I know it seems like I completely let my New Zealand stories peter out completely but I do have one more to go. It’s my last story on this gorgeous country which we both adored so much.
Mapua is a small seaside town outside of Nelson in the South Island. Of course our reason for visiting Mapua is a culinary one – one that involves eating fish. Salt and Pepper Squid to be exact. Queen Viv has fond memories of the Salt and Pepper Squid at a place called the Smokehouse.
When we arrive we see that there are two Smokehouse establishments – a cafe and a takeaway. I take a look at the Smokehouse Cafe’s menu. There was no mention of the S&P squid so I take a look at the Smokehouse’s takeaway menu. This looks a bit more promising with two kinds of fish that are native to NZ, the Gurnard (a type of Perch) and the Tarahiki (that is also called the Jackass Morwong!). There isn’t any S&P squid although there are squid rings so we place an order for a scoop of chips, a piece of the Gurnard and a piece of the Tarahiki and half a dozen squid rings. We’re told it will be about 10 minutes by the friendly woman behind the counter and we go and browse some nearby shops before coming back.
The huge package as modelled by Mr NQN
Gurnard $4.50, Tarahiki $4.50, Scoop of chips $3.60, “squid” rings 90c each
Read More
***WINNERS ANNOUNCED***
The Winners are:
Hilda T.
B. Lee
Liz P.
Congratulations! 
As a devout Handbag (and shoe and hat) addict, I know that there really is nowhere comfortable to put a large bag in a restaurant. A clutch can sit on a table but a large bag has no place. I know exactly how it hurts to put your precious bag on a restaurant floor where it risks being trodden on and I also know how uncomfortable it is to put it in your lap or behind you while you eat and how you can never relax like that.
My overweight Stam-it worked!
So the clever people at Handbag Butler have come to the rescue with a stylish solution that sits on the side of the table. It’s also tiny and fits in the cutest mini purse and can carry up to 5 kilos or 11 pounds. My beloved Marc Jacobs Stam was the ultimate test weighing in at an obese 2 kgs (the chain weighs as much as the bag).
Thanks to the lovely people at Handbag Butler we are giving away 3 Handbag Butlers to 3 lucky Not Quite Nigella readers!
All you need to tell me your dream bag (mine happens to be the Hermes Blue Jean Birkin but at $12,000 a pop, it remains a dream for now!). Add your entry via a comment to this story. You can enter once daily as long as your answer is different.
This competition is open to Australian readers. The competition ends midnight AEST (Australian Eastern Standard Time) on the 31st of August, 2009.
Good Luck to everyone!
Love,
Lorraine
xxx
Queen Viv models the pan fried dumplings
As a food blogger, I find it difficult to go to the same place twice. However my husband is a creature of habit and loves going somewhere reliable and ordering the same thing every single time. He good naturedly puts up with the constantly revolving door of restaurant adventures whilst still pining for his favourite restaurant Shanghai Night. He loves the dumplings there and we often joke that somewhere under that Finnish/Anglo exterior beats the heart of a Northern Chinese man. I promised him that as a treat for getting out of hospital, we could go to Shanghai Night and my ever loyal friends and fellow dumpling lovers Queen Viv and Miss America immediately piped up to come along for the ride – after all Winter is dumpling season. The song I am hearing in my head is my own version of Deck The Halls: “Tis the season to eat dumplings! Fa la la la la la la la la!”.
The queue is long, as witnessed by the crowd gathered outside. We have a booking for 7pm but here a booking is not quite a booking. It just means that they apologise several times while you wait. While we wait (we’re seated at 7.25pm), we see a framed award at the front that says that Shanghai Night was a Nominee for “Best Shopfront Presentation” from the Ashfield Mayor. I love the food, but I can’t say that the window is anything spectacular. Queen Viv loves the ceramic fish on the counter which she tries to lift up to take a closer look at only to find that it is glued down.
The crowd gathers
Prices have gone up since our last visit by about 70c-$1 per dish. As we’re here to partake of a Dumplingalooza fest, we order dumplings a plenty. The wall specials tell us that there are two types of new dumplings (a fish and a lamb & onion dumpling) and with the 18 portion size being only $2 more than the 12 portion size, we figure we’ll go the whole way. And when I look up from studying the new menu, who do I see sitting next to me at an adjoining table but one of my favourite food bloggers – the lovely Yas from Hungry Digital Elf!
Tofu and chicken mince on rice $7.50
There’s no sense of order with entrees or mains here. When it comes out is when it comes out. Our tofu with chicken mince on rice arrives first. It’s a purely comforting dish with the soft tofu and small chicken pieces coated in a delicious sauce. Sometimes we find that there is more flavour than other times. Tonight it’s good although the carrots are way too crunchy. It’s a huge plate too and more than one person could eat.
Pork and mushroom steamed dumplings $7.50 for 16
My husband’s favourite dish arrives next: the huge serving of 16 thick skinned pork and mushroom filled dumplings. Not as delicate as the Xiao Long Bao they’re nevertheless sustaining and filling and when paired with chili sauce and vinegar they’re delicious.
Miss America presents! Xiao Long Bao $6.50 for 8. Can you spot what’s wrong with this picture?
Read More
Tradespeople. Can’t live with them, can’t live without them. And if I had the choice I’d live without them. Renovating our new place is proving a challenge and I realised why they have such a bad reputation. Forget “The Cable Guy”, why couldn’t we have a movie called “The Disappearing Plumber”. I for one would like to know what happened to mine.
I know what you’re thinking: I got cocky. I had success with the Choux pastry and now I am just making it left, right and centre. The truth is, I just wanted to see if my choux was beginner’s luck. I sometimes have that – the very first time I made macarons they worked and then the five batches after they didn’t. So I wanted to see whether I would be able to replicate the initial choux success or whether I would be a one hit wonder.
I also promised a friend that I’d try and make a Croquembouche for an event but with the upcoming move I had to beg off making the entire monstrosity. I hate to let people down so I did what I thought was an easier alternative. My enthusiasm for things always gets the better of me and once I decided to do it, I somehow neglected to think through the 10 steps needed in order to produce these. Before I knew it, I’d made the custard, choux and was about to make the cupcakes when I realised that making an entire croquembouche might have been easier. It was 2.30pm and I had to meet the plumber at the new place across the bridge at 4 pm. I was on step 5 and had to somehow get from step 5 to 10 and get the whole thing photographed before it was whisked away. I only just made it and I passed the cupcakes onto my happy friend who loved them but probably had no idea how close I was to not finishing them.
Please excuse the lack of in progress photos. Caramel and the ensuing panic does not make for good in progress photographs. But do trust me that these little cupcakes are divine. A crunchy toffee, a sumptuously creamy chilled vanilla custard burst inside and a soft vanilla cupcakes. Sweet dreams are made of this.
And then I got the call. You know the one from the plumber where he says he won’t be able to make it to our place after all? And after my little screaming and cursing fit I calmed myself down and my friend asked me what was wrong. I explained to her and she was appropriately sympathetic but she also pointed out that I was lucky to get a call from them. Oh yes there’s a special place for these kinds of people. And I am certain that they aren’t served Croquembouche Cupcakes there.
So tell me Dear Reader, have you ever been stood up and who by?
Also the lucky winner of the Escapade Events opening night party double pass is Effie B! And for those of you who missed out, you can still subscribe for $10 and come along to the party
Read More
Russell Crowe does it. Wendell Sailor does it. And what is it exactly? They succumb to the treasure trove of goodies at Sweet Infinity, a little bakery in an unlikely stretch of Riley Street in Woolloomooloo. Crowe goes for the lemon meringue tarts whilst Sailor loves the pies. We’re not in the same celebrity league by any stretch of the imagination but that doesn’t stop Teena and I from dropping by one morning for a coffee and to try some of these famous lemon meringue pies and brownies.
There’s a steady stream of customers inside the warmly lit bakery. A dozen or so wooden stools sit to the back between the counter and the busy kitchen where from 2am chef Leanne Beck (formerly of Infinity Sourdough in Darlinghurst) bakes and bakes and bakes.
Spinach roll $5
Read More
What is NQN up to now? 
NQN on Facebook
RSS
