On Plates Now

Meat

Although we’ve always known market forces affect commodity prices, we’re seeing it played out in technicolour in the meat world right now. After what seems like years of astronomical lamb prices, many people have given up on it and moved to alternatives such as beef and veal. As a result of this fall in demand for lamb, its prices have also fallen a bit recently and the other meats have increased their market share.

There’s no shortage of lamb on Abhi’s menu, though, and it comes in all kinds of cuts. Minced and mixed with black pepper, green chilli, mace, ginger and coriander, it makes fine seekh kebabs. For hariyali chops, the cutlets are marinated in green masala paste and tandoor-roasted.

Beef shows up in a rich, slow-cooked nihari dish with almonds, turmeric, star anise and saffron. The scotch fillet remains popular at Brown Sugar served with green beans, slow-roasted tomatoes, red wine butter and potato wedges.

Beef ribs are becoming more popular and Rockpool Bar & Grill does them on its woodfired rotisserie, serving them with herby, garlicky chimichurri sauce.

Fish

Blue mackerel is seared and served with tomato fregola (a type of Sardinian pasta, like big couscous) and smoked basil mayonnaise at Whitewater. What appears to be a simple dish of fried leatherjacket with a spicy tomato sauce at Rockpool Bar & Grill is actually the result of quite a complicated process. First it’s filleted (no mean feat with a leathery skin) then poached in what they call “crazy water” containing garlic and tomatoes, then battered and fried.

Sand whiting is plentiful now, too, and is served at Whitewater with crab and celeriac remoulade and pistou.

Farmed barramundi is available most of the year and is served seared at The Book Kitchen with a wintry salad of fennel, radish and citrus. Or you can have the wild stuff filleted and grilled at Beppi’s, served with olive pâté and lemon.  

Fruit

Several types of mandarins are peaking now. Look for the mandarin sorbet Rockpool Bar & Grill serves alongside its signatures cheesecake. Queensland strawberries are part of a warm rhubarb and almond pudding and, although it might seem early for passionfruit , they adorn the pav there.

Strawberries also feature in Beppi’s crepes, which are flambéed in Grand Marnier. They’re also at The Book Kitchen whipped with mascarpone into a mousse to fill a tart.

Apples and pears are best in winter and they can both be found on the Whitewater dessert menu: apples as a compote with vanilla rice pudding and orange blossom sorbet, while a roasted pear is served with sweet ricotta ravioli and brandy snaps. Also roasting pears is Lucio; he serves a single fruit with a polenta cookie and gingerbread icecream. Beppi’s turns William pears into a semifreddo, serving it with hazelnut custard and a chocolate-coated strawberry.

Blood oranges have started and Blackwater mixes their juice with Grand Marnier for a granita.

Brekkie features lots of seasonal fruits at The Book Kitchen. Passionfruit butter comes with the banana bread and the pear, date and walnut loaf and you can spread your toast with either blood orange marmalade or strawberry and rhubarb jam.

Vegetables

We’re well supplied with greens at this time of year and there’s a fab combo dish at Rockpool Bar & Grill (66 Hunter St, Sydney, Ph 8078 1900). It’s a mix of braised cavolo nero, rapa and silverbeet with a decent hit of chilli and topped with fine tresses of parmesan.

But if you want your greens cold, try the simple cabbage salad there, also with parmesan and a dressing of lemon juice and olive oil. Salad leaves are in good supply, too. Try pale hearts of cos lettuce in the Caesar salad at Whitewater in Manly where they offer the high-protein option of a chicken and sometimes a salmon version.  There’s a good mixed salad at Blackwater also starring cos lettuce teamed with baby truss tomatoes, the only ones worth eating at this time of year, and Ligurian olives, cucumber and red onion.

Cauliflowers are still good and cheap and work a treat at Bondi’s Brown Sugar roasted with barramundi, spinach, chilli and almonds.