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rupalbhatikar

In all the years I’ve made bread of any kind (fr

In all the years I’ve made bread of any kind (from this @mountzeroolives olive oil & @olssonssalt flaky salt focaccia to the humble Indian roti and puri), both as a chef and home cook, I’ve repeatedly been humbled by it. Every instance it hasn’t gone to plan(it happens more than you think), it’s given me sleepless nights. I’ve over analysed the hydration, the yeast, my technique, et all. But the joy it brings every time I get any success from making it is hard to match - when the crust is just right, big pockets of air, properly seasoned, perfectly risen, to tear with your hands. I owe a lot of my ability with bread to making chef @jacqueline_challinor’s recipe during my time at Nomad - there’s something to be said for making it first thing every work day, cooking it and then watching people enjoying eating it. I’m always soooo going to be that Pao(the word for bread in Goa) loving girl! #focacciabread #breadbaking #melbournefood #breadmaking

A plate of expertly made poha and coffee is truly

A plate of expertly made poha and coffee is truly one of the greatest breakfasts to ever exist! (Upma could never compete 😏)The Goan Batat Fov/Poha is a typical vegan savoury breakfast commonly enjoyed in homes across the state - cooked with potatoes and with or without onion. The fragrance of curry leaves, the crunch from toasted peanuts and brightness of lemon juice are some of the key flavours to the dish. Topped with crispy sev for that extra crunch *chefs kiss * #indianfood #indiancuisine #indianbreakfast #kandapoha #goanfood

A little Mexican Fiesta - beer battered Old bay sp

A little Mexican Fiesta - beer battered Old bay spiced fish tacos with avocado-jalapeño crema, tajin spiced charred corn, peppers and onions, a lime-y carrot-cabbage slaw and a cherry tomato salsa. Lots of hot sauce & cold beverages on the side. What else do you need on a hot summer day? #mexicanfood #melbournefood #inmykitchen #reelsinstagram #beerbatteredfish

A slice of life… Aussie Summer edition. How I lo

A slice of life… Aussie Summer edition. How I love summer produce - the heirloom tomatoes 🍅 are popping off in our home garden patch right now. So are the jalapenos and peppers! With every year, we get a little better at the gardening and they taste even better! Wouldn’t be an Aussie summer without cold prawn rolls (now a staple) for picnics. And making more desserts than ever before - a classic creme caramel eaten on the balcony. 🎶 ☀️ #aussiesummer #melbournefood #homegarden #australia #tomatoes🍅

Raw Mango Rice (Karnataka style Mavinakayi Chitran

Raw Mango Rice (Karnataka style Mavinakayi Chitranna) - hot days made better with cooling meals like this! Always reminds me of Bangalore Darshinis(IYKYK). Taking leftover day old rice(I’ve used a Indian short grain variety called Jeerga Samba) and tossing it with crushed raw green mango, red chillies and garlic, tempered with lots of textural ingredients like peanuts, curry leaves, mustard seeds and urad dal. Tossed it all together. Eaten with a side of yogurt raita with grated cucumbers. Summer in a bowl! #indianfood #mangorecipes #karnatakafood #southindianfood #homecooking

Confit Chicken (absolutely incredible cockerel fro

Confit Chicken (absolutely incredible cockerel from @aurumpoultryco) with heirloom carrots, lemon, tarragon & garlic. Served with a three pepper sauce (white, black & pickled green peppercorn) with mushrooms. These marylands were brined and slow cooked in @mountzeroolives olive oil and yielded the most delicious tender meat ever! The caramelised lemons, garlic and carrots *chefs kiss*. And now I have a little jar of schmaltz(chicken fat-olive oil) to make even more delicious things! #melbournefood #confitchicken #inmykitchen #roastchicken #homecooking

Out with the old (year), in with the new (year 202

Out with the old (year), in with the new (year 2025). Hope this year brings us the things that truly matter - contentment in everything we do, the love & support of our people, the ability to stand for what’s right and keeping us in touch with reality(outside the internet). 2024 was a tough year for a lot of people in many ways(it definitely pushed me in ways I wasn’t prepared for) but if there was one place that always brought me joy it was being in my kitchen and I never once took that for granted - cooking, learning and re-learning (as a chef as well as a home cook). I hope 2025 brings me many more of those moments- to cook and share food & culture, familiar and new traditions, to bring everyone to the dining table for a good meal and great conversations. Happy New Year People! 🥳P.S the beautiful framed art in my kitchen in the second photo is by @shengyi.lee #newyear #happynewyear #2025goals #inmykitchen #melbournelife

Roast chicken, brown mushroom, leek & tarragon ski

Roast chicken, brown mushroom, leek & tarragon skillet pie because how good is making everything in one pan 🤣 Brined and roasted chicken breast, browned mushrooms, green peas, a base of garlic, leeks & celery, seasoned with tarragon vinegar, mustard & pepper. A bit of flour and chicken stock. A generous garnish of chives, parsley & tarragon. Store bought puff pastry, egg wash & sesame seeds. All in one skillet! #homecooking #aussiefood #chickenpotpie #australianfood #melbournefood

Favourite Christmas lunch snacks - some oysters to

Favourite Christmas lunch snacks - some oysters to start, a little caviar-cultured creme fraiche-potato gems situation, a @nigelslater tartine of two salmon (but made with hot & cold smoked trout), mussel escabeche w confit garlic& smoked paprika aioli. Snacks must be made for the long periods when the bread is still baking in the oven and meats are resting 🤣 how good is a day of nibbling constantly with music and good company at home! #christmas2024 #melbournefood #aussiechristmas #snacksonsnacks

This Christmas, we traded our pavlova for a Black

This Christmas, we traded our pavlova for a Black Forest Trifle ala the queen herself @beatrixbakes (recipe on @kitchenwarehouse) with a few adaptrixes(that I hope would make her proud) - there’s cherry jelly made from fresh cherry juice, a rich dark chocolate cake (soaked in Pedro Ximenez sherry), cherries roasted in verjuice, fresh cherries, Valrhona chocolate custard and a whipped salted vanilla mascarpone cream. Really need to work on those clean lines but what fun assembling this was. The flavours are proper nostalgic and made @mangubhatikar very very happy. Merry Christmas to you and yours! 🎄Hope your day is spent in the magical spell of good times with loved ones over delicious food, great conversations and even better wine! 😆 #Christmas2024 #aussiechristmas #melbournefood #trifle #blackforestcake #christmasvibes

A perfect grilled chicken breast - moist, sliceabl

A perfect grilled chicken breast - moist, sliceable, seasoned and the most crispy chicken skin! As a serial hater of the chicken breast (dark meat always), I was really craving a proper club sandwich(swipe for lunch view) and it really needed this. So I dry brined, dried out the skin in the fridge overnight, started skin side down in a cast iron pan, finished in the oven, rested and carved. So chuffed with myself for how this turned out! #chickenbreast #clubsandwich #grilledchicken #inmykitchen #homecooking

Bringing out that good focaccia for this stracciat

Bringing out that good focaccia for this stracciatella from @thatsamorecheese topped with charred spring onion, jalapeno & seaweed salsa and @maggie_beer (the one and only) verjuice pickled & marinated mushrooms (both enoki & shimeji). It’s all allium-y perfection and I’m here for it. So good for a little lunch in the sun! #mushrooms #melbournefood #homecooking #stracciatella

Mangalore Buns aka Indian banana bread but make it

Mangalore Buns aka Indian banana bread but make it deep fried and delicious 🤤 An overnight fermented dough with crushed ripe bananas, flour (I use a mix of whole wheat and plain flour), cumin seeds, sugar, yogurt. Rolled and deep fried until golden and puffed. Swipe right for the real magic ☺️Best enjoyed with a green chilli-ginger-coconut-tamarind chutney. A staple breakfast treat that’s unmatched. #indianbreakfast #indianbread #indianfood #mangalorefood

Bengali Aloo Dum - one of the greatest potato dish

Bengali Aloo Dum - one of the greatest potato dishes to ever exist in the Indian cooking repertoire, no doubt. Chonky (or baby) potatoes are partly deep fried until they have a golden crust in pungent mustard oil and then slow cooked in a sauce with onions, tomatoes and spices. Best enjoyed with luchi (Bengali deep fried bread) for pure indulgence. It takes real skill and elbow grease to patiently bhuno (to fry) the masala to make it what it is but boy does the patience get rewarded! #bengalifood #dumaloo #indianfood #melbournefood #vegetarian

Brown butter Goan Recheado Calamari stuffed with a

Brown butter Goan Recheado Calamari stuffed with a prawn mousse - the perfect dish to eat with crusty bread. The recheado (pronounced reshaad, which means stuffed in Portuguese from our colonial past) is a chilli paste made with toddy/coconut vinegar, ginger, garlic and whole spices typically used to stuff/ slather over seafood. I cooked out the spice paste while also charring the outside of the calamari ‘sausage’ until the butter developed delicious nutty notes and then finished in the oven for a perfect cook. So proud of how this turned out - Tasted just like home 🏠 #goanfood #indianfood #melbournefood #homecooking #inmykitchen

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

I feel very privileged to live, work and cook on Country. I am grateful every day for the opportunities it brings me and my loved ones. I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Custodians and Owners of the lands and pay my respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.

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