Matt Moran says the food may not be the hero of his latest TV dish

IT’S a big admission, but celeb chef Matt Moran concedes the hero of his newest TV series might not be the food.

Food takes a back seat

MATT Moran is a man with a lot on his plate.

He’s spent 25 years carving out a culinary empire which has extended to eight restaurants, more than 600 staff, and establishing himself as a celeb chef, complete with the cookbooks and corporate deals.

So it’s ironic that his latest creation — series two of television series Paddock to Plate — sees his food almost take a back seat to the Australian landscape.

But for Moran, it’s a triumph which saw him and the Paddock to Plate team cross more than 20,000 kilometres across South Australia and West Australia to find the area’s best produce and the stories behind them.

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“We did areas including the Riverland in SA, the Barossa, Eyre Peninsula, WA’s Southern Forests, the Margaret River, up to Perth and the Gascoyne then all the way to Derby,” Moran said.

“To me, visually, the cinematography in this show is unbelievable. It’s just so beautiful.

“In many ways I think the vision is better than the cooking.”

Far and wide...Matt Moran filmed all across Australia for the latest series of Paddock to Plate: Picture: Nick Wilson.

Along the way Moran gets to indulge in what is almost a ‘boys own’ adventure, using scuba diving skills learned for season one to swim with 60kg and a million dollars’ worth of bluefin tuna of South Australia and swallows a fair few sardines along the way. He dives for pearls off Broome. He fishes for barramundi at Cone Bay and for pink snapper at Carnarvon. He prods out giant mud crabs accompanied by a barefooted local armed only with a stick, and musters a one million acre farm in an R22 helicopter.

He courts controversy in episode two, going duck shooting in scenes he already knows will elicit a viewer kickback. Of the segment, Moran is unruffled, and unapologetically realistic.

“The fact is the people I joined eat everything they shoot. It is their protein,” he says.

“Hunting this way is sustainable, the family has done it this way for generations. They take only what they eat.

“They have had this farm in the family for 150 years. They have always shot ducks as part of their diet. I thought about duck shooting as a sport — but this was different in whatever we shot, we ate.

“To me it was like raising lamb or beef cattle.”

Unapologetic...Matt Moran says some episodes will no doubt cause viewer backlash but he’s not worried. Picture: Mike Burton

“All I can say is that during the filming of this program there were lots of animals, well, not harmed, but eaten in the making of this show.”

The results of the nine weeks of filming are stunning, and Moran says while he’s ‘insanely proud of the result — and reckons it is even better than series one, filming ‘took it out of me’ this time around.

The first series netted an ASTRA Award for Most Outstanding Lifestyle Program in its debut season, knocking off the long-time winner Selling Houses Australia.

He splits blocks of filming with his ‘real job’ overseeing the eight restaurant businesses in Sydney — Aria, Chiswick, North Bondi Fish, Art Gallery, Opera Bar and Opera House and Aria and River Bar in Brisbane.

“On a day in Sydney that probably means office work in the morning, maybe some food tastings then lunch for Aria, then doing the rounds in to North Bondi, Chiswick, the Opera House ones, Art Gallery and having a nibble at each one,” he says.

“Then back to Aria early evening do a bit of service then on the way home its generally Chiswick for an entree, North Bondi for main then I go home and have a piece of chocolate.”

“I don’t run out of energy. I’ve spent 25 years doing something I love.”

As for the food on his latest show and how he views it.

“The star of the show is the produce. I’m just the lucky guy who got to travel to the destinations to see it, and see this amazing country,” says Moran, sharing this simple dish which lets the hero ingredients shine.

Mouthwatering...this Fried Haloumi and Watermelon salad is featured in Series two of Paddock to Plate. Picture: Supplied.

FRIED HALOUMI AND WATERMELON SALAD WITH FRESH MINT

1 watermelon, cut in half, then cut into small square pieces

¼ Spanish onion, very finely sliced

1 small green chilli, finely chopped (see note)

60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil

500 gm haloumi (about 2 blocks), cut into 1cm x 5cm slices, dried on paper towel

½ lemon

1 handful baby mint leaves

• CUT the watermelon pieces into 2cm x 3cm chunks (refrigerate any trimmings and scraps to snack on later), then arrange on a large serving plate. Scatter over the sliced onion and chopped chilli.

• HEAT a large frying pan over medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. When the oil starts to smoke, add the haloumi and cook, turning once, until golden brown (1-2 minutes each side). Drain off the oil, place the haloumi on top of the salad and squeeze the lemon over the top. Drizzle with remaining olive oil, scatter with baby mint. Serves 6.

Note: The chilli used was called a Medusa, which is very hot, however any chilli will do.

PADDOCK TO PLATE

WEDNESDAY, 8.30PM, LIFESTYLE CHANNEL