Description
Book Synopsis"If you want inspiration and to be offered an insight as to how to coax flavour into food, and an understanding of what cooking can be, and how to achieve this, then you are certain to greet this book with as much grateful glee as I do." Nigella Lawsonmake a fire. fake a fire. roast your oysters. dance for pipis. slow it down. raise a toast. take lunch. grill a salad. bake a crab. step outside. burn your pav. pass the salt. eat with your hands. chew on the bone.
Ester is an invitation to play with your food and enjoy the adventure. It's born of an eponymous restaurant in inner Sydney, but it's proudly not a restaurant book. Think of it more as the foundations for some new ideas in your kitchen and at your table; written to be used, shared, read aloud, perhaps burnt.
Mat Lindsay's cooking resists easy labels. Certainly it's a distinct kind of full-flavoured Australian food: generous, mindfully chosen seafood; darkly caramelised wood-fired bread; vegetables cooked to just the right level of doneness; meat that's been treated with respect and, often, time; and the odd burnt pavlova, a true signature. Ester the restaurant is all about its wood-fired oven and the magic it imparts, but the fundamentals don't change at home, and everything in this book can be made delicious wherever you live.
The ethos of Mat's acclaimed and widely beloved Chippendale restaurant has always been to offer guests a no-rules good time and the intention within these pages is just the same. Whether it prompts you to rethink the possibilities of toast, roast your fruit, try the classic cauliflower, or embrace Sunday lunch, the Ester playbook presents many ideas to cook and live by.
Trade Review"Never question anything Mat Lindsay does. Ever. He's a true genius, although the word is used so often it's become meaningless. But his particular mixture of sensibility, talent and devotional concentration is rare." - Nigella Lawson
"Wow, what a book! Mat is a thoughtful, talented, humble chef and Ester is his laser-like thinking on food that just says, 'eat me'." - Neil Perry, Margaret, Sydney
"Mat is a trailblazer, no question. Ester, with its open kitchen and grounding, earthy, nurturing wood fire, perfectly reflects his humility, warmth and originality." - Kylie Kwong, Lucky Kwong, Sydney
"An insight into the much-loved restaurant Ester - an inspiration to chefs far and wide. Mat's unique ability to distill and coax flavour is presented beautifully and simply for anyone who loves to cook." - Andrew McConnell, Trader House restaurants, Melbourne
"Mat has an uncanny ability to strike directly at the heart of what makes food so special. A seemingly simple approach that can only be obtained through the obsession with our craft and decades of dedication. A master of flavour and fire. Ester has always been the type of place that you just don't want to leave, and I'm so glad that I can take a bit of it home with this beautiful book." - Ren Redzepi, Noma, Copenhagen
"Mat's a genius - Ester is the dream restaurant I wished I'd opened. This book is stunning, clever, approachable and smartly written. He's pulled that rare trick of creating a book based on a restaurant that's actually accessible to everyone and will inspire people to cook. He explains what the building blocks of dishes are and how to build confidence. I've no doubt this book will become as iconic as Ester is." - James Lowe, Lyle's, London
Table of ContentsIntroduction
Bread and dough
A toast
Eat with your hands
Salads and vegetables
Building blocks
Seafood
Meat and birds
The long Sunday lunch
The great outdoors
Sweet and not so sweet
Breakfast
Acknowledgements
Conversions guide
Index
