Food review by Nick Reynolds

In the fifth of the cook-offs for Chef of the Year, Steve Liebeskind was in the kitchen, ably assisted by David Simmons and Paul Irwin.

Cooking to a packed house, Steve presented an enhanced version of the dish that led to his shortlisting as a chef of the year candidate.

Steve presented three appetisers: Fennel puree on pastry rounds topped with raw salmon and a sprig of fennel; Raw salmon with lemon and other Asian flavours (ceviche) on a spoon (created by Paul Irwin); and a repeat of the potato and broccoli soup in chicken stock with cumin. The soup used leftover potatoes from the main course. All were well appreciated by members.

For his main course, Steve reprised his slow-cooked (10 hours) Mediterranean lamb shoulder, wrapped in caul fat to retain moisture. In a variation on the last time we saw this dish, Steve served the lamb on a smooth roasted pumpkin and onion purée. He retained the duck fat cooked potato rounds, which once again fooled some of us into expecting surf-and-turf as they looked like scallops. In another addition, Steve topped the dish with deep-fried parsnip crisps, which added a textural element as well as providing some additional sweetness. The last component was once again baby eggplant with elegant, crosshatched, knife cuts that was baked with a fine layer of miso paste.

The dish was very well received apart from some comments on toughness in the eggplant skin, which highlights the problems faced by chefs recreating dishes with ingredients that may no longer be seasonal.

At Steve’s request, James Healey presented a soft cheese in the form of a Brique D’Affinois. This unusual brick-shaped cheese is made by Fromagerie Guilloteau near Pelussin, France and is based on the ‘brique’ shape of a traditional cheese of the region. An elegant cheese with a mixed washed/white rind, it was slightly pungent with a mild silky texture.

As an accompaniment to the cheese, Steve served a delicious salad. The salad included peeled red capsicum, which led a number of members to reminisce about when they were introduced to this ingredient by Neville Baker many years ago. A number of newer members were confused about this but it is put in context by the fact that at the same time they were introduced to red capsicum, olive oil was available only over the pharmacist’s counter. Australia has come a long way food-wise since then.

The coffee was once again our house blend, which is gaining appreciation and positive comments every time it is presented.