For a long time, industry forces have promoted meat as the rockstar;as a result, too much attention has been given to the animal protein, and only diehard fans have remembered the vegetables on bass and the mushrooms on drums. After My Year Without Meat I realised that diet is an orchestra made up of so many different foods. You can decide if meat is your strings section, or the rarely used cor anglais or triangle. It depends on how you want to conduct your life.
We are at a point in our history when there has never been so much meat around us. Coles fired its first salvo in the supermarket price war with $1 milk. There was so little in it for the dairy industry they took their bat and ball and went to China, with the offer of lots of powdered milk. Now, local cheesemakers are struggling to find enough milk to make their cheddar. Another shot was fired with $5-a-kilogram beef mince. When the cost of an animal at market is around $5 a kilogram complete with guts, hide, bones and tail, you can see this is not sustainable. But to have meat offered at below the price of production lowers expectations and demeans all the social values around eating meat so much, that it transforms the way we perceive meat. With so much of it about at such low cost, I sometimes have a vision of humans being force-fed meat through a funnel, like French geese getting fattened for foie gras.
Once it is understood that at the heart of every mouthful of meat there is the forced, traumatic death of an animal, then we have no other option than to make important choices about what we eat. Once people like you make this connection, many choose the path of vegetarianism. That, for many, is the only ethical path. I have witnessed the perfect death of an animal, an assassin’s bullet, coming from nowhere. ‘The light gleams an instant, then it’s night once more,’ said Irish nihilist playwright Samuel Beckett. Meat from these animals tastes different. It tastes very good. I have decided to continue to eat meat. But not much of it. Just the best. Meat from people like the Kumnicks, from Vicki Jones, Lauren Mathers, Tammi Jonas. Fish from the local fishers. Oysters from blokes like Shane Buckley. It is because when it comes to what sort of meat we eat, if any at all, we have a choice. We have a choice over the life we live. Farm animals don’t have that choice.
My Recipes
Sometimes during My Year Without Meat, my body would tell me what it wanted. ‘You really should eat some spinach and brown rice,’ it would say. So I made it. ‘Tonight you should eat some pulses and greens.’ So I would. Following are a handful of recipes for dishes that I cooked during that period. Some of them are really good for you. Some are just packed with ridiculous amounts of butter. All are really delicious.
MUSHROOM PÁTÉ
This is really good with pinot noir.
100 g butter or 100 ml extra virgin olive oil
½ onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
200 g mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon each of fresh rosemary and thyme leaves
salt and pepper, to taste
100 ml white wine
60 g sourdough breadcrumbs
Serves 4
Melt the butter or oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5–10 minutes or until golden. Add the carrot and cook for a further 10 minutes or until soft. Add the mushrooms, herbs, salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes or until the mushrooms are soft. Add the white wine and cook for a further 5 minutes to evaporate the alcohol. Add the breadcrumbs and stir.
Remove from heat and allow to cool a little. Place in a kitchen blender and blend to a smooth puree. Serve in a dish with slices of baguette, crackers or crudités.
BROAD BEAN PUREE
If you can be bothered, use twice as many broad beans, blanch them, double pod them by peeling the skin from the bean, then cook as below. The skin can be bitter but there is a lot of goodness in that skin.
100 ml extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
400 g broad beans
salt and pepper, to taste
20 ml balsamic vinegar
Serves 4
Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and fry for a minute or so. Add the broad beans, salt and pepper and stir. Cook for 5–10 minutes or until the beans are cooked. Add the balsamic vinegar. Remove from heat and allow to cool a little. Place in a kitchen blender and blend to a smooth puree. Serve with toasted slices of sourdough.
CAPSICUM AND CASHEW DIP
A simple raw food dip that is really good spread on lettuce leaves and rolled up, then washed down with cold beer. The addition of a tinned chipotle chilli changes the story and makes a dip with a touch of heat.
1 red capsicum, chopped
200 g cashews
pinch salt
60 ml extra virgin olive oil
Serves 4
Place all the ingredients into a kitchen blender and blend until smooth. Serve as a dip or as a sauce for other vegetables.
TUSCAN BEAN PUREE
You know when a friend unexpectedly drops in for a glass of wine and you have no food in the house? There’s a limp carrot and half a tin of dog food in the fridge and a cold bottle of verdehlo. This will solve that hospitality issue. It is so simple but bloody delicious.
1 tin cannellini beans, drained
50 ml extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
pinch salt
Serves 4
Place all ingredients in a kitchen blender and blend until smooth. Serve with crudités (not a limp carrot) or crackers.
MISO BUTTER
When you want something decadent with enough nutrition to justify the amount of fat you’re mounting on your baked potato, hot carrot salad or sweet corn, then consider making some miso butter. This is really good to make in the Thermomix, if you have one, as it is so light. Michael Ryan of Provenance in Beechworth does the best version—his is smoked. It’s amazing.
200 g unsalted butter, slightly softened
75 g miso
Simply mix the two together until blended. Lay out on cling film and roll up. Store in the fridge and cut off slices as needed. Will keep for several weeks.
CHILLED ASPARAGUS SOUP
Delicious summer soup that is perfect with a little chilled sherry.
30 g butter or 30 ml extra virgin olive oil
2 bunches fresh asparagus, washed, trimmed, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
600 ml hot goat’s milk or vegetable stock
goat’s fromage frais to serve
extra virgin olive oil to serve
Serves 4
Melt the butter or oil in a heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Sauté the asparagus in the pan for 5–10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the goat’s milk or stock and simmer very, very gently for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Blend until smooth. Chill. Serve in bowls with a tiny dollop of goat’s fromage frais and a little drizzle of oil.
ROMESCO SAUCE
It is funny the things one learns from research. During My Year Without Meat, I was asked to interview Ferran Adrià and provide a recipe of his that could be used at home. He was the wunderkind chef of the global molecular cuisine movement and based himself at his award-winning restaurant, elBulli, on the Catalan coast. I tried a recipe of his for romesco sauce. This is a great nut-based sauce that can be used with myriad foods but is great with all grilled vegetables. I discovered that the amount of vinegar his recipe asked for was out tenfold. The following recipe makes a much more palatable version of this delicious sauce.
500 g red capsicum
1 ripe tomato
3 garlic cloves
60 ml olive oil
60 g toasted blanched hazelnuts
200 g rustic bread, sliced
50 ml sherry vinegar
salt and pepper, to taste
Preheat the oven to 220°C. Place the capsicum, tomato and garlic in a roasting tin and bake for 45 minutes or until the peppers are blackened. Remove from oven. When cool enough to handl
e, peel the tomato and place the flesh in the bowl of a kitchen blender. Peel and de-seed the capsicum and place in the blender. Cut the heads off the garlic and squeeze the flesh into the blender. Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a frying pan over medium heat. Cook the hazelnuts for 4–5 minutes, tossing regularly until dark golden. Drain on paper towel. Add a little more oil to the frying pan and fry the bread on each side until golden. Break the bread into pieces and add to the blender, along with the hazelnuts. Add the remaining oil and sherry vinegar and blend to a rough paste. Season with salt and pepper. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
PESTO
This is another great nut-based sauce, this time from Italy. The classic version is made with basil, pine nuts, garlic, parmesan and pecorino and is hand-pounded. The cheese adds the umami and extra virgin olive oil adds the moistness where required. Following is a basic recipe, but you can substitute different leaves, nuts and cheeses.
50 g bunch of basil (or parsley, rocket or a mixture)
60 g grated parmesan cheese
20 g grated pecorino
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
60 g pine nuts, toasted (or toasted hazelnuts, pecans or walnuts)
extra virgin olive oil
Except for the olive oil, place all the ingredients in a kitchen blender. Blend until a rough paste is achieved. Drizzle in enough olive oil, perhaps a few tablespoons, and blend until a smooth, but not uniform, paste is achieved. Serve a little over steamed or roasted veg.
MIGAS
A.k.a. Spanish breadcrumbs, these tasty little fellas make every steamed vegetable dish just that little bit more tasty. They are also great on pasta with broad beans, asparagus and fresh peas.
2 slices of 4-day-old sourdough bread
extra virgin olive oil to fry
3 cloves garlic, unpeeled
small sprig rosemary
sea salt flakes
You can break apart the bread with your fingers to create large breadcrumbs the size of something between a match head and a small Lego block. Or you can cube the bread and blend it in a kitchen blender to make rough breadcrumbs. Heat the oil to 170°C and add the garlic and rosemary. When the rosemary begins to brown, remove it and add the breadcrumbs and fry until golden. Remove from the oil and drain on a paper towel. Sprinkle with sea salt flakes. Serve immediately over vegetables.
RAINBOW COLESLAW
A mate of mine describes this salad coleslaw as being as colourful as a racing identity. This is a very colourful coleslaw and is good in baked potatoes with miso butter.
½ head red cabbage, finely sliced
2 carrots, julienned
2 Granny Smith apples, julienned
1 kohlrabi, peeled, julienned
20 mint leaves, roughly chopped
juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon tamari or Japanese soy sauce
Serves 4
In a large bowl, toss together the vegetables and mint. In a jar or bowl, mix the lemon juice, olive oil, mustard and tamari. With clean hands, dress the coleslaw, massaging the dressing in.
ZUCCHINI FRITTERS
500 g young zucchinis
salt
100 g feta
2 tablespoons self-raising flour
10 mint leaves, finely chopped
1 egg
olive oil to fry
natural yoghurt to serve
Makes 6
Grate the zucchini. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with salt. Set aside for 30 minutes. Pour the zucchini onto a clean tea towel. Gently squeeze much, but not all, of the liquid from the zucchini. Return to the bowl. Crumble in the feta, sprinkle over the flour. Add the mint leaves and crack the egg into the bowl. Using a fork, gently blend the mixture.
Pour a little olive oil into a heavy-based frying pan. Fry over a medium to high heat. Make fritters by gently placing about a tablespoon-sized portion of batter into the oil to make 6 or so. Cook for several minutes and turn when the base is brown. Cook for a further several minutes. Remove from heat and place the fritters on a plate lined with a paper towel. Repeat until all the mixture is used. Serve with natural yoghurt and salad.
LENTIL BURGERS
This is the recipe for the patties. I think you know how to assemble a burger. Toast the bun. Add a layer of mayo, lettuce, patty, cheese, sauce, onion, beetroot, pineapple, etc.
2 cups yellow dhal, raw
250 g sourdough breadcrumbs
1 tomato, chopped
20 basil leaves
1 teaspoon garam masala
2 eggs
salt and pepper to taste
Makes 12
Soak the dhal in a bowl of water for an hour. Drain. Place in a medium saucepan with 4 cups of water and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes or until the dhal is soft. Drain. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl (or blender). Using clean hands, form the mixture into 12 equal patties. Heat some oil in a heavy frying pan and fry each side for 5 minutes or until golden. Serve hot in a toasted bun with burger favourites.
RICE AND LENTILS
This is a dish of rice and lentils cooked together to make the easiest dish in the world for someone who wants to cook a fast, balanced meal. It’s like the food you would get in a share house when the vego is cooking. Except tasty.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
2 cm piece of ginger, peeled and very finely chopped
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup rice
1 cup brown or red lentils
600 ml vegetable stock, hot
natural yoghurt, to serve
coriander, chopped, to serve
Serves 4
Heat the oil in a heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat and fry the onion for 5–10 minutes or until golden. Add the ginger and fry for a few minutes, then add the spices. Cook for a few minutes. Add the rice and lentils and stir. Season. Add the stock and add enough boiling water so the rice and lentils are covered by 2 cm of liquid. Increase heat to high. Bring to the boil and continue boiling until almost all the liquid has evaporated and there are holes left in the top of the rice and lentils. Do not stir from now on. Reduce heat to low, cover with a lid and allow to keep cooking for 5–10 minutes or until all the water has evaporated. The rice and lentils should now be cooked and no stock left in the saucepan. Serve hot with yoghurt and chopped coriander.
SAAG PANEER
Do you know in the world where the most cheese is eaten? France? The United States of America? No, it’s India. Soft curd and lightly pressed cheeses are a staple for the nearly 1 billion or so Indians who eat dairy. Paneer is a fresh cheese and has a soft but slightly chewy texture, like barely salted feta. You can find it in Indian grocers. Or you can use ricotta and squeeze it into balls to make little paneer nuggets.
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (or ghee)
1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 cm knob ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 tablespoon garam masala or curry powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 tomato, finely diced
500 g spinach leaves, washed and drained
60 ml cream
pinch salt
300 g paneer or soft cheese, like ricotta, portioned into 12 squares or dumpling shapes
Serves 4
In a large heavy-based saucepan, heat the oil, or ghee, over medium heat. Add the onion and fry until golden, then add the garlic, fry for a few minutes, stirring, then add the ginger, cumin, garam masala and turmeric. Fry for a further five minutes. Add the tomato and cook for a further 5–10 minutes until the tomato is soft and the contents of the pan reduced. Add the spinach leaves, cream and a pinch of salt. Cover. Reduce heat and cook for 5–10 minutes until the spinach is cooked. At this
point, if you like a smooth sauce, you can use a stick blender to roughly puree the mix. Add the cheese and cook for a further 5 minutes. Serve with brown rice.
GREEN BEANS, RICOTTA AND MINT SALAD
This is more a description than a recipe. It is especially good when the beans are young and the mint is tender. Even better if you can get your hands on some fresh ricotta.
600 g fresh green beans, topped and tailed
250 g fresh ricotta
20 mint leaves
handful of parsley, roughly chopped
lemon, juiced and zested
pinch salt
extra virgin olive oil to drizzle
Serves 4
Steam the beans for a few minutes or until just tender. Place on a serving plate and crumble over the ricotta. Tear the mint leaves and sprinkle over with the parsley, pour over a teaspoon of the lemon juice and lift through with clean hands to dress the beans. Sprinkle over a little zest of the lemon and salt and drizzle with a little olive oil. Serve warm.
My Year Without Meat Page 21