Roast

If you cannot find banana chillies, use capsicums instead. Note

Don’t drain the spinach until it’s completely dry, the excess water steams and wilts the spinach during cooking, without having to add extra oil or butter. Note

If white asparagus is unavailable, use all green asparagus or thin baby carrots instead. Note

This meal has a medium GI. Note

You can use low-fat cream cheese in this recipe if you prefer. Note

other ideas: tiny blini or rösti, polenta squares, upturned mushrooms, baby cos or betel leaves, crisped won-ton wrappers or tortilla wedges. Note

Starchy potatoes, such as pontiac or lasoda, are best for this recipe. Note

We used blue-eye trevalla fillets in this recipe. Note

Juniper berries are the dried fruit of the juniper shrub, an evergreen from the Northern Hemisphere, and are found in specialty herb or health food shops. Note

Smoked eggplant and capsicum jam can be tossed through pasta, spread on pizza bases, or served as side dish to chicken, lamb or fish. Note

Vitello tonnato is a well-known Italian veal dish accompanied with a tuna mayonnaise. It is usually served cold or at room temperature, making the perfect appetiser for a Christmas lunch.

Tuna and swordfish fillets are both good substitutes for cod. Note

The frying pan goes under the grill in this recipe, so you need a frying pan with an ovenproof handle, or cover the handle with a few layers of foil to protect it from the heat of the grill. If you don’t have a lid for the frying pan, cover it with foil. Cook the […]

Pears, parsnips and red onion have a natural sweetness that is enhanced on roasting. This sweet flavour balances beautifully with pork’s creamy, fatty texture making it the perfect pairing. It’s the same reason apple works so well as an accompaniment with pork in all its forms. Note

This recipe will make about 36 balls. You can also use this stuffing to fill the cavity of a whole turkey or 2 large chickens. Note

Roasting makes both the parsnip and garlic wonderfully sweet and mellow. When preparing the parsnips, be sure to peel thickly enough to remove all the bitter outer layer, and also to cut off any woody core. Note

Make your roast Mediterranean style with this delicious spiced and zesty rub.

To tell if a peach is ripe, look around the stem of the peach, the absence of green skin plus a strong peach aroma indicates ripeness. If the skin is slightly green, it is not ripe. If peach stones are difficult to remove, leave them during roasting, they will come out more easily after cooking. […]

If taking this meal to work, roast tomato and prosciutto the night before; store in the fridge. Reheat in a microwave oven, on HIGH (100%), about 1 minute or until heated through. Toast the bread and assemble just before serving. Note

A deep purple-red spice ground from berries grown on a Mediterranean coastal shrub, sumac adds an astringent flavour to both raw and cooked food. It suits poultry, meat and fish as well as it does a salad. Its piquancy was long only associated with Middle Eastern foods, but these days it is used in many […]

Salted cod, also called salt cod, baccala, bacalhau, bacalao and morue, is available from Italian, Spanish and Portuguese delicatessens and some specialty food stores. Note

We used whole pink snapper in this recipe, but you can use any whole white fish. Note

Not suitable to freeze. You can also marinate the lamb in a large resealable plastic bag. Quince paste can be warmed in a microwave-safe jug in a microwave oven. Quince paste is available from delicatessens and most major supermarkets. Note

Thai basil, also known as horapa, is available from greengrocers and Asian supermarkets. To freeze; pack into freezerproof containers, leaving a 2.5cm space to allow for expansion. Seal, label and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat in a saucepan or microwave on medium power (50%) until heated through. Note

Pork neck is a moist, tasty cut which pot-roasts really well. This is an easy way to cook; make sure the pan you use has a heavy base for even cooking and a tight-fitting lid. Note

Preserved lemon can be bought in delis and some supermarkets. Remove and discard the flesh then wash and dry the rind before chopping. Note

Ground lemon myrtle is available from specialist spice shops and some gourmet food stores. Lemon myrtle is a small tree that grows in sub-tropical and tropical rainforest areas of Queensland. Ground lemon myrtle is a ground mixture of the dried leaf and flower; it has a strong lemon flavour. If you can’t find it, use […]

Bread can be toasted 2 hours ahead; store in an airtight container. Pumpkin can be cooked 1 hour ahead. Note

The day before you plan to cook the pork, unwrap it, pat dry with paper towel and leave uncovered in the fridge. Doing this will dry the skin out a little which will assist with crackling. Note

This recipe is best made on day of serving. Note

Ask your butcher to score the rind, 1cm apart, across the pork in the same direction as you will slice, to make carving easier. Note

Slow cooker: suitable to the end of step 2. Pressure cooker: suitable to the end of step 2. Not suitable to freeze. Note

We don’t recommend that you freeze cooked vegetables as they tend to have a spongy texture and “leftover” look about them once they’ve been thawed. Mushrooms, eggplant and members of the squash family are especially freezer unfriendly. Note

Stand the beef at room temperature for 1 hour before cooking. Salsa can be prepared a day ahead, keep, covered, in the refrigerator. Note

You need two oranges for this recipe – one for the salad and one for the juice. You can substitute fresh baby beetroot with canned baby beets, or the chicken with pork fillet or salmon, if you like. Note