Gourmet Traveller August 2019

It’s a double celebration this month: two great cuisines, two vibrant nations, loads of inspiration. Our beautiful new cookbook, Italian, is a collection of more than 100 of our favourite Italian recipes from leading chefs and the GT food team. In beloved classics and regional specialties – many with an Australian twist – expect big flavours and plenty of inspiration for meals to share. Find Italian where all good books are sold and at magshop.com.au (Bauer Media Books, $59.99, hbk, out 5 August). A similar generosity of spirit runs through this month’s special Chinese issue. From yum cha to hotpot, Peking duck to sang choi bau, the Chinese table is communal and joyful. The Australian-Chinese table, meanwhile, has a long and delicious history, full of bold characters and saucy anecdotes. Among the risk-takers…

Mosel river, Germany; Helen Anderson, travel editor The tiny, legendary Bernkasteler Doctor vineyard above the fairytale village of Bernkastel produces some of the finest riesling in the world, a highlight of a Crystal river cruise along the Mosel. @handersonglobal Maxwell Food Centre, Singapore; David Matthews, senior editor The hawker halls of Singapore provide new opportunities for exploration at every turn. When in doubt, follow the queues. @matthematical Mercado Central, Cádiz, Spain; Fiona Donnelly, Queensland editor Colourful displays of local fruit and vegetables, beautifully arranged stands of seafood. The central market in Cádiz is a total tonic. @fiona_donnelly…

LES LUXFORD writer Lucky country, p80 “Australia has the best Chinese food outside Asia,” says Les Luxford as he surveys the history of Chinese food in Australia and reflects on its significance to the national table. Luxford is a former food critic and current film producer and director, and has worked in Hong Kong and China. Fun fact? “The ALP campaign that saw Gough Whitlam come to power was planned at [Sydney restaurant] Tai Ping’s tables,” says Luxford. FUCHSIA DUNLOP author Life of spice, p74 Fuchsia Dunlop has spent nearly 25 years cooking Chinese food, but her passion lies with the heat and spice of Sichuan cuisine. “The food I tasted in Sichuan was more exciting and more delicious than any food I’d previously encountered,” Dunlop recalls. She went to the southwestern province as a…

GNOCCO FRITTO WITH MORTADELLA MOUSSE, Lamshed’s Newcomer Lamshed’s is all about fine cuisine in relaxed surroundings. Gnocco fritto topped with mortadella mousse is a decadent way to kick things off. 27 Bentham St, ACT. GARETH MEYER, ACT EDITOR WESTERN AUSTRALIAN MARRON WITH YELLOW CURRY, Cloudstreet As part of the opening menu at his new Singaporean fine diner, ex-Sydneysider Rishi Naleendra mashes together his Sri Lankan heritage and WA’s most-loved shellfish to delicious effect. An essential new address for any Singapore eating itinerary. Cloudstreet, 84 Amoy St, Singapore. MAX VEENHUYZEN, WESTERN AUSTRALIA EDITOR HOT CHIP BUTTY WITH CURRY SAUCE, The Old Fitzroy Hotel Thick-cut chips, sliced white, salted butter, tap beer and sunshine. Simple pleasures, enhanced by extras, of which the curry sauce, complete with fried curry leaves is a clear winner. Chef Nicholas Hill getting…

From living walls of Mount Wellington ferns in the reception lounge to bonsai in the bathrooms, olive-green velvet sofas to glossy emerald herringbone tiles, Moss feels like an enchanted forest. “We wanted to bring the Tasmanian wilderness to guests, in all its shapes and shades,” says hotel general manager and “frustrated gardener” Rod Black, with watering can in hand. “This is a hotel that’s alive and growing, literally and thematically, and I love that.” The new boutique hotel’s first 20 rooms at 39 Salamanca Place occupy a storied Georgian-era warehouse at the heart of dockside Hobart. Walls were stripped back, says Black, to expose convict-cut sandstone walls, and Tasmanian architecture studio Circa Morris Nunn has retained original rafters and tin roofs and installed glass atriums to span the building’s original and newer…

You started your career by training with a master dumpling chef. What was that like? Thirty years ago, it was incredibly tough for a woman in this industry, especially for someone petite like me. I had to constantly prove myself through my skills and my willingness to do any role. You were expected to be able to do anything the men could do. This included moving incredibly heavy sacks of rice, boxes of produce and working the woks, which physically is one of the tougher jobs in the kitchen. Skills-wise, learning to perfect the shape of each dumpling at the speed needed to produce enough for service is always challenging. You’ve been working at Bodhi for more than 16 years. Do you remember any dishes from its first vegan yum cha…