Food, Health & Nutrition

Storing fruit Leave it on the tree! Lemons, oranges, mandarins and cumquats all store quite well just left on the tree. Limes don’t store so well. In fact, if your oranges or mandarins are a bit sour, leave them on the tree a bit longer and they will probably sweeten...

  If you love a traditional meal of corned beef and vegetables but want to try it with a bit of a twist, Geoff Jansz has the recipe for you. 1.2kg piece of corned beef 1 teaspoon peppercorns 3-4 cloves 1 tablespoon brown sugar 1 bay leaf splash of brown vinegar 2...

Steamed fish with ginger and shallots Steam a whole fish with a handful of thin matchsticks of ginger on top of the fish, and once the fish is cooked (the flesh should begin to flake) sprinkle the fish with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and 4 tablespoons chopped...

Preparing broad beans is a labour of love. I’m not going to pretend they’re easy, but as the old saying goes – they’re worth it. Unlike other vegies which are available year-round, broad beans are one of those vegies that has a distinct season. They’re in the shops...

August issue Burke’s Backyard magazine’s spud-growing guide In the August issue of Burke’s Backyard magazine, on sale Monday, July 28, you’ll find our special kitchen garden feature on growing potatoes on page 96. It includes two easy and delicious potato...

Name: Wong bok, wong buck, wong nga bak, Chinese cabbage Appearance: An elongated,barrel-shaped cabbage, with long outer green leaves; the paler leaves inside are more crinkly, and the inner stems are white. Growing conditions: Full sun, well-drained and fertile soil,...

Name: Coriander, Chinese parsley, cilantro, ketumbar. Varieties: Coriander can ‘bolt’ to seed quickly (ie, plant doesn’t produce many leaves but flowers early then produces seeds). This is a problem in hot weather. ‘Slowbolting’ varieties are available....

Using fresh coriander leaves… These are used a lot in Asian cuisine, of course, & very popular in Mexican food, too. The Spanish word for coriander is ‘cilantro’ and that’s the name used for coriander throughout the USA. Asian stir-fries...

Varieties: Prostrate growing varieties are available, as well as various flower colours. Appearance: A dense shrub with masses of fragrant, thin, dark green leaves, usually with small blue flowers, but pink-and white-flowered varieties are also available. Growing...

  Spinach with pine nuts and sultanas Heat a tiny bit of olive oil in a frypan and stir-fry a bunch of chopped spinach leaves over fairly high heat for a few minutes, until the spinach starts to wilt. Season with salt and pepper, then toss in a generous handful...