Delicious Australia – (06)June 2019

PHOTOGRAPHY

NIGEL LOUGH

STYLING

KIRSTEN JENKINS

MERCHANDISING

EMMALY STEWART

I LOVE IT SOUR

PUMPKINDOUGHNUTSWITH

TAMARIND& CHIPOTLE KETCHUP

SERVES 6 AS A STARTER

1 butternutpumpkin,halved, seeds removed

200gtamarindpaste

(^1) / 2 cup(125ml)chickenstock
60gchipotlechilliin adobo sauce (remove chilli from sauce),
finelychopped
(^1) / 2 cup(110g)brownsugar
2 tspapplecidervinegar
1 cup(140g)glutinousriceflour (from Asian food shops),
plusextraif required
Sunfloweroil,todeep-fry
(^1) / 2 cup(75g)whitesesame seeds, plus extra to serve
250mlcremefraiche
1 bunch coriander, leaves picked
Preheatovento180°C.Placepumpkin,cut-sideup,onanbaking
trayandroastfor1 houroruntilthefleshis tender.Removefrom
ovenandstanduntilcoolenoughtohandle. Reduceovento90°C.
Meanwhile,tomakeketchup,bringtamarindandstocktothe
boilovermedium-highheatin a smallsaucepan.Reduceheatto
mediumandsimmer,stirringoccasionally,for2-3minutesor
untilcombined.Stirin chipotlechilliandsugar,andsimmerfor
5-6minutesoruntilthickened.Removefromheatand,usinga stick
blender,whizuntilsmooth.Seasontotasteandgraduallystirin
enoughapplecidervinegartobalanceouttheketchup.Setaside.
Scoopfleshfrompumpkinandmash(you’llneed500g).Stirin
riceflouruntila thick,spoonablebatter(itshouldbea littlethicker
thanthickeneddoublecream;adda littlemoreflourif toowet).
Filla deep-fryerorlargesaucepanthree-quartersfullwithoil
andheatto190°C(a cubeofbread will turn golden in 55 seconds
whentheoilis hotenough).
Cook1 ‘test’doughnut.Using2 tablespoons,shapeabout1 tbs
batterintoanoval.Overa largeplate,sprinklewithsesame,gently
shakingoffexcess.Spoonbatterintooilandfry,stirringgently
witha long-handledslottedspoon,for2-3minutesoruntilgolden.
If ‘test’doughnutflattensouttoomuch,addmoreflourtobatter.
Repeattestinguntilyouhavethecorrectconsistency.
Frydoughnutsin batches,stirringgentlywithslottedspoon,for
2-3minutesoruntilgolden.Removeanddrainonpapertowel.
Placecremefraichein a smallbowlandstirgentlytoloosen.
Dividedoughnutsamongservingplatesandscatterwithextra
sesame and coriander. Serve with ketchup and creme fraiche.
WEARELIVINGin a sourage!Neverhastherebeensomuch
loveforsourfoods,whetherit befermentedpicklesordairy
products,sourdoughbreadorcidervinegar,a sliceoflimein your
Mexicanbeer,ormakingyourwhiskyorpisco‘sour’.Acidfromthe
likesofvinegar,lemonjuiceora pinch of tartaric acid sharpens
flavoursandbrightensdishes.
Sugarandthensaltarecommonlytheflavourswefirstfallin
lovewith;sournessandbitternessa signofa moresophisticated
palate.ButresearchdatingbacktoCharlesDarwinin the
19thcenturyhassuggestedsomechildrenchaseverydifferent
tastestoadults.Morerecently,a studyin thejournalChemical
Sensesfoundthatin a groupoffive-tonine-year-olds,one-third
hada loveofextremesourflavoursabsentin theirmothers.Not
onlythat,astheflavoursbecamemoreintenselyacid,theyloved
themmore,whiletheadultsandremainingchildren were
increasinglynegativeaboutthesourerflavours.
Thesour-lovingchildrenweregenerallyalsofoundtobemore
adventurouseatersandhadoftenbeenexposedtosourflavours
at anearlyage,perhapsthroughthepresenceoftamarindin their
breast-feedingmother’sdietorsour-flavourcomponents like
proteinhydrolysatein theirbabyformula.
EarlierEuropeanresearchfoundthatadultswhoweremore
adventurouseaterswerefarmoreappreciativeofhighersourer
flavours– andweremorelikelytosearchoutfreshfruitandveg

• thanmoreconservativeeaters.It alsoturnedouttheywere
  significantlylessinterestedin comfortfoodsthanthosewho
  preferredsweetflavours.Thisperhapshelpsexplainwhythose
  couchpotatoeslivingona junkfood/meat-and-potatoesdiet
  avoidfruit,andwouldruna milefromthosepuckeringlysour
  wormsandWarheadsthatweretheragea fewyearsback.The
  goodnewsis,thattogetkidstoembraceanadventurousdiet,
  youmightjustneedtointroducethemtofruitandvegearlyon.
  Thesefindingsmayallhavesomethingtodowiththefactthat
  eatingsourfoodsnotonlyreleasesfeel-goodserotoninintothe
  brain,butalsoactivatesa reactionin thetastebudsandan
  electricaljoltsimilartotheresponsewehavewhenwe‘taste’chilli.
  WhileI havea cupboardfilledwitha coupleofdozendifferent
  vinegarsanda fruitbowloverflowingwithcitrus,tamarindis my
  latestloveaffairto‘gosour’.Freshis bestif youcanfindthem–
  peeledandsprinkledwithsugartheyaredivine– butbottledas
  a pastetheyaretheslightlycaramel-tastingsoursecretbehind
  everythingfrommygoldeneggcurryrecipe(delicious.com.au)to
  Worcestershiresauce(featuringvinegar) and in this rather special
  tamarindandchipotleketchup.
  For Matt’s 11 other global ways to go sour, visit delicious.com.au.

Preparetopuckerup,MattPrestonis delvingintothescienceof

sour – and it could be the key to getting kids to eat their greens.

I LOVE.

40 delicious.com.au