I have picked, peeled, sliced and pickled over twenty kilos of quinces. My hand is sore but I'm feeling satisfied. My next job is to boil and reduce 40 litres of red wine to start the Shiraz syrup. It sounded lovely at the time when Chef Nigel Rich worked out the menu with us. I had, as I usually do, a rather romantic vision of myself humming happily peeling fuzzy quinces on a sunny afternoon and stirring a small pot of wine on a winter night, shiraz in the pot another in my glass. Of course when you are preparing lunch for up to 40 guests the pottering becomes more like a production line. Hand crafted literally becomes a physical demand. It is just one of the many times that causes me to reflect and respect the profession of chefs, and that great gulf between cooking for small numbers to a la carte service, or catering on a large scale. It is the Chef Dustin Rodgers that will shuck 120 oysters on the day of our Sea & Vines lunch, I've seen him do it before working like something between a machine and an artist. I call it the chef frenzy. I try to imitate their hustle, flick of the teatowel and pan flipping ways. Every chef has their own kitchen dance. Gliding back and forth from stove to bench, stir, taste, wipe, chop, taste, wash, pluck, trim, truss, taste, wipe.
So much easier to cook them whole in the oven a la Maggie Beer.No prep!
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