food
The food editors of The Saturday Paper are among the country's leading chefs. Since the paper's launch, they have worked with renowned photographer Earl Carter to produce its food pages. Unlike at other newspapers, all recipes are cooked and styled by the chefs who developed them. The shoots are done at chefs' homes or in their restaurants. The outcome is work that directly articulates each chef's vision and Carter's singular eye.
dinner
dinner January 31, 2026
Barbecued brined pork loin with potato salad and grilled zucchini
The history of cooking is a topic of enormous fascination for me. Particularly the execution of safe food-handling practices in pre-refrigeration days. In real terms, it’s just not that long ago that life was not so easy when it came to keeping food...
dinner January 17, 2026
Steak au poivre with wild fennel
Over the years, I have become more and more aware of the plants around me. Often it’s while in transit, on roadsides, near train tracks and on bush trails. Wild fennel, it seems, is becoming more and more prolific. Travelling in the opposite...
dinner October 25, 2025
Foraging is a wonderful way to engage with nature and the environment. You need to carefully hone your powers of observation to find edible plants in the wild. Stinging nettle is my favourite weed by far. It has an incredible flavour and grows in...
dinner September 20, 2025
Braised chicory stems with cannellini beans and bagna càuda
We are at that seasonal cusp, when the air temperature is getting warmer, the soil and ocean are still cool but the sun is starting to become more imposing. At this time of year, most of our winter crops begin to bolt. Everything is throwing all of...
dinner August 30, 2025
Wild rabbit braise with Amaro Montenegro, juniper berries and fennel seeds
There was a time when going to Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Market meant rushing past flat wagons heaped with piles of newly dispatched soft, grey-brown carcasses. Back then it was an ordinary part of the scene, and of common cookery, but now sourcing...
dinner August 23, 2025
Ricotta and pumpkin gnocchi with burnt butter and sage
Burnt butter is an indispensable condiment in our restaurant kitchen. Its golden hue brings a unique caramelised nutty flavour and aroma that’s infatuating. We often use it to dress gnocchi and sometimes add a splash to meat base sauces along with a...
dinner August 2, 2025
As much as I love cooking – which is fortunate, because I’ve spent a good part of my life toiling at it – there are still times when it just feels like an essential and annoying chore. Mostly it’s fine, as I tend to have very strong and specific...
dinner July 26, 2025
Glazed sticky pork with cassia, star anise, black vinegar and eggplant
This dish is based on a specialty of Shanghai called hong shao rou, or red braised pork. When you see this on a menu or in a recipe title, you can expect an indulgent and complex dish, but it’s actually surprisingly simple to make. I often forget...
dinner June 28, 2025
Dhal (also spelt dal, daal or dahl) refers to either a dried lentil, bean or pea – sometimes split, sometimes whole – or to a dish made from any of these. It’s a small word that covers a multitude. Originating in India, dhal has proliferated all...
dinner June 7, 2025
Sausages are a great leveller, a food of the people. Some varieties have been developed as rations during times of conflict and most as a necessity for protein preservation without refrigeration. Now sausages are commonly seen being consumed in a...
dinner May 31, 2025
It’s been more than three decades since I have lived in a city, but there are some things I still miss. Because I am within a couple of hours’ drive of Melbourne, it’s not that I can’t jump in my car to shop, attend cultural events or eat at...
