On Friday while at work someone brought in some mango TimTams. I tried one, it wasn’t bad. I also learnt that you can buy pineapple TimTams.
Those who know me, know that my preference is for ‘classic’ or ‘Double Coat” TimTams.
I shot a photograph and shared it. On Instagram, a friend mentioned how much she liked white TimTams and how good they are for slamming. It was sort of a dare! Click on the embedded Instagram images and you can read the comments.
I like eating ‘classic’ TimTams on their own. For slamming though, I really like the ‘Double Coat’.
For this post however, as mentioned above, I went with white TimTams.
The season
I think TimTam Slamming is best done in the winter, preferably outside in the cold with friends. That said, I’d do it anytime.
The drink
My preferred drink is a nice hot coffee or a hot chocolate
If you’re reading this and you’re not from Australia, I believe TimTams can now be purchased in many overseas countries. I expect it’s to keep expatriate Australians happy along with a little vegemite.
White TimTams with coffee
So how was the white TimTam Slam?
It was pretty good. I do like white ‘chocolate’. That said, I still think the ‘double coat’ TimTams are the best for slamming.
Final words
If you’ve never done a TimTam Slam before, give it a go and let me know. Make a video of yourself. That would be very cool.
Being Chinese I’ve eaten a lot of rice. I’ve also eaten a lot of fried rice. I reckon my Mum’s fried rice was the best. She always used rice that had been cooked a day or so before. It was always immediately refrigerated after the first cooking to avoid food poisoning. It amazes me the number of reports I read of people becoming ill because of improperly cooked and stored food.
Food safety alert
Rice is a well known vector for Bacillus cereus food poisoning. Eating contaminated food can result in nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea depending on the toxin elaborated. Proper handling eliminates the risk. Rice that is not going to be eaten immediately should be refrigerated immediately and kept between 0 and 5 °C. Poor cooking technique can results in endospores surviving and poor storage then allows spores to germinate allowing toxins to be elaborated. Don’t be a mug (that’s Australian for idiot), cook and store your food properly.
While I had leftover ingredients for tonight’s dinner and I fixed on cooking them together the mordant was when I read Lorraine Elliot’s post in Not Quite Nigella this morning. Lorraine describes her Mum’s Nasi Goreng.
So my Australian fried rice comes about through the delicious union of leftover roasted vegetables and leftover rice and quinoa. The roasted vegetables I used tonight were made with bacon rather than SPAM®.
So I give you Australian fried rice. It contains broccoli, potato, sweet potato, onion, capsicum, fennel seeds, jalapeño peppers, chili flakes, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, peas, corn, carrots, rice, quinoa and bacon. I reckon it would taste good with some SPAM® and for an Asian touch some Chinese sausage (lup cheong not a Chinese man’s sausage).
I also cooked it in a wok for that authentic Asian touch.
Let’s go back in time to the roast vegetables leftovers
Hot and spicy roasted vegetables and bacon ready for the ovenHot and spicy roasted vegetables and bacon straight from the ovenHot and spicy roasted vegetables and bacon on my plate
Sorry for the diversion but this was this morning’s breakfast. A pan fried bagel and cream cheese. Yes, I fried the bagel in butter.
Pan fried bagel with cream cheese
So this is the Australian fried rice
Australian fried rice with bacon and quinoa
A close up
Australian fried rice with bacon and quinoa
I needed an Australian dessert. Cadbury’s Vegemite chocolate. I love it!
Please forgive me I wanted a catchy title. I know full well the majority of earthlings do not share my love for tinned corned beef or SPAM®. In fact some people have made quite gross comments. I don’t care, I like tinned meat products.
Tonight I wanted something to make my quinoa exciting. I had some leftover quinoa from last night’s delicious roasted chicken Maryland (you know, cooked in the cooking juices of the chicken) that I had mixed with arborio rice.
Tonight’s meal is simply curried tinned corned beef bulked up with quinoa and rice and served on a bed of coleslaw. I also added some cheese and green peppercorns for some extra zing.
Corned beef with juices
Probably the only decent thing to come out of New Zealand is this corned beef (apart from cousins and close friends who happened by chance to be born there…)
Quinoa and rice with corned beef on coleslaw
How to make quinoa exciting!
Recipe Type: Dinner
Cuisine: Australian
Author: Gary Lum
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
Leftover quinoa and rice
Tinned corned beef
Tin of green peppercorns
Cream
Worcestershire sauce
Curry powder
Coleslaw
Red chili for garnish
Instructions
Fry up the corned beef and add the curry powder
Add some Worcestershire sauce
When the corned beef starts to stick to the frying pan add the quinoa and rice and stir through
Again get the corned beef and the rice sticking to the pan and then add some cream
It’s been a while since Bron and I have eaten at Morks. The last time was on a very warm night in January this year. Bron suggested we have a meal there soon. I didn’t need much convincing to take action.
Booking a reservation is easy through the Morks contact page. I received an e-mail from Benn confirming our table and then on the day Benn called just to make sure. It’s a nice touch and I know it helps the restaurant ensure they minimise “no shows” which must be so frustrating not to mention rude.
As we enter we can see the place is buzzing. Almost all the tables are taken and we have to wait a few minutes for ours to be ready. We are shown to a really nice table for two in the front corner. It’s next to the main window (and away from the front door) with a view of the water and passers by (thanks Benn).
The menu has changed but some old favourites were still there. That said, we ventured into new territory in our selections. For entrées Bron chose the Australian Wagyu ‘Crying tiger’ which consisted of thinly cut slices of medium-rare Wagyu steak with some salad greens and a refreshing dipping sauce. I chose the pork crackling with chili jam salad. OMG I loved this entrée. It really sang in my mouth. The crunch of the crackling and cashews went beautifully with the zing and sweetness of the chili. This is a new favourite entrée for me.
Dinner at Morks. Pork crackling and chili jam salad. | SONY ILCE-7S with E 35mm F1.8 OSS at 35mm and f/4, 1/80sec, ISO 12800
For mains Bron chose the Morks duck red curry with a crispy rice cake which I reckon looks fabulous when it’s served. I was drooling looking at the duck and the crispy rice cake. It’s that thing you know when you see something that looks like fried carbs…Mmm…
Morks duck red curry, crispy rice cake. Photograph courtesy of Bron and her iPhone
I chose the pork belly, caramel, kapi rice and apple salad. Yep, that’s right, double pork for me that night. This was delicious and if I had not had such a fabulous entrée I think I would have enjoyed it more but that entrée was the star of the night for me.
That’s me enjoying my pork belly, caramel, kapi rice and apple salad. Photograph courtesy of Bron and her iPhoneDinner at Morks. Pork belly, caramel, kapi rice and apple salad. | SONY ILCE-7S with E 35mm F1.8 OSS at 35mm and f/4, 1/80sec, ISO 12800Dinner at Morks. Kapi rice and apple salad. | SONY ILCE-7S with E 35mm F1.8 OSS at 35mm and f/4, 1/80sec, ISO 12800
For dessert we both chose the Black Sirius which is chocolate mousse, salty caramel, peanut soil and whipped cream. This was really rich. The salty caramel was good and the whole thing just worked nicely together. A great way to end a lovely meal.
Dessert at Morks. Sirius Black – Chocolate mousse, salty caramel, peanut soil and whipped cream | SONY ILCE-7S with E 35mm F1.8 OSS at 35mm and f/4, 1/80sec, ISO 12800
Okay, so how did we enjoy the overall experience? To date, and this includes our experiences of Morks in Florey, we’ve been knocked off our feet with the dining experiences. In my mind the food is still fabulous. I love the dishes Mork creates. On this night though we noticed just how busy the restaurant is. The wait staff looked busy and in addition to Benn, who is a star maître d’, we found that night the service was a little patchy. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still ultra friendly and buoyant. At least that’s how I felt this night. I will be back. I want that entrée again.
Okay, so what do you think? Have you been to Morks? I still rate it as a great place and it’s one of my favourite restaurants in Canberra if not anywhere.
This is the photograph I posted last night on Instagram
If you have any comments or questions please send me a comment in the space below.
I’ve posted a few Chicken Maryland recipes here but I can’t help myself it’s my favourite cut of chook. The Chicken Maryland contains the best parts of the chook, viz., thigh meat, lots of excellent skin and the crunchy cloaca with a level of fat that gives it so much flavour.
Chicken Maryland with a cheesy crusted skin
Recipe Type: Dinner
Cuisine: Australian
Author: Gary Lum
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
Chicken Maryland pieces
Tomato
Onion
Mixed dried herbs
Salt
Pepper
Curry powder
Tasty Coon cheese
Instructions
Turn on your oven to about 200 °C
Slice an onion and place the rings on the bottom of a roasting tray
Place the chicken on the onion rings
Quarter a firm tomato and place between the Chicken Maryland pieces
Cover the chicken with some tasty Coon cheese
Sprinkle over the chicken and tomato a generous amount of salt, pepper, curry powder and mixed dried herbs
Whack into your oven for 45 minutes
After 45 minutes remove the roasting tray and allow to rest for 20 minutes
Plate up
Shoot a photograph (I used my Nikon D7100 with a Tamron 90 mm MACRO and my new Sony α7S with a Sonnar 55 mm 1.8 lens)
Eat the meal
Wash the dishes
Write the recipe
Blog about it
3.2.2708
I hope you enjoy making this. Please let me know what you think.
If you have any comments or questions please send me a comment in the space below.
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(apart from cousins and close friends who happened by chance to be born there…)
