W
With a rock-star status in the culinary
world and nine restaurants to his
name, Eyal Shani knows a thing
or two about what keeps diners
happy and, for him, it’s largely been
caulif lower. The leading Israeli chef
is known for his signature caulif lower
dish, which is a rather simple recipe:
roasted baby caulif lower with olive oil
and rock salt. He says it has proven
popular because it’s made with energy,
and melts in your mouth. “You have
the energy from the chefs and you
have the energy from the guests that
meet together in the food,” Shani says.
The dish, and Shani’s pita street-
food style, has been such a hit that the
celebrity chef has opened Miznon, in
Melbourne. The restaurant is based
on his award-winning gourmet eatery
of the same name in Tel Aviv. Shani
made the decision to expand into
Australia after a friend convinced
him to visit Melbourne. It was on this
trip that he says he “fell in love with
the people”. He also felt Australia’s
culinary scene was missing the pita
and he wanted to translate the culture
of Melbourne into a food in the pita.
“In Israel, the way we communicate
passion is through food,” Shani says.
“There is a debate between vegetables
versus meat... I think vegetables arethe hero, which is why I hero them on
my menu.”
If you need proof caulif lower is a
powerhouse vegetable, all you need to
do is take a look at the menus at some
of Australia’s best restaurants. You
can try sherried marron with smoked
caulif lower and caulif lower cream at
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, eat
roasted caulif lower with miso and
pistachio at bills in Bondi, or sample
caulif lower with almond and mint at
Sydney’s ester. Other creative ways
caulif lower is being served up is as
rice, mash and even in chocolate
brownies and puddings. Shani believes
the reason the vegetable has become
popular worldwide is because “people
are finally finding the energy of
the cauliflower”.The rise of cauliflower
According to a Nielsen study of
Australian consumers, we’ve gone
crazy for caulif lower, a variety of
cabbage in the Brassicaceae family
(commonly known as the mustard
family). The study found that in 2016,
sales for caulif lower increased by 12
per cent on the previous year. This
was partly driven by higher prices but
“consumption also continued to grow
at a steady pace, with volume sales up
by two per cent on 2015”. Demand
for caulif lower, which is in season
year-round in Australia and grows
best in cool environments, has led
to healthy Mexican restaurant chain
Zambrero adding it to its repertoire.
Zambrero diners now have the option
of ordering a spiced caulif lower filling
as a vegan alternative to traditional
burritos and burrito bowls. The
addition is in response to the growing
trend for more menu options for varied
dietary requirements and for the
health conscious, says Zambrero CEO
Karim Messih.
“Vegans and vegetarians make up
an increasing portion of our customers,
so spiced caulif lower was created
to give this audience, and anyone
wanting to switch up their regular
order, a highly nutritious filling with
no compromise in taste,” Messih says.