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This month, cooks around Australia – professional and otherwise – will set the table in support of children affected by the Syrian conflict. The #CookForSyria Australia campaign follows on from the success of the UK version, which raised more than $350,000 and produced a best-selling book. The month-long initiative invites people from all over Australia to cook for the cause – both at home and in the country’s top restaurants.
“My heart just breaks for the Syrian people,” says Kylie Kwong. “And I remember an amazing thing that Carlo Petrini from Slow Food said last year: ‘We must cook with compassion, but also turn compassion into action.’ This is that action.”
To launch the campaign, on 27 February, Kwong is cooking a Syrian-inspired banquet dinner at Three Blue Ducks in Sydney’s Rosebery, with fellow chefs including Peter Gilmore, of Bennelong and Quay, Paul Carmichael of Momofuku Seiobo, Mat Lindsay of Ester, Luke Powell of LP’s Quality Meats, David Thompson of Long Chim, Ross Lusted of The Bridge Room, Almond Bar sister chefs Carol and Sharon Salloum, plus many more.
But the buck doesn’t stop with the charity dinner. Throughout March, other chefs around the country will add special #CookForSyria dishes to their menus – baharat quail with toasted spelt and tamarind at Firedoor, for instance, and pickled octopus with Aleppo pepper at Restaurant Hubert. Three dollars from each of these #CookForSyria dishes goes straight to UNICEF Australia’s Syria Crisis Appeal for children on behalf of diners.
And it’s not just the big-name chefs who are helping with the fundraising; the campaign calls for people across Australia to host their own #CookForSyria events at home, too. “It’s very important and sets a very good example,” Kwong says. “Hopefully, all of this will inspire a whole lot of other #CookForSyria activity across Australia and the world.”
To donate to the campaign, or to register your event, visit cookforsyria.com.