Fare exchange
Chefs’ recipes you’ve requested.
HELLO PLEASE Bun cha
THE DOLPHIN HOTEL Trucioli with ’nduja and mussels
TIVOLI ROAD BAKERY Blood plum galettes
BLUE NILE Ethiopian eggplant dip
The Dolphin Hotel’s pasta with mussels and ’nduja is to die for. Would you publish the recipe? Marco Ricci, Leichhardt, NSW
Trucioli with mussels and ’nduja
At The Dolphin Hotel, chef Monty Koludrovic makes a stock with pan-roasted snapper and tomato paste; here we’ve used shop-bought fish stock.
Prep time 25 mins, cook 25 mins (plus cooling)
Serves 4
60 gm crustless day-old Italian bread
80 ml (⅓ cup) olive oil, plus extra to serve
1 kg mussels, scrubbed, debearded
200 ml dry white wine
500 gm trucioli pasta (see note)
1 small bunch (200gm) cavolo nero, thickly sliced
20 gm drained anchovies in oil, finely chopped 80 gm ’nduja, skin removed (see note)
160 ml ( 2/3 cup) tomato passata
200 ml fish stock or water
½ lemon
1 bunch chives, finely chopped
1 Process bread in a food processor to mediumsized crumbs. Sift using a coarse strainer to remove fine crumbs (discard). Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, add breadcrumbs and fry until golden brown (4-6 minutes). Remove from pan and set aside.
2 Heat a large saucepan over high heat. Add mussels and white wine, cover and steam, shaking pan occasionally, until mussels just open (1-2 minutes). Drain, reserving 2 tbsp cooking juices, and set aside until cool enough to handle (1-2 minutes), then remove mussels from shells.
3 Cook pasta in a large saucepan of lightly salted boiling water until al dente (14-15 minutes), adding cavolo nero in the final minute.
4 Meanwhile, stir anchovies in remaining olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until anchovies dissolve (1-2 minutes). Add ’nduja and sauté, breaking it up, until collapsed (1-2 minutes). Add passata, stir for a minute, then add fish stock and bring to the boil. Drain pasta and cavolo nero, add to passata mixture and toss to release starch from pasta and thicken sauce (20-30 seconds). Add mussels and reserved cooking juices, toss to combine and season with black pepper and a squeeze of lemon. Transfer to plates, scatter with chives and fried crumbs, and serve.
Note Trucioli, meaning shavings, is available from select Italian grocers, or online at denigrocer.com. au. If it’s unavailable, substitute large shell-shaped pasta such as lumaconi or conchiglie. ’Nduja, a spicy spreadable Calabrian salami, is available from select delicatessens and simonjohnson.com.
I always go to Hello Please when I visit Brisbane, mostly for the bun cha. Could you ask for the recipe? Jonathan Chen, Byron Bay, NSW
Bun cha
In addition to the pork patties we’ve got here, Hello Please serves this with pork belly that’s been simmered in an aromatic stock, pressed overnight, then pan-fried.
Prep time 30 mins, cook 10 mins (plus cooling)
Serves 4 (pictured p34)
200 gm dried rice vermicelli
80 gm bean sprouts
1 Lebanese cucumber, cut into julienne on a mandolin
1 small carrot, cut into julienne on
a mandolin
¼ (120gm) small daikon, cut into julienne on a mandolin
1 spring onion, thinly sliced
¼ cup (loosely packed) Thai basil
¼ cup (loosely packed) coriander
¼ cup (loosely packed) mint
1 red birdseye chilli, thinly sliced
Lime cheeks, to serve
Nuoc mam cham
125 ml (½ cup) chicken stock
50 ml (2½ tbsp) fish sauce
30 ml (1½ tbsp) lime juice
25 gm caster sugar
2 tsp finely chopped ginger
Pork patties
500 gm coarsely minced pork
60 ml (¼ cup) sriracha sauce
50 ml (2½ tbsp) fish sauce
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 For nuoc mam cham, bring ingredients to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, then remove from heat and stand to cool (15-20 minutes).
2 For pork patties, mix pork, sriracha and fish sauce in a large bowl by hand until well combined and sticky. Roll into 16 balls and place on a tray lined with baking paper, pressing to flatten slightly. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and fry patties, turning once, until lightly charred and cooked through (3-4 minutes each side).
3 Blanch noodles in a saucepan of boiling salted water until almost tender (1-2 minutes). Drain, refresh in cold water and drain well. Divide noodles among bowls and add a pile each of bean sprouts, cucumber, carrot, daikon and
spring onion. Top with pork patties, dress with nuoc mam cham, finish with herbs, chilli, lime to taste and serve with remaining nuoc mam cham. The blood plum galettes made with spelt pastry at Tivoli Road Bakery are knockout. I’d love to make them. Patricia Jones, Fitzroy, Vic
Blood plum galettes
Prep time 40 mins, cook 30 mins (plus chilling)
Makes 6 (pictured p35)
7 (500gm) small blood plums, halved, pitted
25 gm caster sugar
½ vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
Finely grated rind of ½ lemon
1 egg
1 egg yolk
75 gm (½ cup) raw sugar
Thickened cream, to serve
Spelt pastry
250 gm (1⅔ cups) wholemeal spelt flour (see note)
90 gm white spelt flour (see note)
225 gm cold butter, cut into 2cm cubes
120 gm crème fraîche
1 For pastry, sieve flours and ¾ tsp fine sea salt into a bowl, toss butter in flour to coat and tip out onto a bench. Roll butter into flour with a rolling pin until thin streaks form. Scrape edges of mixture into the centre with a pastry scraper, then roll until thinner ribbons of butter form in mixture. Add crème fraîche, cutting into the mixture with the pastry scraper until a dough just forms (small lumps of butter will remain). Press together firmly, wrap in plastic wrap, press into a disc and place in freezer until firm (30 minutes).
2 Divide dough into 6 balls and roll each between 2 sheets of baking paper to 17cm-diameter rounds, then place in freezer, still between paper, until firm (20 minutes). Remove paper and trim pastry to 16cm-diameter rounds, transfer to a tray lined with baking paper, wrap in plastic wrap and place in freezer again until firm (20 minutes).
3 Cut 8 plum halves into 4 wedges each. Combine caster sugar, vanilla bean and seeds, and lemon rind in a bowl. Add plum wedges and halves, and toss gently to coat.
4 Remove pastry from freezer, place a plum half in the centre of each round and surround with 5 wedges (there will be spare), thin sides facing outwards, and leaving a 2cm border. When pastry just becomes pliable, fold it over the thin edges of plums, making 6 folds. Refrigerate until firm (25-30 minutes).
5 Preheat oven to 180C. Whisk together egg, yolk and a pinch of salt. Brush pastry with eggwash and scatter with raw sugar. Bake galettes until they start to turn golden (20 minutes). Reduce oven to 170C and bake until golden brown and plums are tender (5-10 minutes). Serve with cream.
Note Spelt flour is available from select supermarkets and health-food shops.
I’d love the recipe for the eggplant dip the wonderful Fatuma Tikuye serves at Blue Nile in Blacktown. Helena Rosebery, Annandale, NSW
Ethiopian eggplant dip Prep time 15 mins, cook 1 hr 10 mins (plus cooling)
Serves 4
2 large eggplants (1kg each)
1 onion, finely chopped
1½ tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
3 garlic cloves, crushed with a mortar
and pestle
1½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tbsp plain yoghurt
1 long green chilli, finely chopped
Pinch of hot paprika, torn coriander and mountain bread (see note), to serve
1 Preheat oven to 220C. Place eggplant on a baking tray lined with foil and roast until blackened (50 minutes to 1 hour). Set aside until cool enough to handle (15-20 minutes), then halve lengthways and scoop out flesh (discard skin).
2 Meanwhile, sauté onion in olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until lightly golden (6-8 minutes). Add garlic and stir until fragrant (1 minute). Add eggplant and turmeric, stir until excess moisture has evaporated (2-3 minutes), then remove from heat and cool (10-15 minutes). 3 Blend eggplant mixture and yoghurt in a food processor until almost smooth and season to taste. Spoon into a serving dish, drizzle with olive oil, scatter with green chilli, hot paprika and coriander, and serve with mountain bread. Note Mountain bread is available from supermarkets and delicatessens.