It’sallaboutfusionatMelbournerestaurantsMaha,MahaEast
andBiggieSmalls,whereShaneDeliais backin thekitchen,
drawing inspiration from his travels with renewed flair.
YOUCANALMOSTtastethewanderlust
in ShaneDelia’sfood.Athisacclaimed
MelbournerestaurantMaha,nowin its
11thyearoftrading,theperipateticchef
confidentlyfusesthethreeMs:Middle
Eastern,MediterraneanandMaltese.
“MyparentsarefromMaltaandour
culinaryidentityhasbeenmashedupwith
otherculturesforgenerations,”hesays.
Hiswife,Maha,is Lebanese,andthat
cuisinefindsitswayontohisplatestoo.
Earlierthisyear,DeliaopenedMaha
Eastin Windsor,a relaxedversionofhis
CBDmothership.HealsohasBiggie
Smalls,a kebabstorein Collingwood.For
thefirsttimein fiveyears,heis “backon
the tools”, serving up dishes such as fried
ON TOP
OF THE
WORLD
bunswithtaramasalataandsalmonroe,
Malteseporksausageswithwhitebeach
‘bagila’,andspicedlambboreks.
WhenDeliaventuresabroad,heis
drawntostorieddestinations– Beirut,
Istanbuland,hisnextstop,Jerusalem,
toresearcha forthcomingTVproject
whichhe’shopingwillcomeintofruition
nextyear.“I’mintriguedbyIsraelandat
howitsvibrantcuisinehascomeabout,”
hesays.“I alsowanttounveilstereotypes
peoplehaveabouttheplace.”
Travelis alsoa chancetoaddtohis
growingsneakercollection,whichis near
300 pairs“I’velostcountbutmostofthem
areNike,”hesays.Clearly,the kicks add
some spring to his step.
MARKETBASKET
BY SHANE DELIA
SPANNERCRAB
“Ilovehowsweetit tastes,notmuddylike
someothervarieties,butit canadaptwith
otherflavours.Thefleshis alsomore
fibrousthanothercrabs,offeringa
beautifullycontrastingtexturetotheegg
pastain thisrecipe.Spannercrabis also
reallygoodwithspiceandcurry-like
dishes,orI mightserveit withlemon,
sauteedasparagusandangelhairpasta.
I alsolikeit servedcoldin brikpastrywith
preserved lemon, labneh and chives.”
PEAS
“Theyrepresentspringtome,they’reso
sweet,crispandalmostlikeeatinglollies
whenthey’rereallygood.I usethemraw
in thetunatartarerecipe,andtheyaddso
muchfreshnessandvitality.I mostlyserve
themraworquicklyblanchedwithcurry
leafandturmeric.If I cookthem,it might
befora pea and corn pastizzi.”
CORN
“Cornreactsreallywelltohigh
temperatures,andwhencharredit takes
ona sweet,earthyflavour.Ofcourseit
alsoworkswellwithbutterandcream
orasa soup.Mymummakesa sweetcorn
soupwithbaconandwaterchestnuts.
It’sa blendofAussieandAsianflavours.
It doesn’tmake sense but it’s amazing.”
FENNEL
“Growingupweoftenhadvegetables
well-cooked,andI’veneverlikedthat.
I’ma bigfanofrawvegetablesand finely
shavedfennelis anexcellent
accompanimenttosomanydishes,
fromseafoodtoroastpork.Whensimply
dressed,it’slikebitingintoanapple.
Pickledfennelwithaniseis a winnertoo,
especially when served with oysters.”
PHOTOGRAPHY
MICHAEL WOODS
@shanedelia
