The executive chef of dine by Peter Gordon at Sky City answers your cuisine questions.
Watermelon has such a beautiful colour - is there some other way I can put it to use apart from in fruit salads?
- Elizabeth Black
Mix watermelon chunks with diced feta, basil leaves and lemon juice. Or juice in a fruit juicer for a refreshing drink mixed with ice and lime juice. Roughly chop, mix with torn mint leaves, rosewater and toasted pinenuts and serve as a salad base for raw tuna or salmon.
I'd like to make sun-dried or oven-dried tomatoes at the end of this summer. Are some varieties of tomatoes better suited to drying than others?
- Maggie
Choose a tomato that's high in flavour and natural sweetness. A sour or watery tomato, once dried, will be a waste of effort.
If a recipe specifies roasted capsicums, but I don't have time to do the roasting and paperbag thing, can I use raw capsicum instead?
- Martin
No you can't - they have completely different tastes and textures. To roast, cut fresh capsicum into quarters, brush the skin with oil, then cook under a grill or over a barbecue and it'll take just a few minutes. You can then plunge into iced water - the skin will come off relatively easily.
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