This week we talk to the chefs at Southern Fare, Burger Afloat, Five Stags and 103 The Store about their entries in Eat.Taste.Central 2021.

Meet the chefs behind this year’s delicious Eat.Taste.Central dishes. Discover their inspiration, and learn why you should try out their dish ahead of Peoples’ Choice voting.

Chef Keith Page at Southern Fare in Cromwell has designed and entered his Shrek Lamb Burger in the pies, burgers and sandwiches section.

“Lamb was a natural choice, being a reflection of the farming of the region.”  

Using two styles of cooking reflects lamb’s diversity, he says, and mint, peas and lamb are a natural pairing.

Keith believes in staying true to what he believes in, and to true flavours. He uses Southern lamb as it is a robust cut, enabling him to extract the true flavour and essence of lamb. The mint and buns are also locally sourced.

“I like to cook from whole ingredients as much as possible and then enhance with herbs and spices to flavour, season and enhance the dish.  

The roast lamb is simply done with garlic, thyme, salt and pepper, while in Keith’s twelve-hour brisket, he has used twenty different ingredients to create a full-flavoured braising broth.   

“To get the flavours I like, it's always taste, taste and taste so that each component tastes right, then the dish as a whole is likely to taste right and be a pleasant eating experience.”      

Burger Afloat’s entry into Eat.Taste.Central is a decadent venison and thyme burger, with a smashed twist. The burgers are cooked and served al fresco.

Chefs Jolanda and Richard Foale say the smashed twist on their burger built with local flavours is something that has to be experienced.

“If you haven’t tried one - you want to,” says Jolanda.

“With a smash burger, our 150 gram burger is split into two patties that are flattened and cooked separately.” 

The technique creates a slightly charred outer layer with incredible taste and scent that adds more flavour to the meat. 

“We then marry the patties back together in a brioche bun, sandwiched with our succulent Swiss cheese.”

Jolanda says using venison as the meat was an easy decision - they both love it. The venison is locally sourced and their bacon is slow smoked.

After multiple trials and taste tests, the couple decided to flavour the meat pattie with local thyme.

“Our location at Cairnmuir Gully is surrounded by this aromatic herb that speaks so much of the region.”

The local twist is completed with Pinot pickled onions, a nod to the wine this region is renowned for producing, and Jolanda’s old family recipe for apricot relish has been recreated using local apricots.

“It’s always been incredibly important to us to support local.”

The final touch of swiss cheese is a special nod to Jolanda’s own heritage - and because, she says, it just can’t be beaten. 

Five Stags chef Harry Harpreet has created a Duo of Lamb main dish with a flavour-filled marriage of vegetables, spices and a delightful orange cointreau jus.

His inspiration comes from nature and from his imagination - he loves to experiment.

“​​Creativity and imagination is a key for a chef.  

“You need to know who your market is, and then create a dish which gives a Wow! factor for your customer.

Harry says that Wow! factor he creates is a combination of taste and the visual aspects of the dish.

He also uses different cooking methods to create combinations of different flavours that go well together as a whole.

“It is art and that’s what I think is important.”

Harry’s vision is for his kitchen to be a sustainable food place. So sourcing ingredients locally is a focus - it’s good for local growers and suppliers and it’s good for the restaurant as well, he says.

“Lamb is always my favourite to cook and eat; I chose lamb rack because it is one of my signature dishes.

“When I cook lamb I always experiment.” 

He added lamb loin to the dish, alongside the lamb rack.

“For this dish we marinated the lamb in rosemary and orange juice overnight, then created a crust with roasted cumin to give it a rich and complex flavour.

“Toasted pistachio gives an added crunch.”

Beetroot infused kumara and the vivid green of broccolini and mint pea puree add vibrancy of colour and the orange cointreau jus adds a finishing aroma and flavour.

103 The Store Roxburgh has multiple dishes entered: a main meal of Persian Tachin, a lush lamb pastie, and a Central Otago stone fruit friand with saffron custard for dessert.

Chef Jessica Matheson says her inspiration for the Tachin was the premium grade saffron we have here in Central Otago from Wynyard Estate. 

“I also chose to draw the geographical correlations between the barren landscapes of both Central Otago and Iran.

“We supported the saffron flavours with the beautiful garlic from Te Mahanga Orchard.

“Both are fabulous local suppliers offering top of their field products.”

Jessica says the lamb pasty is something she already had on the café menu. The pasty showcases Ranfurly’s bio-farmed, ethically raised Provenance lamb. 

Another regular on the menu is the friand, entered in the Sweet and Dessert section.

“The friand is something we offer to our customers as a GF free option daily.

“It was neat to continue using the fruit from one of The Store’s owners' own orchard, Teviot Orchard.

“It was important to me participating in E.T.C that we didn’t just create a dish that was only available for the duration of the event.”

Using local products, she says, means that going forward people can still come into the cafe and have those dishes as an option. and have those dishes as an option.

“What better way to offer ongoing support to local suppliers.

“We are so very lucky in the Teviot valley to have access to some of the world's best produce and meat.

“This directly ties in with what is closest to my heart as a chef - sustainability and the ‘pasture to plate’ connections.

“We can all as food suppliers and producers offer fabulous, flavourful cuisine with a low ecological impact, allowing our future growers and farmers the opportunities available to us today.”

Get out and Eat.Taste.Central by trying these amazing dishes created by the best of our local chefs, using local produce. You won’t be disappointed!

Then make sure you vote for your favourite by clicking Taste, Rate, Win

Images supplied