Why buy it?
Long before 'eat local' became a hashtag, Matthew Evans, Nick Haddow and Ross O’Meara were farming, foraging and fishing (with varying levels of success) around the picturesque plains and coastlines of Tasmania. Here, in their latest, sea-themed cookbook, The Gourmet Farmer Goes Fishing, the trio share the cumulative knowledge they’ve caught along the way. These salt-of-the-earth mates have created a splendid collection of seafood recipes, divided into handy, source-it-yourself sections: From the shore; Reefs and rockpools; Rivers, estuaries and bays; and, The Deep Blue. Open the book to a page at random and chances are you’ll stumble upon a seafood dish you'll want to cook for the whole family.
It's a guide to seafood - featuring molluscs, crustaceans, sea urchins, small fish and their larger cousins - designed to appease both beginners and expert fishing folk alike. Popular (and less sustainable) options like tuna, salmon and prawns, touted “special-occasion food”, do feature in the book, but they sit alongside lesser-known species we should school up on. For environmentally-minded eaters, the lads recommend leatherjacket “a fish with a dodgy name”, latchet “poor man’s flathead”, clams and sardines, among others.
Cookability
It’s a cookbook of quick dinners, lazy weekend lunches and happily humble feasts (abalone excluded!). Big, bold flavours and relatively simple techniques combine to produce modern Australian mainstays, with nods to coast-dwelling cuisines further afield. The recipes are consistent with what we’ve come to know and love from Matt, Nick and Ross.
Must-cook recipes
Fish and chips may seem like a basic dish, but according to Matt, Nick and Ross there are rules… lots of rules. In a recipe titled ‘the definitive fish and chips’, they share the tricks to making bang-on batter, crispy chips and soft, flaky fish. Add to the hit list a weeknight winner, whole baked leatherjacket with wine and herbs, and party snack essential, British fish cakes.
Most surprising dish
There's a "dang, why haven't I done that before" moment when reading the recipe for prawn cocktail: use the prawn shells to infuse oil to make a killer cocktail sauce.
Kitchen wisdom
This tome is bream-ing with trivia-worthy titbits and guidance on cooking with seafood. Introducing their crayfish miso soup, the chaps amusingly counter: “Making good miso is not as simple as it seems. It’s the sort of thing that should be taught in schools, along with other important life skills such as how to boil an egg.”
Ideal for
Seafood lovers, cooks with a conscience, fishing enthusiasts, beachcombers.
Cook the book
1. Braised clams with beer and chorizo
3. Whole baked leatherjacket with wine and herbs
The Gourmet Farmer Goes Fishing by Matthew Evans, Nick Haddow and Ross O’Meara, with photographs by Alan Benson (Murdoch Books, $49.99, hbk).
Fancy more Gourmet Farmer action?
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