Dandelion and a Spanish evening with Josep Espuga (who has worked in Mugaritz in San Sebastian - currently San Pellegrino's No.3 restaurant in the world!).  I'll be booking in fast!

"I’m not a glutton – I am an explorer of food” – King Valley Part Uno

Erma Bombeck was on the right track when she coined the phrase ”I’m not a glutton – I am an explorer of food”. Over the June long weekend the Husband and I journeyed to the King Valley and the Milawa regions to explore the copious offerings of food and wine.

What an opulent, uncommercialised food bowl it is. The Milawa area was subject to pastoral leases as early as 1838. The area then grew throughout the 1850’s as weary travelers journeyed through on their way to the new found gold deposits.  Now the rolling hills and large gums shade crops, dairy cows, beef cattle and lambs. Bees, mustard seeds, saffron all flourish in the fertile soil. During our visit the crisp nights iced up the paddocks, giving way to clear sunny days.

Currently, 80% of every dollar spent on general groceries and 60% of every dollar spent on fruit and vegetables is spent at Coles or Woolworths, yet we’re reading stories like this one , regarding the use of gasses to ripen produce and other such nasties.  Every Australian should be visiting farmers markets or one step further - visiting the producers on their home turf. I was surprised that some Melbournians I’ve spoken to were previously not aware of the King Valley region!

My favourite producers

·    Myrtleford Butter Factory – 15 Myrtle Street, Great Alpine Road, Myrtleford

Set in picturesque Myrtleford, this little dairy is producing some fabulous cultured butters, pure buttermilk and buttermilk ricotta. The Mother and Daughter team, Naomi and Bronwyn Ingleton are producing the only pure buttermilk in Australia. They source their cream from local high country cows, and then blend it in a European style manner. Mount Zero pink lake salts are added to the salted butter range. Also onsite is a lovely little café with a very delicious looking breakfast and lunch menu. Buy their butters throughout the Eastern seaboard, or online here. You can also join their Butter Club for opportunities to buy seasonal specials such as Truffle butter and Saffron butter. Butter up now!

Watch them making their butter :

·    Milawa Cheese Company – 17 Milawa-Bobinawarrah Rd, Milawa

Originally set up to emulate Gorgonzola Dolce, a mild creamy blue cheese, David and Anne Brown have been producing their handmade cheeses since 1988. Their range of goats and cows milk cheese includes fresh cheeses (curd, chevres), white mould cheeses (Ceridwen, Brie, Camembert), hard cheeses (Capricornia, Tomme), washed rind cheese and blues. Their award winning cheeses are stocked far and wide across Australia (Simon Johnson, Bottega Rotolo (SA), ‘Say Cheese’ (SA)) and there is also a second Milawa Cheese shop in Carlton North.



My dairy purchases... Lucky we have guests this coming weekend!

·    Gundowring Ice creams

Unfortunately we didn’t get to their property due to time constraints, but found their products at the Milawa Cheese Company. The ice creams are produced at their historic 1840’s dairy, using the milk of their Holstein cows herd. Their range includes flavours such as Liquorice, Ironbark Honey, Ginger, Golden Syrup and Muscat. You can find their ice creams in most Australian states (bar SA & NT – sorry!).

I have already informed the Husband another trip to the King Valley that captures a visit to their property is a non-negotiable.



Gundowring Lemon Curd...
It only survived one evening in the Epicurean Household!

·    Walkabout Apairies - 1531 Snow Road, Milawa

Jenny and Rod Whitehead have been beekeepers for the past 36 years. Jenny’s passion for, and knowledge of, the bees is clearly evident. We visited their property for a tasting of their delicious honey range which includes Red Gum, Mudgegonga Stringybark, Mountain Harvest and a very delicious Creamed Honey. There is a noticeable difference in depth and intensity of their types of honey which is really interesting. Due to the wintery Victorian weather, the bees had all been transported to their warmer winter houses on the NSW south coast!  As you are buying direct from the producer, the range is really well priced for such a high quality product.



More purchases!

Learn more about Walkabout Honey from this You Tube clip.

·    Murray Breweries

– 29 Last Street, Beechworth

Murray Brewery first opened in 1865, at the height of the gold rush, producing beer. In the 1920’s temperance groups shut down the alcohol production (except for Stout oddly enough) and Murray Breweries focused on producing cordials with the aid of the nearby natural spring water. Today they still produce flavoured cordials such as Mint Julep, St Clements, Peppermint and Chilli Punch. Perfect for adding to cocktails, a Gatsby style-prohibition themed party anyone?



Already partially consumed!

·    The Olive Shop – Snow Road, Milawa

This store stocks one of the most extensive range olive oil and olive related products I’ve ever come across. Kalamata, Manzanillo’s, green olives and black olives are all present and come in multiple flavoured varieties (eg. Chilli, herbs, garlic etc). There are at least nine different local brands of olive oil, plus a range of imported oils. We visited at a good time as we were able to try the most recent season’s new pressings which were really fresh and the quality of the oil was clearly evident. The shop also stocks a range of olive related accessories, such as implements to cure your own olives.

·    Milawa Mustard Store – 1597 Glenrowan-Myrtleford Road, Milawa VIC 3678

Jim and Kirsty Mellor make 18 different varieties of mustards, and grow their own mustard seeds in paddocks off of nearby Snow Road. Legend has it that Ned Kelly once hid in the cellars of the shop premises, which was a pub in its early days. Now, bushrangers long gone, their delightful little store is home to their mustard range plus 20 other varieties of sauces, chutneys and jams.  My favorites: ginger and orange mustard, balsamic mustard and lemon and dill mustard.

 

Would I venture to the region again? A resounding yes, even if just for the quality of their dairy products. I’d like to see a Maggie Beer type figurehead of the area emerge, such as Maggie has done in the Barossa Valley, in order to bring well-deserved recognition to the area. This might be the key to increasing the average Victorian’s knowledge of the area.

We also wined and dined at a number of the wineries, particularly Brown Brothers. Stay tuned for the update.

To Market, to Market


I’ve always loved markets. As a child, my Grandfather used to take me to a fish market. We’d wind through the backstreets of Port Adelaide crowded with abandoned factories and warehouses, an industrial wasteland reminiscent of Fitzgerald’s valley of ashes. Eventually we’d arrive at the wharf, a dock crowded with boats bearing the morning’s catch and wild-looking fisherman wearing tall gumboots and overalls. In the shadow of the power station people would flock to buy the crabs still crawling over one another, bright eyed whole fish, handfuls of prawns and squid still drenched in ink. In the dusty adjacent carpark huge wooden packing crates held melons, pumpkins, tomatoes, oranges and whichever fruit or vegetable was in bountiful supply at the time. As a result of Grandpa’s purchases, I’d always return home to my parents laden watermelon, strawberries and whatever else we’d found.

Now the South Melbourne Market is my local weekend ritual, and for the highest quality produce I visit my favourite store, Georgie’s Harvest Potatoes and Herbs (Stall 50, 322-326 Coventry Street, South Melbourne, 9696 2288, Wed, Sat & Sun 8 am – 4 pm, Friday 8 am – 5 pm).

At the time of writing, Georgie is stocking 23 different varieties of potatoes including Dutch Creams, Kipler, King Edward and Blue Zarr. But for something a little different, purchase her fresh horseradish, turmeric root or fresh wasabi. The fresh wasabi is sourced from Shima Wasabi in Tasmania and is also used at Vue de Monde, Coda and The Press Club. The flavour, scent and texture is dramatically different to the nasty green fluro paste accompanying your takeaway sushi, that you’ll never want to eat the paste again.



Georgie's lovely store

If you’re lucky enough to meet Georgie herself, you’ll come away with cooking secrets to add a little something to your dish. For example, Georgie taught me to always use at least three different varieties of pumpkin in your pumpkin soup to achieve the best flavour and texture.




My three varieties

At this point add some orange zest, it adds a little something!

 



The finished product



I also visit Tom Niall’s The Organic Meat Specialist (T.O.M.S). Tom sells the best certified organic meat, game and small goods.  Every product I’ve tried has been of the utmost quality and freshness, and we’ve loved his rabbit, wagyu rump steak, beef cheek and his sausage rolls. Tom’s also an oracle regarding cooking times, particular cuts and is a well of general “meaty” knowledge,  He’ll also cut your meat in any way requested, as well as sourcing and preparing any meat you request. Bespoke meat anyone?

 

Feeling fishy? Vist Aptus seafoods, since 1969 they've been selling the freshest prawns, mussels, scallops, Moreton Bay Bugs and many different varieties of fish. I love their "oyster man", he shucks oysters on the spot, and they're yours for only $1 per oyster - choose from lemon, pepper, lime or tabasco accompaniments.

Other markets I love

·         Willunga Farmers Market – South Australia

·         Borough Markets - London

·         La Boqueria Market - Barcelona

·         Gasworks Farmers Market –  Victoria