Simon Gloftis
Hellenika, Brisbane, Qld“Avgolemonois specialtomeforsomanyreasons.
It’sourGreekchickensoupandit’severythingtome.
Asa kid,if youfeelsickyoueatit.Infact,mymum
is makingit formetodaybecauseI havea cold.
“We’dalwayshaveit forEaster.We’dhaveit every
Sunday.It’sjustchickenstockwithriceandegg
andlemon,butit’samazinghowit comestogether.
Growingup,I’deatavgolemonoatleastoncea week.
I’veprobablyeatenmoreavgolemonothanI have
traditionalGreeksalads.I wastooyoungtoremember
thefirsttimeI tastedit,butI canremembermyparents
wakingmeuptoeatit.Weweren’toverlyreligious,
butwe’dgohomeandeatsoupafterchurchatGreek
Easter,andI canremembergoingtomygrandparents’
garage;wogsnevercookinthehouse.Theyalways
cookouttheback,andeveryone,myauntsandmy
uncles,we’dallbesittingarounda tablewithmaybe
someolivesandfeta,eatingavgolemono.Whenever
I smellchickenstocksimmering,it remindsmeof
Grandmaandit takesmestraightbacktohergarage.
Shewasa greatcook.Shehad 10 or12,maybe
15 recipes,anddidthemallreallywell.
“You’dneverimaginewhatavgolemonois goingto
belikefromtherecipe.It lookssimple.Buttheeggand
lemoncan’tbeallowedtocurdle.You’vegottomixthe
eggandlemontogether,thenaddsomehotstock.It
shouldbelikea soupbeforeyouaddit backintothe
pot.Andthericeneedstobestartingtoalmostbreak
downsoit naturallythickensthestock,butit can’tbe
toothick.I’veseensomeavgolemonothatlookslike
risotto,butit shouldstillbelikea soupwhenyoueatit.
“MyparentshadnomoneywhenI wasyoung,so
theylivedwithmygrandparents.I canremembermy
mumandmygrandmainthekitchen.WhenI was
youngI didn’thelpoutmuch,butlater,I startedasking
lotsofquestions.Mygrandmotherwasn’tthebestat
Englishandsheneverwroteherrecipesdown.I’dsay,
‘Howmuchsalt?’andshe’djustsay,‘Notmuch.’She
wassurprisedI evenwantedtoknowaboutthedishes.
‘It’sonlysimplefood,’she’dsay.Andit is realhumble
food.It’swhatI love.
“Avgolemonois justsoimportanttoGreeks.But
maybeit’sevenmoreimportanttoGreekswho’ve
leftGreece.EveryGreekunderstandstheimportance
ofavgolemono.It’sonethingI’lleatfortherestofmy
life.It’sonHellenika’sbreakfastmenunow,sothat’s
whenI eatit themost.Andnownon-Greeksarehaving
it forbreakfast,enjoyingit andthenreordering it – so,
maybe it’s not just a Greek thing.”2019 BirdinHand
SparklingPinotNoir,
AdelaideHills,$25
Lightwithfloralnotes.
Pairit with:Smoked
troutwithsorrel
creamandburnt-
butteremulsionp992017 BirdinHand
Montepulciano,
AdelaideHills,$40
Medium-bodied
witha rustic
tanninprofile.
Pairit with:Pasta
withragùp962018 BirdinHand
Chardonnay,
AdelaideHills,$35
Perfectlybalanced
witha lineof
acidity.Pairit with:
Nonna’srice-stuffed
chickenp88PARTNERPROMOTION100 GOURMET TRAVELLER
Avgolemono
SERVES 8 // PREP TIME 10 MINS // COOK 3 HRS (PLUS COOLING)125 gmlong-grainrice
2 eggs
150 mllemonjuice
25 mlextra-virginoliveoil,
fordrizzling
Dill(optional),toserve
Slicedchar-grilled
bread,toserve
CHICKENSTOCK
1.5 kgchicken
2 tbspsaltflakes
1 celerystalk
½ onion
2 freshbayleaves1 Forchickenstock,place
ingredientsina largesaucepan
with5 litreswaterandslowly
bringtotheboilovera very
lowheat.Coverandsimmer,
skimmingsurface,untilstock
is wellflavoured(2½hours).
Allowtocool,thenstrain
(reserve chicken).2 Bring3 litreschicken
stocktotheboilina large
saucepanovermedium-high
heat(refrigerateorfreeze
remainderforanotheruse).
Addriceandsimmer,stirring
occasionally,untiltender
(20-22minutes).Remove
fromheatandseasontotaste.
3 Whiskeggsina bowluntil
smooth.Slowlyaddlemon
juice,whiskingtocombine,
thengraduallyadd250ml
hotstock,whiskingslowlyto
ensureeggsdonotscramble
butarewarmedthroughbefore
addingtothepan.Addegg
mixturetothepanandstir.
Shredchickenmeatandadd
tosouptotaste.
4 Seasontotastewithcracked
blackpepper,drizzlewithoil
andscatterwithdill.Serve
with char-grilled bread.●Wine suggestions
by Bird in Hand