Serves 4 as a side
Prep time 15 min
Cook time 10 min

Ingredients
     4 ears of fresh corn, husked
     3 tbsp Olivado Organic E.V. Olive oil
     1 tsp chilli powder
     Salt and pepper to taste
     4 tbsp plain Greek yogurt 
     ½ avocado, mashed until smooth
     Salt and pepper to taste
     ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
     1/4 cup fresh coriander, chopped
     2 tbsp mayo
     ½ tbsp chipotle sauce
     2 tbsp dried olive crumbs (optional)
     1 lime cut into wedges

Method
 
Brush each ear of corn with olive oil.

In a small bowl, mix together the chilli powder and a pinch of salt and pepper. Set aside.

Combine the Greek yogurt with the avocado. Set aside.

Combine the mayo and chipotle. Set aside

Heat BBQ or grill on med/high heat and grill the corn for approximately 10 minutes, until nicely browned.

​When ready to serve, cover the corn with the Greek yogurt/avo mixture and sprinkle on the chilli powder mix, cheese and coriander. Drizzle over the chipotle mayo and sprinkle with olive crumbs.
 
Serve with lime wedges on the side.
 
 

The tastiest salad ever...This is one of my all time favourites - the dish that started my career.

Serves 4 (entrée size) 
Prep time 10 min
Cook time 10 min
 
Ingredients
     1/4 cup rice- roasted until golden, then ground.
     400g minced chicken
     1/2 cup water
     Black pepper to taste
     1 cup mint- finely sliced
     1 cup coriander- finely sliced
     2-3 dried chillies- ground
     4 kaffir lime leaves-finely sliced
     2 tbsp fish sauce
     1 shallot, finely diced
     ½ red onion diced
     Juice 1 lemon
     Juice ½ lime

To Serve
     10 lettuce leaves
     15 beans- blanched
     ½ cucumber- de-seeded and sliced.
      
Method
​
Dry roast the rice in a small saucepan until golden. Remove and set aside to cool. When cool grind into a fine powder in a mortar & pestle.

Place minced chicken into a large saucepan on a medium/low heat, add the water and gently simmer for 4-5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Season with black pepper. You want the chicken to almost stew.

As soon as the chicken is cooked remove the pan from the heat and add remaining ingredients, including ground rice. Check seasoning and serve with cucumber, beans and lettuce.

Serves 4 - 6 as a side
Prep time 15 min plus soaking time
Cook time 5 - 10 min


Ingredients
     250g chana dal
     4 dried red chillies
     1 tsp fennel seeds
     1 tsp cumin seeds
     1 ½ onions – diced
     2cm knob of ginger – sliced finely
     1 clove of garlic - smashed
     ½ cup curry leaves – sliced
     salt and pepper to taste
     1 cup Olivado Avocado oil for frying

Serve with tomato chutney.
 
Method
 
Place the chana dal into a bowl with the chillies, fennel and cumin and cover with water.
Let steep for at least 3 hours or overnight if you have the time. Drain into a sieve discarding the water. Remove about ¼ cup of the dal and set aside. Place the remaining dal, chillies and seeds into a blender and blend into a coarse paste.
 
Transfer the paste to a bowl and add the remaining ingredients including the reserved dal. Combine with slightly wet hands to shape a golf ball size` portion into a round disc. These are your vada.
 
Heat a small fry-pan and add the Avocado oil. When oil is hot, carefully add the vada and cook until golden (about 4 minutes) turn and continue to cook until golden. Remove and drain onto a paper towel. Season with salt.
 
 

Quick, easy and super tasty mid week chicken dinner - kids will love it.

​Serves 2 to 4
Prep time 5 min plus marinating time
Cook time approx 25 min

Ingredients
     1 tbsp Olivado Avocado Oil
     2 tbsp honey
     4 cloves garlic, crushed with the flat blade of a knife
     4 tbsp soy sauce
     Salt and freshly ground black pepper
     4 large chicken thighs, skinned and boned 

Method
Place the oil, honey, garlic, soy sauce, salt and pepper in a shallow dish and mix well
Add the chicken and turn to coat, rubbing the marinade into the flesh. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, turning once during the marinating period.

Preheat the oven grill to hot and line the grill pan with tinfoil.

Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Reserve the marinade. Place the chicken under the grill and cook, turning from time to time and basting with the marinade every 5 minutes for 25 minutes or until cooked through and browned on all sides.

Remove from the oven, rest for a few minutes then cut into pieces if desired.

Serve with a side salad of julienned chilli, ginger, green capsicum, spring onions, mint and coriander, dressed with a touch of oil and soy sauce. You can add a side of rice if you're feeling hungry.

These oysters are sure to put a smile on your face. The superb ponzu and ginger sauce takes them next level, and will keep you coming back for more.   

Serves 4 -6
Prep time 10
 
Ingredients
 
     8 tbsp ponzu sauce
     ½ spring onion, thinly sliced
     4 tsp grated ginger
     4 tsp mirin
     2 tsp toasted sesame oil
     ½ tsp salt
     24 fresh oysters, opened, cleaned and chilled on ice
     4 tbsp pickled ginger (optional)
 
Method
 
Combine the ponzu, spring onion, ginger, mirin, sesame oil and salt in a small bowl.
 
Serve oysters in the half shell and drizzle with the sauce. Garnish with a little pickled ginger.
 
Top tip
 
This dipping sauce is also great with dumplings and keeps in the fridge for up to a week, so prepare it early, adding the spring onions just before serving.

Serves 4
Made in 40 minutes
Gluten free

Ingredients

     Paste
     3cm knob ginger, peeled
     3 cloves garlic, peeled
     2 green chillies, cut in half with seeds removed
     ½ tsp salt
 
     4 tomatoes
     1 onion, peeled and sliced
     1 tbsp butter
     1 tbsp ground cumin
     1 tbsp ground coriander
     ½ tsp turmeric
     2 Kaipara kumara -red, peeled and diced
     400g can coconut milk
     350g tarakihi, cut into 3cm pieces


Using a mortar and pestle, mash the 4 paste ingredients together to form a paste. Set the paste aside.

Blend the tomatoes and onion together in the bowl of a food processor until the mixture is smooth.

Heat the butter in a large fry pan and add the tomato mixture. Fry the mixture until most of the liquid has evaporated, then add the paste and cook until it is fragrant – about 3 minutes.

Add the spices, stir to combine and cook for a further 2 minutes. Add the kumara and coconut milk. Reduce the heat and cook gently for 20 minutes, until the kumara is almost cooked. The sauce should thicken naturally.

​Add the fish to the curry sauce and cover the pan. Cook the fish until it is just beginning to flake. Serve with a squeeze of lemon and boiled rice. 

Serves 4
Prep & cook time: 45min
Gluten free

Ingredients
     1kg Kaipara kumara - red, gold, and orange
     1 red onion, peeled and cut into wedges
     1 red capsicum, thickly sliced
     3 tbsp Olivado olive oil
     2 tbsps lemon juice
     2 cloves garlic, crushed
     2 tsps ground cumin
     2 tsps ground paprika
     Salt and freshly ground black pepper
     2 tbsps chopped parsley

Feta & Lemon dressing
     3 tbsps Olivado olive oil
     2 tbsps lemon juice
     100g feta, crumbled
     Salt and freshly ground pepper

​Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
Line a large oven dish with baking paper.

Cut the kumara into wedges and place in a large bowl with the onion and capsicum. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, cumin and paprika - mix. Season to taste.

Bake the vegetables in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes until the vegetables are golden and tender. Set the vegetables aside to cool, then place them in a large bowl.
To make the dressing, combine the olive oil, lemon juice and feta in a bowl and season to taste. Drizzle the dressing over the vegetables and toss gently to combine.
Sprinkle with the chopped parsley.

Serves 4
Prep time 2 h (including marinating time)
Cook time 15 min

​I love this dish; it has a little bit of everything. Anything with South East Asian flair, loads of fresh herbs, a fantastic dressing and some spicy meat has got to be a winner. Bun cha, as the Vietnamese call it, is a great dish to take on picnics as the meatballs are just as good cold. Pack everything in separate containers and and you are ready to go.

Ingredients

Meatballs
     2 tbsp sugar
     5 tbsp water
     500g ground pork
     ½ red onion, finely diced
     3 tbsp fish sauce
     1 hot red chilli, finely diced (optional)
     1⁄4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
 
Noodle Salad
     2 tbsp fish sauce
     2 tbsp rice vinegar
     1 tsp brown sugar
     1 1⁄2 cups water
     1⁄2 tsp. minced or grated garlic
     1 red Thai chilli, minced
     ½ green papaya or green apple or green mango, cut into matchsticks
     350g thin rice noodles, cooked as directed
     1⁄2 head red leaf lettuce, torn into small pieces
     2 good handfuls of coriander, mint, Vietnamese mint, Thai basil
     1 green mango, grated

Method
Combine the sugar with 3 tablespoons of the water in a saucepan over a medium-high heat. Cook until a dark brown caramel forms, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the remaining water, swirling the pan. If the sugar clumps a bit just swirl the pan and it will melt again. Cool a little.
 
In a large mixing bowl, combine the pork, red onion, fish sauce, caramel sauce, chilli, if using, and pepper. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 1½ hours.
 
To make the dressing, simply combine the fish sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, water, garlic, chilli and green papaya, apple or mango in a large mixing bowl. Set aside to let the flavours infuse.
 
Remove the pork from the fridge and shape into small balls, 20 in all. Heat your grill to high. Brush the meatballs with a touch of peanut oil then grill or barbecue until fully cooked and slightly charred, 4 minutes each side.
 
Divide the noodles among 4 bowls and spoon over some of the dressing. Place the meatballs to one side. Place the lettuce, herbs and mango to another side and serve with extra dressing on the side.
 

Serves 6
Prep time 20
Cook time 4 hours + resting

This lamb is tender, so tender you can pull it apart with a couple of spoons. It’s the highlight of any Indian feast, and best eaten with Bombay potatoes, cauliflower and potato curry, naan and some dhal. This recipe is dedicated to a great old mate of mine. Arun it was you and your family who got me into spicy food, so it is only fair that I give back a little something . . . miss you, bro.
 
Ingredients
     1.8–2 kg lamb shoulder
     2 tbsp olive oil
     2 tbsp coriander seeds, toasted and ground
     2 tsp chilli powder or to taste
     2 tsp ground turmeric
     2 tsp garam masala
     3–6 green chillies, pounded into a paste
     4 cm knob of ginger, pounded into a paste
     5 whole cloves
     2 cinnamon sticks
     1 bulb garlic, unpeeled and sliced in half
     salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
 
Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 200ºC.
2. Place the lamb in a roasting tray. Make a few cuts into the fat side of the lamb with a knife and rub the oil all over the meat.
3. Place the coriander seeds, chilli powder, turmeric, masala, chillies and ginger in a small bowl and combine.
4. Add the cloves, cinnamon sticks and garlic to the roasting tray, rub the lamb all over with the spice mix and season with salt and pepper. Add ½ cup water to the roasting tray then cover the tray with tinfoil and place in the oven.
5. Turn the oven down to 170°C and cook for 4 hours. The smell will be amazing and the lamb will fall apart.
6. Remove the lamb from the oven and discard the cloves and whole cinnamon sticks. Place on a chopping board, cover with tinfoil, then a tea towel, and leave to rest for 10 minutes before pulling it apart with two forks.

Serves: 4  
Cooking time: 40 mins

This dish was taught to me by a true legend and inspiration Rick Stein at his place in NSW - Bannisters by the sea. It takes your taste buds on an incredible journey simply by using all the flavour available from the prawn shells - it really is next level tasty! 

Ingredients
     60ml Olivado olive oil
     2 cloves of garlic, no need to peel
     12 medium raw prawns, peeled, shells and heads reserved
     2 tbsp tomato paste
     300ml water
     350 linguine
     Salt
     60g squid rings and tentacles
     16 mussels in the shell, scrubbed
     1/4 tsp chilli flakes
     2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes, halved
     10 turns of black peppermill
     Handful of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped.

Method

1. Heat half the oil in a pan, add the garlic and prawn heads and shells and fry over heat for 5 minutes, turning them from time to time.
2. Add the tomato paste and water, simmer with the lid on for 10 minutes, then use a stick blender to blitz the mixture. Pass through a sieve and reserve.
3. Cook the linguine in plenty of salted boiling water for 10 minutes or until al dente.
4. Wipe out the pan and then add the rest of the olive oil and fry the squid and prawns over a high heat for 2 minutes. Add the strained prawn and tomato stock, then the mussels, chilli flakes and cherry tomatoes. Bring to the boil with the lid on and boil rapidly for 4 minutes until the mussels have opened. (Discard any that don’t open.)
5. Remove the lid and if necessary reduce the liquor to a sauce consistency, then season with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and pepper.
6. Add the well-drained pasta along with the parsley and toss together well. Serve immediately