MADE in NZ

From whitebaiting in Taranaki to camping on the shores of Lake Benmore, three of Australia's leading chefs share memories of growing up in New Zealand and the places they hold dear.

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BEN SHEWRY

Award-winning chef Ben Shewry made his name in Melbourne, running one of Australia's best restaurants, Attica. But it was a farm in North Taranaki that first shaped his food philosophy, teaching him the importance of great produce.

I had a very rural, adventurous childhood. We didn’t have much money at all, but we never felt poor. We always had things to do, like whitebaiting, snorkelling for paua, kina [sea urchin], mussels and pipis.

Whitebait are endangered now, like any wild seafood that’s under pressure. Back in the early ’80s it was pretty plentiful, and whitebaiting was a national pastime. They are tiny and translucent, nothing like the whitebait in Australia. It’s a very slow way of fishing and you don’t get very much – a decent amount would be a cup of whitebait. That was the way I made pocket money, making $35 a kilo for my whitebait from the local butcher. It’s so delicate, and the best way to cook it is just with a little butter and a light toss. We also love to eat it in a fritter with whisked eggs.

I have a great affinity for paua [abalone] too. Paua fritters are something that I miss. We have mostly black-lipped abalone, and one of the ways we’d tenderise them was mincing them, using a cast-iron crank-handled mincer. We’d put paua through the mincer, then chopped onions, salt and pepper, parsley, eggs and flour, to make a fritter. They were always so delicious.