A food lovers paradise in Port Douglas - Part 1

'Palates of Port'

This weekend saw Port Douglas as a food lovers hub with lots of exciting events to get your taste buds tingling!

On the final weekend of the Port Douglas Carnivale calendar we saw the return of everyone's favourite events along with the new and exciting... 'A Taste of Paradise' showcasing some of the Far North region's finest produce and producers.

First up on Friday night was 'Palates of Port', an event host by Port Douglas Catering & Events at the Sugar Wharf.

Almost 180 guests were treated to an 8 course degustation menu with matched wines prepared by some of Port Douglas' finest chefs from restaurants such as:




Harrison's

Salsa Bar & Grill

Bel Cibo

Nautilus

Thala Beach Lodge

Zai

Sheraton Mirage

Port Douglas Catering & Events

The mouthwatering menu included:

*Mint julep marinated ocean trout

* Chilled rock melon gazpacho with minted crab meat

* Smoked ham hock terrine with crispy hens egg

* Waldorf salad & pressed chicken terrine

 *Peccorino custard, brocolini & shaved asparagus

* Braised beef cheek tortellini

*Seafood tasting plates of seared yellow fin tuna & prawns

* Manhattan ice tea granita

 

* Daintree Tea glazed duck

* Watermelon lime and menthol

* Daintree Estates chocolate nemesis 

* and macaroons!

The entire night was hailed a huge success  and with the World Heritage Daintree Rainforest lending itself as an amazing backdrop and infamous Great Barrier Reef at your feet, could you really have asked for anything better?

 

If you were unlucky to miss out on this year's event don't worry.... it will be back next year and you can always stop by and get your own little 'Palates of Port' any day of the week at one of the participating restaurants!

Harrison's - http://www.harrisonsrestaurant.com.au/

Salsa Bar & Grill - http://www.salsaportdouglas.com.au/

Bel Cibo - http://www.belcibo.com.au/

Nautilus - http://www.nautilus-restaurant.com.au/

Thala Beach Lodge - http://www.thalabeach.com.au/

Zai - http://www.zaicafelounge.com/

Sheraton Mirage - http://www.sheratonportdouglas.com/dining

Port Douglas Catering & Events - http://www.portdouglascatering.com.au/

For more great pictures of the night you can also visit Cat's Eye Productions at: www.catseyeproductions.com.au/html/

Part 2 of 'A food lovers paradise in Port Douglas' takes us to the new an exciting event 'A Taste of Paradise' where we saw lots of local produces along with some very special guests!

Stay tuned!

African Chermoula & Curry Spiced Rice with Chicken and Prawns

This is a African inspired recipe I made up myself! It contains lots of fresh ingredients straight from the garden as well as my favourite spice mix....

Chermoula!

What you need:

• 1 kg chicken thigh fillets - skin off - diced
• 12 uncooked tiger prawns - peeled
• 4 garlic cloves - crushed and roughly chopped
• 1 knob of ginger - finely grated 
• 1 cup of chives - finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon of crushed chilli 
• 2 tablespoons of chermoula spice mix - see tips below to make your own or purchase on-line
• 1 cup of fresh coriander - roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon of sesame oil
• 1/4 cup of peanut oil
• the juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 1 tablespoon of curry powder ( I prefer Keen's Traditional Curry Powder - see tips)
• 2 Cups rice - cooked al dente 
• Salt and pepper to season

1. In a large saucepan add 2 cups of rice to salted boiling water and cook to al dente. Drain and set aside.
2. In a large bowl place the garlic, ginger, chives, chilli, chermoula, coriander, sesame oil, peanut oil and lemon juice. Combine together
3. Add the chicken and prawns. Coat with marinade and refrigerate for 3 hours (if your running short of time - go straight to cooking)
4. Place the chicken in a large non-stick pan and cook on a medium heat with the lid on (to keep in the juices) for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally
5. Add the prawns along with all the remaining marinade in the bowl and cook for a further 3 minutes (lid off)
6. Place the cooked rice into the pan and add the curry powder. Stir through, ensuring all ingredients are evenly coated.
7. Season with salt and pepper
8. Drizzle with lemon juice to serve.

Tips: 

* If it seems a little dry after adding the rice, add some water to loosen it up

* If you do not wish to have both prawns and chicken, omit whichever to your liking

* Keen's Traditional Curry Powder http://mccormick.com.au/products/mustards-and-curries/keens-curry/keens-curry.aspx

Chermoula

Chermoula is a complex blend and exotic mix of fragrant herbs and spices commonly used to spice up chicken, beef and seafood dishes. 

To make your own chermoula check out:

Poh Ling Yeow's (from Poh's Kitchen) chermoula recipe at: http://www.abc.net.au/tv/pohskitchen/stories/s2871358.htm

or

SBS Food

http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipe/15330/Chermoula_marinade

To purchase dried chermoula can can visit:

Herbie's Spices at:

 http://www.herbies.com.au/?gclid=CMiTq6_KpLcCFWZcpgodQRgAZg 

or 

Henry Langdon at:

http://www.henrylangdon.com/home.php

Enjoy :-)