Angelo Georgalli, aka The Game Chef, teams up with Fish & Game New Zealand for his new cookbook.
The Fish + Game Cookbook is an intriguing collection of "wanna-be bush tucker meets Grey Lynn polish", says Sonja de Friez.
Angelo Georgalli Photo: Beatnik Publishing
"Imagine a church parishioner cookbook or a school fundraiser cookbook but it's written by one person and that person is an excellent food writer with three books to their name. And then make it only hunt-or-catch with a strong South Island bent and I think you've got it", she tells Kathryn Ryan.
Photo: Beatnik Publishing
The Fish + Game Cookbook is a beautiful book to look at and an entertaining read, Sonja says.
As a non-hunter - flexitarian, predominantly vegetarian - she was both perturbed and delighted by the idea of cooking up pūkeko breasts.
The book's "delightfully colloquial" descriptions of how to prepare fish and game are very clear and read something like a modern version of (the highly practical 1861 classic) Beeton's Cookery Book, she says.
Georgalli's recipes are mostly designed for the home cook and a few are accessible to non-hunters, such as a salmon dish with roasted strawberries that would be great for Christmas.
Vegetarians can make good use of recipes for flavoured butters, rubs and sauces that would go well with falafel, Sonja says.
"The recipes are intriguing and interesting and most of them I'm probably not going to try but goodness I love reading about them."
The Fish + Game Cookbook is available from Beatnik Publishing and the Fish & Game NZ website.
Three Angelo Georgalli recipes from the RNZ collection:
Greek Rabbit Stifado
Greek Rabbit Stifado by Angelo Georgalli. Photo: Sally Greer
Rack of Lamb with Grilled Haloumi & Asparagus
Rack of Lamb with Grilled Haloumi & Asparagus. Photo: Sally Greer
Salmon Burger with Hollandaise, Dill & Lemon Dressing
Salmon Burger with Hollandaise, Dill & Lemon Dressing. Photo: Sally Greer
Angelo Georgalli shared tips on hunting and cooking game in the 2015 TV series The Game Chef:
