Challenge for the experts
MasterChef judges solve everyday kitchen dilemmas so that we all score, writes Dan Stock
Turning the tables, we came up with some everyday kitchen challenges for Matt Preston, Gary Mehigan and George Calombaris to see how they solve them.
They’ve cooked for Heston on a salt lake in Victoria and run around the Tsukiji fish markets in Tokyo.
They made a veg pledge with Yotam Ottolenghi and have faced off in immunity challenges with some of Australia’s best chefs.
Now, there’s just a handful of cooks left in the MasterChef kitchen, and, by the end of the week, one will walk away with the crown and join a select group that includes Julie Goodwin, Adam Liaw and last year’s winner, Elena Duggan.
In the same spirit of turning the tables, we came up with some everyday kitchen dilemma challenges for George, Gary and Matt Preston to see how they solve them.
Now it’s over to you to judge the judges.
Challenge: 30-MINUTE FAMILY FEAST
“One of my all-time family favourites is san choy bow,” George says. These fresh lettuce cups filled with mince and topped with fresh herbs are the go-to quick-and-easy dinner in the Calombaris house. Fry off the mince with onion and garlic, along with a dash of soy and mirin, which is used to fill the lettuce cups served to the side. “Finish with some yoghurt and chilli sauce on top, with loads of chopped fresh coriander at the end. Absolutely delicious!”
For Gary, it’s also an Asianinspired quick fix – fried rice and dumplings. He suggests pre-cooking the rice the day before and leaving uncovered in the fridge so “it dries out and stays separate when you wokfry it”. Gary loads up his rice with Chinese sausage (lap cheong), ginger, garlic, egg, leftover chicken, shredded beans – anything that’s in the fridge, really – all seasoned with a splash of soy. “Don’t be afraid to give the rice a little char for flavour and a touch of hondashi powder and a splash of good fish sauce are my secret weapons.”
He also suggests making batches of dumplings on the weekend and freezing them. Easily defrosted and steamed, combined with the fried rice they make for an easy midweek Chinese banquet.
Matt Preston, meanwhile, has been in his kitchen perfecting more than 100 recipes that can all be cooked in 32 minutes – the average time we apparently spend cooking dinner each night.
Old-school sweet’n’sour pork meatballs, chow mein and “resurrected rissoles” are a few of the hits he promises in his next cookbook (out in time for Christmas, naturally).
Challenge: SOMETHING TO PUT IN THE LUNCHBOX
“I’d love to tell you that my healthy, sugar-free, paleo slice with goji berries is what my kids would kill for in their lunchboxes but it’s actually a couple of pieces of my wife’s hedgehog that is their favourite lunchbox treat,” Matt says.
“I know it’s daggy but this was voted by my brood as being better than the home-baked chocolate cake, my decadent choc chip cookies, any muffin or that oat and golden syrup slice that I make … not that I’m totally bitter about that.”
“This will keep George happy, but my daughter loves spanakopita,” Gary says.
He makes a traditional version – spinach, onions with feta and ricotta, perhaps with a few pine nuts – and always makes extra for afternoon munchies for the rest of the family.
George’s kids snack on hummus, which he packs with carrot and celery sticks.
He suggests batch-making bits for the boxes, to make mornings easier. “Batches of mini muffins for freezing are great, taking one out each day. It’s a good feeling knowing you’ve made it, you know what’s in it, and it’s always accessible,” he says.