Realistic Dinners

My cooking is built on good, simple, seasonal ingredients. Ingredients that taste of themselves. When you start with great ingredients, you don’t have to do much to them. Its uncomplicated, approachable, homestyle cooking; after all, this is the food I find myself craving. I don’t set out to cook with a lot of ingredients, techniques, or equipment. I don’t like to follow trends. Cooking should always be without pretension. Taste. Season well. Consider balance and texture in a dish. And taste again. I want to cook food that is inherently delicious and doesn’t take itself too seriously.
BYO yellow curry sauce and chicken
BYO yellow curry sauce and chicken
This is a BYO (Build Your Own) grilled chicken with a mellow, yellow curry sauce for each to dip, drizzle or drench.  Read more...
An even better spaghetti vongole
An even better spaghetti vongole
Think you can’t beat a spaghetti vongole? Enter bottarga — a salted, cured fish roe that brings a rich, savoury depth and quietly lifts the whole dish. I love Salumi... Read more...
Dirty martini spaghetti with butter scallops and a crispy caper pangrattato
Dirty martini spaghetti with butter scallops and a crispy caper pangrattato
I’m not being dramatic -  this might be the best pasta I’ve ever cooked. Sure, maybe the magic of our surrounds helped too (we were staying at Satellite Island in... Read more...
How to jazz up chicken breasts
How to jazz up chicken breasts
Lemony, briny chicken and chickpeas! How to jazz up some chicken breasts in 15 minutes. This is, of course, a play on lemon scallopini, but here I’ve bulked it out... Read more...
Spring vegetables and a silky, lemon butter pasta
Spring vegetables and a silky, lemon butter pasta
This creamy, lemony butter pasta sauce is a beautiful base to celebrate the bounty of spring. You can use any spring vegetables you like. Play around with what you love... Read more...
One pot, brothy green rice with olive oil, lemon and feta
One pot, brothy green rice with olive oil, lemon and feta
This oozy, relaxed one-pot rice sits somewhere between a brothy rice bowl, a risotto, and spanakorizo (excuse my pronunciation). It’s simple, comforting, and just a touch virtuous (green food has... Read more...
One pot kimchi chicken and rice
One pot kimchi chicken and rice
I’ve got another one-pot chicken and rice for you—and this one’s a beauty. I’m leaning on kimchi and gochujang, the deeply savoury Korean chilli paste, to do the heavy lifting.... Read more...
Pasta, chickpeas and salami
Pasta, chickpeas and salami
Pasta e ceci, a love story. Pasta and beans are a classic, and one of my favourites. It’s born from the pantry, costs next to nothing, and food for the tired... Read more...
One tray sausage, potato, tomato and caramelised onion bake
One tray sausage, potato, tomato and caramelised onion bake
This might just be my all-time favourite one-tray sausage bake—and that’s saying something because I make a lot of them. It’s sticky, sweet, jammy, and everything cooks down together in... Read more...
One tray jammy tomatoes, crispy mince, yellow rice
One tray jammy tomatoes, crispy mince, yellow rice
I’ll be the first to admit, this dish isn’t about appearances. But then again, home cooking rarely should be. The idea started as spiced meatballs in a sweet tomato sauce... Read more...
A mid-week smoked fish pillow pie
A mid-week smoked fish pillow pie
A fish pie is a labour of love—the filling, the cooling, the pastry—it’s a lot and not something I’d tackle midweek. I once heard Nigel Slater on his Christmas chronical... Read more...
Salsa verde lamb patties
Salsa verde lamb patties
We go through a lot of mince in this house—it’s affordable, versatile, and always a crowd-pleaser, so I’m constantly working up new ways to use it. For this one, I’ve... Read more...
Puttanesca x Amatriciana, the baby
Puttanesca x Amatriciana, the baby
After countless messages about this one, I finally got around to filming my lifeline—my all-time favourite mid-week pasta. This is what would happen if Puttanesca and Amatriciana came together and... Read more...
One tray, Greek-style chicken and rice
One tray, Greek-style chicken and rice
In this season of life—tired, exhausted, just scraping by—I’m leaning hard into my one-tray bake era, and this Greek-style chicken and rice is on high rotation.  I like to marinate... Read more...
My savoury bread and butter pudding starring Little Big Dairy
My savoury bread and butter pudding starring Little Big Dairy
I’ve combined two great loves of my life in this recipe: bread and butter pudding and croque monsieur. Here they come together with a helping hand from Little Big Dairy.... Read more...
Happy soup (sweet potato and carrot)
Happy soup (sweet potato and carrot)
Having kids, I’ve had to use my marketing hat for dinner time. “Hulk-smash pasta” “Monster soup” and in this case “happy soup”. Because sometimes it’s all about how you position... Read more...
My creamy lemon, chicken, pasta and greens soup
My creamy lemon, chicken, pasta and greens soup
This is a midweek staple that we all enjoy—from baby to hungry Dad (though I do omit the greens for the kids). It's silky, velvety, filling, and nourishing, coming together... Read more...
One pot chicken, brown rice and greens with a ginger and spring onion sauce
One pot chicken, brown rice and greens with a ginger and spring onion sauce
Winner winner, chicken dinner. Finally hit the all important trifecta on this one pot dish - fluffy rice, tender chicken and vibrant greens. Read more...
Umami-packed pantry pesto
Umami-packed pantry pesto
This is everything a traditional pesto Genovese (basil pesto) is not. It’s robust, umami packed and rich. It packs a lot of punch for a little ‘pesto’. If I’m ever... Read more...
Clams, fermented chilli, lemon, toasted garlic
Clams, fermented chilli, lemon, toasted garlic
This is what everyone came for right? Surely there is no better combination than the brininess of clams, the zestiness of lemon and the fire of chilli. While this dish... Read more...
Bitter greens, chilli, pork crackling pasta
Bitter greens, chilli, pork crackling pasta
The best part of a pork roast is the crackling, so it’s only right that there is a pasta dish to celebrate this. Of course, the Italians have already created... Read more...
Salty, sticky chicken mince
Salty, sticky chicken mince
Shared this salty, sweet, sticky chicken mince recipe during the week and got a flood of messages asking for it. This dish has been a regular mid-weeker here for years,... Read more...