Bill Granger’s Australian food.

“IF YOU’RE FEELING FANCY AND OWN A MANDOLINE (THE WORLD’S MOST TERRIFYING KITCHEN INSTRUMENT) THEN USE IT HERE TO GIVE THE POTATOES A LOVELY LACY FEEL.”

I HAVE ALWAYS believed Australia serves the sort of food that brings people together – over coffee, over communal tables, over all-day menus – and makes us all feel good.

There’s no ‘set menu’ for Australia. We’re up for anything and open to change. We thrive on sushi one day, pasta the next, fish and chips by the sea, octopus marinated Greek style, yum cha on Sunday mornings.

Choosing the 100-odd recipes for this book has made me take time to think about those magical elements that clicked all those years ago, and how my own particular menu of ‘Australian food’ came about and evolved. I stand by what I said about this in 2002: the best restaurants in the world have a strong sense of place. They belong where they are.

Images and text from Australian Food by Bill Granger (Murdoch Books, $49.99). Photography by Mikkel Vang.

POTATO & FETA FRITTERS WITH SMOKED SALMON & DILL OIL

SERVES 4

500g desiree or other starchy potatoes 1 small onion

2 eggs

2 tbs chopped mint

3 tbs crumbled feta

3 tbs plain flour

1/3 cup (80ml) light-flavoured oil, to fry

DILL OIL

2 cups loosely packed (50g) dill,

finely chopped

100ml olive oil

Zest and juice of 1/2 lemon

TO SERVE

8 eggs

125g sour cream

1 tbs ground sumac

250g smoked salmon or gravlax 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Peel and grate the potatoes and onion into a colander, stir in a little salt and leave to drain for 20 minutes. Squeeze out any moisture with your hands.

Beat the eggs lightly and mix with the potatoes and onion. Stir in the mint, feta and flour. Season well with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Heat the oil in a large frypan. Add 2 tbs fritter mixture to the pan and squash lightly to make a 7cm pancake. Cook 2-3 fritters at a time, depending on the size of your pan (this mixture should make 8-10 fritters). Cook on both sides until golden brown.

To make the dill oil, blend or whisk all the ingredients.

To poach the eggs, bring 5cm of water to the boil in a frying pan. Turn off the heat and immediately add the eggs. To minimise spreading, break the egg directly into the water, opening the two halves of the shell at the surface so the egg slides in. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and leave undisturbed for about 3 minutes. The eggs are cooked when the whites are opaque. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.

Serve the fritters topped with a little sour cream, poached eggs, a sprinkle of sumac and a drizzle of dill oil. Serve with salmon or gravlax and lemon wedges.

GRILLED PORK CHOPS & CASHEW SATAY WITH PINEAPPLE & CUCUMBER RELISH SERVES 4

Begin this recipe at least 12 hours ahead.

1 tbs each sesame oil and kecap manis 1 tsp each ground cumin, ground

coriander and ground turmeric

1 tsp agave syrup or sugar 1 lemongrass stalk, white part only,

bruised and roughly chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

2cm piece fresh ginger, peeled, grated 4 x 260g each pork chops

CASHEW SATAY

120g raw cashews

1/2 cup (125ml) coconut milk

1 tsp each ground cumin, ground

coriander and ground turmeric

2 tbs kecap manis

1 tsp tamarind puree

PINEAPPLE & CUCUMBER RELISH

1 eschalot, finely chopped

1 Lebanese cucumber, diced

100g fresh pineapple, diced

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbs rice wine vinegar

Mix together the sesame oil, kecap manis, cumin, coriander, turmeric, agave, lemongrass, garlic and ginger in a non-reactive dish to make a marinade. Add the pork chops, stir to coat and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least 12 hours.

To make the cashew satay, preheat the oven to 180˚C and roast the cashews on a baking tray for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. While still warm, mix in a blender with the other ingredients to make a smooth sauce. Leave to cool and then store in an airtight container in the fridge if necessary until needed.

To make the pineapple and cucumber relish, stir together all the ingredients and keep in the fridge until needed.

Heat a barbecue until hot and ready to cook on. Lift the pork chops out of the marinade and cook for 4-5 minutes on each side until charred and cooked through.