Raw Food Kitchen - Fremantle Markets

A rainy Sunday brought me to the Fremantle Markets for a sneaky taster of what fresh produce Freo has to offer.

We were meeting friends later in the afternoon for a few drinks on a Sunday Sesh but I wanted to walk through the Freo markets and see what goodies I could find!

Normally I would not go past Michelle’s Crepe’s – where you can order any sweet or savoury crepe your heart desires or chose one from the menu board. I usually get a crepe filled with too many ingredients to list so that the crepe is bursting with filling and fills me right up!

Today I wanted to try something different from the Markets.

I had read a blog post about the Raw Kitchen in Freo not too long ago and wanted to try their “Raw Pizza.” At $8.70 PER SLICE I felt this purchase was not for my stomach but for the greater good of my blog. (I had to try it out of curiosity!!).

This Raw food fad interests me and I understand why people find raw food and vegan food a “healthy” path to take, however I am not sold on the “research” into claiming that eating raw makes you feel more energized…I decided to give this “raw food” a go regardless.

The dehydrated buckwheat base was covered in a thick layer of sundried tomato pesto which was very strong. For a usual tomato paste base that is typically on a pizza, this is okay as it compliments the toppings, but pesto is different. Pesto you only need a thin layer, and I just felt a little sick by the end of the second bite.

The pizza was topped with very few slices of mushroom, tomato, olives and freshly chopped basil. The strange ingredient was a nut cheese which was very creamy and tasted a little like sour cream.

Overall the experience was a little disappointing. Firstly, I was still very hungry after my one slice of $8.70 raw pizza. Secondly, the pesto combined with the “nut cheese” was too strong and overpowering for my liking. It was too rich. Thirdly, it was way overpriced. I get that the pizza was raw…but doesn’t this take less time than putting the pizza in the oven??

The only positive I can’t think of is that I enjoyed the crunchy dehydrated buckwheat base; the texture reminded me of a cracker or biscuit.

 I guess I didn’t try any desserts like their cocoa balls or cheesecakes on offer or their raw smoothies/juices…which could have swayed me otherwise…

Probably wouldn’t go back, and definitely not if there is Michelle’s Crepes on offer.

Have you ever tried the Raw Kitchen in Fremantle?

Tell me your experiences on raw food!

 

Seafood Curry Laksa

The other night I was spoiled with a Seafood Curry Laksa.

Laksa is a Malaysian dish that is usually egg and Vermicelli noodles, seafood, bean shoots and spices among other things in a coconut cream broth.

This is a meal can be simply made by mixing the store-bought Laksa paste with coconut milk, seafood and veggies…producing a pretty damn good laksa!

But no, this night, Jack decided to make the Curry Laksa FROM SCRATCH.

I’m talking – the prawns still with their shells on so that he could fry them up in oil and use that “prawn oil” in the Laksa for extra authenticity!

The result from a lot of work, spices ground from scratch, prawns peeled and fried and seafood including FISH BALLS, prawns and scallops added…is THE BEST TASTING MEAL Jack’s made from date! Amazing! So authentic, I’m surprised it came from our Aussie kitchen!

If you’re in the mood to spoil someone and have some time and some weird Asian ingredients at hand, then give this a go! It’s certainly worth every bit!

I'm also a huge fan of "Fish balls" which you can usually buy from your local Asian supermarket. These are white, smooth balls of fish meat which have a sponge-like texture and remind me a little of spongy ping-pong balls. I think i'm going to purchase some just to keep in the freezer so that I can add them to the next curry I make, becuase they sure are yum!

Seafood Curry Laksa Recipe:

Ingredients

Spice Paste
4-5 shallots, chopped
6-7 cloves garlic, chopped
Thumb size piece ginger, peeled and chopped
1 fresh red chilli (more if you want more kick!)
1 heaped tbsp dried prawns
½ cup water

Broth
12 green prawns
4 tbsp vegetable oil
180 mls of laksa paste
1 litre chicken stock
1 can coconut cream
Fish balls
Fried tofu puffs
1 tsp sugar
Fish sauce
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 lime

Finishing Touches
Rice vermicelli noodles
Egg noodles
Shredded cooked chicken meat (boiled-stock can be used for the broth!)
Bean sprouts
Spring onions, chopped
Red chilli, sliced
Coriander leaves
Deep fried shallots
Fresh lime wedges

Preparation

Process in blender, shallots, garlic, ginger, chillies, dried prawns and water until it forms a smooth paste. Set aside.

Shell prawns and reserve meat. Heat oil in a large pot and fry prawns shells for about 1 minute until they turn red then remove from pan. Add spice paste to prawn flavoured oil and fry for a minute before adding the laksa paste. Fry until fragrant, about 2 minutes and pour in the stock.

Bring to the boil and then add coconut cream. It's always good to allow time to simmer for the flavours to come out. Add fish balls and fried tofu. Add sugar, fish sauce and salt to taste. Squeeze in the lime.

Blanch rice and egg noodles in boiling water and transfer some of each to serving bowls. Poach reserved prawn meat in same water. Pour over the broth and top with chicken, prawns and bean sprouts. Garnish with the spring onions, chilli, coriander and fried shallots. Squeeze in the lime before eating.