Executive Chef Trent Barrett of Circa 1876, Peppers Convent – New South Wales
For Trent Barrett at Circa 1876 in the Hunter Valley, his favourite autumn produce is pink and white dragon fruit. Putting a savoury spin on this delicately flavoured fruit he creates a dish combining dragon fruit, scallops & coconut sago.
Photo credit: Miwok
Executive Chef Zach Riemersma of Lounge 55, Peppers Waymouth – South Australia
Coming into the cooler months, the seasonal produce Zach enjoys is Paringa Farm Lamb from the Adelaide Hills & Fleurieu Peninsula. He likes to use the shoulder & slow braise for 5 hours flavouring the meat simply with garlic, thyme, small sprig of rosemary & braised in master stock with some red wine and a bottle of sherry vinegar. Zach then portions the braised lamb onto a small brick or pave and heats it in a hot oven, giving it a lovely crisp exterior with the meat staying succulent & moist inside. This autumn inspired dish would be served with a seared lamb cutlet, ratatouille and a reduced braising liquid glaze.
Executive Chef James Nicoll of Cove Restaurant & Bar, Peppers York Cove – Tasmania
During autumn, Executive Chef James Nicoll’s favourite seasonal produce is tomatoes and more importantly, relish. He loves nothing more than braising relish and playing with end-of-summer produce. The variety of dishes he can create from tomatoes is phenomenal. His favourite autumnal dish is crispy chicken, relish, pumpkin puree and crunchy herb potatoes. He refers to it as ‘pure bliss’.
Head Chef Andrew Perry of Pebbles Restaurant, Peppers Moonah Links – Victoria
Coming into autumn, Andrew’s favourite seasonal ingredient is quinces. They lend themselves perfectly to dessert; Andrew enjoys creating a Quince Tarte Tartin accompanied by a Crème Fraiche Ice Cream to balance out the sweetness.
Photo credit: Karen Blakeman
Executive Chef, James Fiske of Seaduction Restaurant, Peppers Soul – Queensland
James’ favourite autumnal produce is generally fruit and feijoa is somewhere at the top of the list. Although the feijoa originates from South America, Australia has grown feijoa at premium quality for around 10 years or so. The dish he likes to cook is Passionfruit and White Chocolate Parfait with Guava textures and Feijoa sorbet. Sweet guava and acidic passionfruit, combined with the sharp fragrant perfumed taste feijoa creates a perfect balance and enhances the exoticness of the fruit.