Tell us about the journey you took to become a chef and restaurant owner.  

I was raised in the restaurant industry. My mother started her first restaurant when I was 7, so I spent most of my childhood in the restaurant. Fast forward 36 years later, I’ve worked every station and expanded my food knowledge which encompasses the whole dining cycle. 

Has cooking been a deep-rooted family tradition growing up? 

Cooking and eating are my family’s love language. Food was the centre of all my family gatherings growing up, cooking with my mother was how we connected. It is the expression of love, care, nourishment, nostalgia and tradition, all the things that true hospitality is. 

How have you translated these traditions into your cooking style now? 

It continues with the food I cook for my family now. I think about my mother and all the women who came before me and the way they cooked using whatever resources were available to them. It has made me appreciate that it truly is about certain very fundamental techniques, timing and the quality of ingredients.  

How would you best describe your cooking style?  

The way I cook at home is hyper-seasonal, using what we grow or swap with our other farming friends or using ethically sourced ingredients. Then I build around what is out in the field. My refrigerator is full of condiments made from preserving peak produce grown on the farm, along with sauces, stocks and spice mixes, so I have all my building blocks ready to go.  

How does cooking make you feel? 

The act and art of cooking for myself, my family and my loved ones gives me so much pleasure, it’s a full sensory practice which you must be present for. When I am cooking, I am nowhere but here now. I love seeing people eat and enjoy themselves, knowing that I can nourish and comfort them with food is the best. 

Does your cooking style vary for different occasions?  

If I’m cooking for a hundred people, then yes, I know that I must show up completely organised with little room for mistakes. If I’m cooking at home for my family, then I’m usually more relaxed. I can be a little more indecisive or take more creative freedom and take my time. 

What’s your food philosophy?   

Eat better, tread lighter.  

What does that mean?  

I think a lot about the impact I have on the environment around me and the choices I make for myself and my family with how we consume. Thinking, planning and doing what we can as a family to mitigate waste and unnecessary footprint and raise social awareness in how we consume. The indigenous First Nations people had these ingenious tools to feed themselves without majorly damaging the environment. The animals around me teach me this too, I learn from biomimicry and ancient wisdom.

Sustainability 

What’s your approach to sustainability in your kitchens and at home on the farm? 

Our ethos utilises what we have around us, whether that is in food consumption or material goods. We fix all our clothes, my daughter is an amazing sewer, and my son is quite handy with carpentry. My husband and I try to instil the same discipline we hold for ourselves in our kids. Nothing is wasted and everything is cared for… well until it’s on its last legs.  

How important is sustainability to you and your family?  

Once you go down the route of growing your own substance, it truly does infiltrate every aspect of your life. We don’t use any harsh synthetic chemicals anywhere in soil and this is the same for our home. We clean our house with natural oils and distilled vinegar. It’s not a hard way to live it makes for a much more pleasant and healthier lifestyle.  

Kitchen 

How do your Miele appliances support with your sustainability values? 

Miele’s appliances are robust, well made and built for a lifetime of use and that is extremely rare these days. I’ve been a lifelong fan and would rather save up to buy Miele appliances which I know will endure. Their slogan is perfect – buy once, buy besser. Sustainability is about minimising waste everywhere you possibly can in your life, and Miele certainly does that.  

Can you tell us what your ultimate cooking experience has been with Miele?  

I’m so impressed with the new induction cooktops and combi steam ovens; it’s been a true joy to use them. 

What is your failsafe – go-to crowd-pleasing recipe to cook? 

Oh, there’s so many. I have base recipes for pretty much cooking everything, which I then swap out seasonal ingredients and make minor adjustments. At the moment, the crowd-pleaser a chicken, chilli and bamboo shoot stir fry.  

Can you give us an example of how you might use your Miele products? 

We have a deep chest freezer full of broken-down proteins so I would take a frozen tongue, defrost that, then steam cook in stock to tenderise it and then on the induction to make a tomato, green bean and beef tongue stew. 

125 years of Miele 

As a friend of Miele, do you have any words to say for their upcoming 125-year birthday? 

I’m very thankful that an integral company still exists, as it just shows that there is a large demand for the best quality household products. It is refreshing to see that a company can stay so relevant and important. It has been an overwhelmingly wonderful experience to work with Miele.