Durban - The city's top chefs will be cooking up a storm at the East Coast Radio House & Garden Show from June 28 to July 7.
Expect a mouth-watering line-up of events and experiences that celebrate the eclectic mix of authentic flavours Durban offers.
In the Discover Durban Cuisine Kitchen top chefs will share their tips and tricks during a series of live, interactive cooking and tasting demonstrations, hosted by Durban chef Sherwyn Weaich.
Look out for Eat Out Magazine’s Rising Star of the Year 2017, Kayla-Ann Osborn, the executive chef at the sophisticated The Chef’s Table; as well as chefs Theo Mannie, and Tee and Pashi, and Kim of My Kitchen Rules fame. Popular sister duo, Chilli Chocolate Chefs and Chef
Johannes Richter from the Living Room at Summerhill Estate are also featured, along with Chef Gordon Manuel from Endless Horizons.
Mannie, of Granny Mouse Country House, will demonstrate how to make the perfect prawn risotto. Born in Zimbabwe, Mannie moved to England aged 13, where he completed his high school at Bexleyheath Academy, while living in Folkestone. A one-time club DJ, Mannie found himself drawn to his true passion in the world of culinary arts. Catch his demonstration on 4 July at 1pm and again at 5pm.
Also showcasing their culinary skills in the demo kitchen are up-and-coming chefs including Thobela Buthelezi and Food by Chef Nonny. There’s also the culinary delights of Chef Zanele van Zyl and Chef Deena Naidoo. Naidoo was South Africa’s first MasterChef. Born and raised in Chatsworth, he has loved to cook for as long as he could safely wield a spoon when he was just seven years old.
New this year is a Pop-up Kitchen, an edible experience where a different chef will be serving up a delicious dinner every evening over both weekends of the show. Expect to dine on five-star food.
Chef Kayla's recipe
Crispy squid with green curry and fried curry leaves
For the green curry sauce
- 2 onions, peeled and chopped
- 3 clove garlic peeled and chopped
- 1 tsp coriander seed
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- 100g blanched mint
- 100g blanched coriander
- 4 tbsp double fat Greek yoghurt
- Zest of 2 lemons
- 2 tbsp butter
For the lemon ricotta
- 300g ricotta
- zest of 2 lemons
- salt
- 2 handful picked curry leaf
- 5 whole baby squid tubes, cleaned and cut in half per person
- Corn flour
Method
- Fry onion with a little oil over medium heat. Season as you go. Once the onions are cooked and start to caramelize add the garlic, lemon zest, cumin and coriander seeds. Cook for another three minutes or so. Once cooked, transfer to a blender with the coriander and mint, add half the yoghurt and butter. Blend until smooth. Add a few teaspoons of water if need be. Add the rest of the yoghurt, check seasoning and store in a container for use.
- Fried curry leaves are just picked curry leaves thrown into oil at 180 degrees. This splatters a lot so toss them all in and then stand back. Once they stop splattering they are ready. Remove with a slotted spoon on to paper towel. (These are a nice addition to salads and legumes as well.)
- For the squid, rinse the squid through a sieve and shake dry. The squid needs to be relatively dry. Season either corn flour or rice flour. About 1 tsp of salt per 250g of flour. Make sure your flour is more than the squid so you don’t end up with a sticky wet mix. You want the oil to be very hot at 200 degrees. The quicker the squid cooks the better. Fry the squid in small batches until you see it just starts to change colour. About 1 minute. Allow the oil to come back to temperature between each batch of frying.
- Place ricotta and lemon zest in a blender. Blend until smooth, taste and season. Transfer to a piping bag.
- To plate, make a round of the puree on the plate. Top with the crispy calamari. Finish with piped lemon ricotta blobs and fried curry leaves.
Chef Theo's recipe
Prawn Risotto (Serves 4)
- 200g Arborio rice
-
1 large onion diced
-
2 cloves of garlic chopped
-
400g prawns/baby shrimp
-
250ml white wine
-
1 Litre fish stock
-
1tsp of dried fennel or tarragon
-
1tsp turmeric
-
100g butter
-
100g grated Parmesan cheese
-
Salt and pepper
Method
- Pour the stock into a sauce pan or small pot and keep warm on medium to low heat.
- In a large sauce pan or medium heat, sauté onions in the butter on low heat until the onions become soft and translucent. To this, add the turmeric and garlic and sauté for a further 2 min before adding the rice. Cook for about 3 min stirring consistently so that it does not catch and the garlic does not burn.
- Pour the wine and turn the heat to high until the wine comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to a medium low and stir occasionally until the wine has almost completely been dissolved by the rice.
- Start adding the warm stock using a ladle making sure that the rice is just about covered. Stir occasionally to make sure that the rice does not stick and is equally cooked. After about 7 to 8 min of cooking, the rice will become swollen and the stock will seem more and more creamy.
- At this point, add the prawns and dried herbs to the dish. Reduce heat and continue to cook until the rice is soft with just a little bite, but also creamy in the mouth. Adjust the seasoning and add half the grated cheese.
- Plate immediately and garnish with the reaming cheese.
Chef Deena's recipe
Tandoori mushrooms with brown rice and ricotta cheese
- 8 large black mushrooms
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½ medium sized onion chopped finely
-
100g ricotta cheese
-
100g grated mozzarella
-
50g roughly chopped mixed nuts
-
100g brown rice (cooked)
-
1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
-
Salt and black pepper
-
½ tsp ground coriander powder
-
½ teaspoon ground cumin powder
For the coating batter
- 1 cup flour
-
1 tsp turmeric powder
-
½ tsp paprika
-
½ tsp salt
-
1 tbsp corn flour mixed with ½ to 3/4 cup water
Method
- Wipe mushrooms, remove stalks and chop finely. Mix the stalks with the onion, fry then cool completely.
- Combine this mixture with the cheeses, parsley, nuts and spices and the cooked brown rice. Stuff the mushroom “caps” and refrigerate until ready to prepare
- Mix the flour, turmeric powder, paprika, corn flour, salt and water to form a smooth batter. Dip mushrooms into the batter and deep fry or if you have access to a tandoori oven place in skewers and bake till golden brown. Drain well
- Serve with Rocket leaf and cherry tomatoes