driveforself-sufficiency– therestaurant
runsoffthegridandrearsitsown
pigsandtrout– theestablishment
ofa largebiodynamicgardenthisyear
is a milestoneforboththekitchen
andtheguests.
“We’regoingdownthelineofmaking
vegetablesthestar,”saysHayter.“We
don’thavemuchchoice.Aswegodown
thepathoffarmingeverythingonthe
property,it’slessaboutoptions.I like
exploringvegetabledishesa lotmore.”
ChefAdamWolfers,whorecently
tookthehelmat Brisbane’sGerard’s
BistroafteryearsintheBentleyempire
inSydney(includinga stintoverseeingthe
all-vegetarianmenuat Yellow),is another
cookexcitedbyplant-basedpossibilities.
“Whenyougeta nicepieceofsteak,
there’sonlyreallyonewaytocookit,”
hesays.“Witha carrot,youcancook
it a thousanddifferentways.”
Thecarrotschnitzelservedduring
Wolfers’ Ételek pop-ups is perhapsthebest-knownofhisthousand-or-so
vegetablepreparations.Inspiredby
theWienerschnitzelsheateasa child
(“mygrandmotherusedtomakethe
bestViennaschnitzelinAustralia”),
Wolfersroastswholecarrotsina
steamoven,dipstheminbuttermilk,
rollstheminsourdoughbreadcrumbs
seasonedwithpaprikaandgarlic,then
friesthemcrispandgolden.
Althoughhe’snotplanningon
servingtheschnitzelat Gerard’sBistro- bythetimeyoureadthis,hisdishof
coal-ovenroastedcarrotswithredzhoug
andhouse-madeEgyptian-stylekarish
cheeseshouldbeonthemenu– heis
consideringaddingit tothemenu
at Gerard’sBar.
Carrotsarealsoa go-toforHobart-
basedfermentationzealotAdamJames
who,likemanychefs,thinksa pickled
carrotis a goodcarrot.
“Carrotsfermentbeautifullyand
maintain their crunch and integrity
asa vegetable,”hesays.“Fermenting
alsoincreasesthebioavailabilityof
carrotswhichmakesthemevenbetter
foryouthanintheirrawstate.”
Apart fromlacto-fermentingcarrots
inbrine,Jameshasalsousedthetops
andstemsingundruk,theNepalesedry
ferment,andturnsnukazukecarrots(a
Japanesepreservationtechniquethat
fermentsvegetablesina bedofrice
bran)intoa powderedseasoningmix.
MatLindsay,chefatEsterin
Sydney,hasexperimentedwithcarrot
fermentation,too,buthebelievesthat
fire bringsoutthevegetable’sbest
(althoughthehouse-madeveganXO
sauce,reducedbuttermilkemulsion,
parsleyandwakameoilheserves
withhisroastedcarrotsprobably
playtheirparts,too).
“Carrotsina woodfiredovenare
next-levelstuff,”hesays.“Theirhigh
sugarcontentmeanstheycharandcrisp
reallyeasily.Becausewecookeverything
à la minute,a babyDutchcarrotis the
perfectsizeandcooksquitequickly.
Wetrynottocookthemtoolong
sothere’sstillsnap.”
Whateverflavourpotentiala single
carrotmayhold,themaindrivebehind
thevegetable’snew-foundappealamong
chefsmaybethesamethingthatmakesit
soattractivetohomecooks:affordability.
“I’mnotsureif peopleunderstand,
butevensecondarycutshavegotten
soexpensive,”saysLindsay.“Youcan
getvegetablesat a muchbetterprice.
Everyone’s seeing more value in them.”●“Whenyou geta nicepieceofsteak,
there’sonly reallyonewaytocook
it.Witha carrot,youcan cookit
a thousand different ways.”Dutch-carrotsoufflé
withbrownbutter,
briocheandscampi
roeatPtLeoEstate.
Right:Ester’sdishof
woodfired carrots.PHOTOGRAPHY RHIANNON TAYLOR (PT LEO ESTATE).66 GOURMET TRAVELLER