Celebrity chef Gary Mehigan reveals his top tips for cooking with kids
Gary Mehigan says getting the family together to create the nightly meal is a sure-fire way to ease lockdown boredom. Here’s how to get your kids interested in cooking.
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It’s one of those glorious autumn days that have made being in lockdown these past couple of months almost bearable and Gary Mehigan is making the most of it.
When Hibernation catches up with him on the phone, he’s just in from picking pine mushrooms on the Mornington Peninsula, where he’s been waiting out lockdown with wife Mandy and daughter Jenna.
A wet and warm autumn has paved the way for a bumper mushroom season, and along with deathcaps and toadstools and other deadly or otherwise inedible fungi there’s a heap of delicious pine mushrooms to forage for.
“You see people come down here, old Italians, and they pick them by the bucket,” he says. “I’ve found some spots on my (walking) route, and I pick a container full. No one else in the family is that fond of them, so I end up pan frying them, or crumbing them, making them into spring rolls – all sorts of weird things.”
But with the family in lockdown together the chef is more often than not cooking up a feast that they all can enjoy around the dinner table.
“I’m getting special requests (from them). My daughter wanted French onion soup – she’s 18 now – then asked for steak tartare. I’ve never made steak tartare at home before. I have this romantic idea that everyone else will want to jump into the kitchen and help, but they’re reluctant workers in my family.”
Though strict lockdown and isolation rules are gently easing around the country – with friends and family now able to visit, hooray! – Mehigan says it’s still a great time to get the kids involved in the nightly meal as a way to both alleviate stay-at-home boredom and get them interested in cooking.
Such things as choosing a country or cuisine and cooking dishes together is a way to remain inspired, he says.
“We can’t get to our favourite restaurants, so why not give it a go. We’ve done Vietnamese, we’ve done Mexican. Done burger nights. And they’re kind of fun. I’m almost tempted to put out a little tent card letting everyone know what’s coming up, so they can look forward to Vietnamese night, for example,” Mehigan says.
The host of the popular Plate to Call Home podcast says the slower pace forced by lockdown offers the opportunity to get the kids involved in something they ordinarily wouldn’t be interested in.
“When you have that little extra bit of brain space to dedicate to your family, cooking is not a chore. You’ve got the tools to do it, why not,” he says. “I’ve certainly found that the pleasure of a little extra time, rather than everybody working, or at uni, being busy, rushing through the door and always needing to be doing something else, it allows you time to do stuff you don’t normally do.”
FAST FOOD
DIY fast food – think burgers, banh mi, fried rice – is an easy entree for kids to get involved in the kitchen.
“Create your own fast food dinner. Make a burger – but using the term burger in the broadest way. It could be a lamb kofte, or put a piece of fish in it with miso mayo and pickled ginger and cucumber ribbons, or a classic with your cheap sliced cheese, tomato sauce, sweet mustard and pickles.”
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT
“We did two series of Junior MasterChef and the thing that taught me a lot, is left to their own devices, giving them a job and letting them get on with it themselves, whether it works or not, is kind of the key,” Mehigan says.
“Give them a safety briefing at the beginning – be careful because that gets hot, et cetera, then they’re perfectly capable of using the toaster, getting stuck into the toastie machine, using a mixer, because they’re good listeners, unlike adults.
“You might not think that for your own children, but when they go to school, they learn lots of stuff, and you’re not involved, which you have to try and remember that.
“Give them a bit of space. If you’re constantly taking over or telling them what to do, they’ll quickly lose interest and go and watch television.”
BAKED EXPECTATIONS
While adults across Australia have turned to tending a sourdough starter as a way to get through the coronacrisis, Mehigan says making bread with the kids is a top way to get them interested in the science of cooking.
“Introduce them to a simple no-knead bread,” he says.
Mix together 500g flour, 400ml water, 1 tsp salt and 5g yeast. Mix it all together, leave in the fridge overnight and bake in the morning.
“It will be rustic, not perfect, but oh so delicious. You’ll have fresh breadrolls in an hour.”
DON’T MISS: A Plate to Call Home available from podcastoneaustralia.com.au
RECIPES
JENNA’S EGG AND LEMON SOUP
SERVES 4
INGREDIENTS
500g fine free-range chicken mince
3 free-range eggs
100 g parmesan, finely grated
2/3 cup (50 g) fresh breadcrumbs
1 large handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons tarragon leaves, plus extra to garnish
finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
sea salt flakes and freshly ground white pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 litres chicken stock
1/2 cup (110 g) risoni
1 tablespoon plain yoghurt or thickened cream, optional extra virgin olive oil, to serve
1. Place the mince, one of the eggs, the parmesan, breadcrumbs, parsley, tarragon, lemon zest, a pinch of salt and a good few twists of white pepper in a bowl and mix well.
2. Form tablespoonfuls of the chicken mixture into balls with your hands and place on a plate. Refrigerate for 10 minutes to set slightly.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the meatballs and season with a little more salt and pepper. Cook for 7 minutes or until the meatballs are light golden brown and just cooked, rolling them around the pan or turning regularly with a fork.
4. Meanwhile, pour the chicken stock into a large heavy-based saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the risoni and cook for 6 minutes or until just tender. Strain through a sieve over a large bowl, set the cooked risoni aside, then pour the stock back into the pan and bring back to the boil. Add the meatballs to the pan and simmer for 5–6 minutes, then remove from the heat.
5. Crack the remaining eggs into a blender and add the lemon juice, yoghurt or cream, if using, and two ladlefuls of hot stock. Blend until creamy and white. Pour this mixture back into the soup, along with the risoni, and stir to combine.
6. Divide among serving bowls, then add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and some extra tarragon leaves and serve.
CHOC-ORANGE SELF-SAUCING PUDDING
SERVES 4
INGREDIENTS
2/3 cup (100 g) self-raising flour
1 tablespoon Dutch-processed cocoa powder, plus extra for dusting
1/3 cup (75 g) soft brown sugar
1/3 cup (40 g) almond meal
100 g dark orange-flavoured unsweetened chocolate (70% cocoa solids), coarsely chopped
1/3 cup (80 ml) milk
1/3 cup (115 g) orange marmalade
1 free-range egg
50 g unsalted butter, melted cream or ice cream, optional, to serve
CHOC-ORANGE SAUCE
1/3 cup (75 g) soft brown sugar 1 tablespoon Dutch-processed cocoa powder
2 tablespoons Cointreau
1 cup (250 ml) boiling water
1. Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a bowl, then stir in the sugar, almond meal and chocolate. Whisk the milk, marmalade, egg and butter together, then add to the flour mixture and fold until just combined. Spoon into a buttered 1 litre-capacity baking dish placed on a baking tray.
2. For the sauce, combine the sugar and cocoa powder and sprinkle over the batter in the dish. Add the Cointreau to the boiling water, then carefully pour into the dish over the back of a spoon (this ensures it is distributed evenly).
3. Bake for 40–45 minutes in a preheated 160°C fan-forced oven until well-risen and firm. Leave to stand for 5 minutes before dusting with cocoa powder and serving with cream or ice cream, if you like.
Originally published as Celebrity chef Gary Mehigan reveals his top tips for cooking with kids
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