ROBYN MALCOLM

One of New Zealand television’s best-loved actors on eating baby food, mastering the croquembouche and Southland cheese rolls.

I spent the first half of my childhood in a small town in the north of the South Island called Motueka.

I’ve got really strong food memories of Motueka. My father used to fish every weekend and I grew up eating a lot of snapper, herring and cod, plus pāua [abalone] and scallops.

When I had kids, I decided to taste all of their baby food.

I just thought to myself after trying it, “Why are we feeding them this bland shit? And why do we assume they can’t handle different flavours?” When Charlie [my son] was six months old, I’d let him try oysters, sardines, blue cheese or a lick of balsamic vinegar and lemon juice... Then when he was three, I remember him saying to me, “Mummy I just want to go outside, lie down and have it rain anchovies,” because he just loved anchovies so much. Now my kids are super adventurous eaters, and they are always up for something, which I just love.

Recently my son made us Snoop Dogg’s fried chicken

and it was a seriously great recipe, I couldn’t believe it. It’s a southern-style fried chicken and it’s done the standard way, marinated with buttermilk, but the batter has crushed up potato chips in it to make it extra crunchy.

I once made a croquembouche for my son’s 10th birthday.

We had to put it all together with the strands of toffee, and it was great but fairly challenging. We took it to the beach. It was so funny when he was running up the beach so excited saying, “Where’s my croquembouche?” And I just thought, “what kind of wankers are we?” But I was really proud of it.

When I had kids, I decided to taste all of their baby food. I just thought to myself after trying it, “Why are we feeding them this bland shit?”

I love eating out, I probably do it too much.

My favourite restaurants change all the time. Peter Gordon recently opened a restaurant and cooking school on the waterfront, called Homeland. It was built for a Covid world, and most of the restaurant is outside and it’s an absolute celebration of New Zealand food, so you get creamed pāua on toast, amazing lamb and seafood. Also, the breakfast at Orphans Kitchen on Ponsonby Road is excellent. They’ve even got a Southland cheese roll on the menu, which is an old school New Zealand snack. You get white bread, Maggi onion soup powder and mix in loads of cheddar cheese. One side of the bread is buttered, then you spread the mixture on and bake it. They’re delicious.

When it comes to travelling in New Zealand, I love skiing at Lake Ōhau.

Sadly the township got burnt last year.

It’s a small ski field, and you have to work a bit harder to get there, but there’s fewer people. Once you’re at the top of that mountain, you look straight across to Aoraki Mount Cook and all the mountains in the Southern Alps, which is really amazing.

When I used to travel a lot for work, I stayed by myself in hotel rooms.

It wouldn’t matter where I was, I’d always put on whatever food channel they had. When you’re on your own and it’s all a bit tragic as Nancy no-mates, if you’ve got a cooking show in the background, it’s like someone’s cooking in the kitchen. Rick Stein, James Martin and Nigella would all keep me company.

While I’m travelling I love talking to locals once I arrive somewhere.

I tend not to plan as I’m hopeless with researching before, so when I get there I just start talking to people. We’re so overloaded with apps these days, sometimes you forget to chat to people. They’ll say, “Go to this café and eat this,” which will lead you somewhere, and then if you like it, you ask the café owner where they’d recommend. I love that element of discovery. My other family members are organised to the minute and I drive them nuts but I love surprises.

The Kiwi box office hit of 2020 This Town starring Robyn Malcolm is now available to rent or buy on Apple TV and Google Play in Australia.