- Which animal that we eat is rarer than a panda?
- Would you eat worms?
- New chef and light French-style menu
- Now open at night
- Easy home dining
- Crowd funding for food
Rarer than a panda
Do you know the difference between a Berkshire, Wessex, Saddle Back or Tamworth pig?
And did you know that commercialisation has reduced pig breed numbers so much that now some breeds are rarer than a panda?
Taking the pig by the trotters, Pig 'N' Whistle Indooroopilly executive chef Deniz Coskun is leading the march by celebrating the International Day of the Pig on Saturday March 1 with a fun family day.
"It's simply due to lack of popularity," says Coskun. While it may seem counter-intuitive to eat a rare breed to save it, it's one of the keys to rescuing these breeds. Without a commercial market for these animals, farmers have no incentive to raise them.
"Commercialisation has seen these rare breeds decline as they require land to graze and grow slower than other breeds but the truth is that they often can taste better."
So go along and taste rare pig, try local apple cider and sip some locally brewed craft beers at Pig 'N' Whistle Indooroopilly on Saturday March 1.
Can of worms
They say eating insects or, in this case worms, is the way of the future but I think we will all have to be very hungry. I sampled this dish 'Can of Worms' on the menu at Public and while it was hard to get past the very strong resemblance in my mind to maggots, the meal worms were not unpleasant. It was mostly just a crunch with a very attractive salad accompaniment. Champion of insect eating, Kylie Kwong, might be on her own with this one.
New French style at The Chelsea
Who says French food has to be heavy, overly rich and full of butter? Not the new chef at The Chelsea Bistro, Dallas Costello, who is set to introduce his light, innovative French cuisine style to one of Brisbane's favourite bistros.
Costello, ex French favourite Piaf at South Bank, will take his cues from the current local food trend of simple, shared options and focus on using top quality ingredients, a Chelsea-hallmark according to owner Steve Ackerie.
What to expect? How about brandade (barramundi poached in milk blended with fresh herbs, lemon zest and potatoes) served with pickled vegetables on sour dough from Jocelyn's Provisions, a classic French confit duck or whole braised lamb shoulder. Popular breakfast options remain unchanged.
Au dinner
Au Cirque launched their new Thursday/Friday night dinner menu last week with an excellent selection of French-inspired dinner items and Ed+bK reporter Alexander Stone was there to test it out -
Aiming more for a tapas-style dinner, the menu revolves around smaller, share-sized items helping to keep the cost down. Two of my favourite menu items from the night were the goats cheese and zucchini croquettes with a spicy tomato relish and sticky barbecue pork ribs. The meat on the ribs just fell off the bone into a delicious mess in my mouth (not really a date food). I will be back soon to try the duck liver pate with toasted brioche plus the sizzling escargots with garlic butter!
Easy home dining
I've always been a bit suspicious of meal services simply because I think it won't be as good as what I can cook at home. I've just been proven wrong. Enter www.gogogourmet.com.au , a new business started by chef Scott and his wife Margaret. Their dream is delivering gourmet ready made meals to busy people and my dream is opening the fridge and pulling out something easy on 'those' days.
Go Go Gourmet meals range from seared salmon with white bean and chorizo cassoulet to proscuitto-wrapped chicken breast with pea puree, roast cherry tomatoes and steamed baby potatoes. You order it online by noon Friday and it's delivered on Monday afternoon, vacuum packed to stay fresh for up to 10 days in the fridge. Individual meals cost around $15 and family meals cost around $40, all plus delivery.
The preparation is quite simple with detailed instructions included. Some get a zap in the microwave while others need 20 minutes in the oven. It's pretty fool proof but we did have to put one meal back for a bit longer. Save yourself some time and give it a go.
Crowd funding is the new food black
Getting a fledgling business started or funding a festival? Take your lead from two groups of entrepreneurs who are asking food lovers to put their hands in their pockets to feed their need with Pozible.
Adelaide Food & Wine Fest was the first to announce they have smashed their Crowdfunding target and have over $18,000 pledged for the production of their print program. Festival Creator and Director Amanda James-Pritchard says the result is a product of the festival's grass roots support and the support of the food and wine community. Plan to be in Adelaide between April 4 to 13 to enjoy some of their 40 events.
Next on the block is a Kiwi cave man product where New Zealand cricketer Mitchell McClenahan and his business partner Ryan Kamins are launching a global drive to crowdfund their new paelo food brand, Clean Paleo. It's a big ask of $100,000.
Could crowd funding be the answer to your dreams? Worth checking out...
Kerry Heaney