The Curated Plate – Culinary Festival 2023

Savour the Sunshine Coast’s Most Celebrated Asian Cuisine

Tom Hitchcock, head chef of Spirit House in Yandina, has had the Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival on his hit list since it began. Chef Tom and his team will be offering a prawn roll made with Mooloolaba king prawn meat in BBQ-toasted Taiwanese milk buns, covered with a slaw of cabbage, kaffir lime, shallots, spring onion, Vietnamese mint and Thai basil, with a green nam jim dressing of local Green Valley finger lime, mayonnaise and chervil.

He explains that the dish is inspired by his time in Thailand. “I would walk down the road, from where I was staying, in the afternoon, to get a milk bun shaped like a hot dog roll with various toppings and fillings,” Tom says. “So, for this dish, I kept the traditional combination of prawns and green nahm, which is traditionally used as a seafood dipping sauce.” And his suggested wine match? A chilled glass of crisp, zingy Champagne – like Taittinger!

Sum Yung Guys in Noosaville has built a strong following for their individual take on classic Asian street food, and the guys in question, chefs and co-owners Michael ‘Moe’ Rickard, Jeremiah Jones and Matt Sinclair, are showcasing a version of the much-loved dish of Hainanese chicken, made with steamed chicken thigh, spring onion, ginger relish, chilli sauce and garlic rice. They recommend a cold beverage that will let the dish’s robust flavours take the foreground, like a glass of white wine or lager.

Mitch Smith is the executive chef and co-owner of a host of restaurants on the Sunshine Coast, from the modern Greek cuisine of Spero in Mooloolaba to a bunch of casual Asian-themed bistros with Giddy Geisha in Maroochydore, Piggyback in Palmwoods, Rice Boi in Mooloolaba, and fine-dining with RB Dining in Mooloolaba.

Smith says that his stand will be serving a 10-hour slow-cooked beef short rib in a Penang curry sauce. Curries are some of his favourite dishes, as he seeks the perfect balance between elements. The beef is coming from Hamilton Park Wagyu. The Phat Wag. The slow-cooked rib, in a young coconut braise, will be finished with the curry sauce and the reduced braising liquid, then topped with the likes of Thai basil and kaffir lime for freshness. Mitch reckons the perfect liquid pairing is an ice-cold beer.

Under the 12-year tenure of executive chef and local legend Dan Jarrett, the award-winning Tamarind Restaurant and popular cooking school at Spicers Tamarind Retreat have become the region’s culinary gems for their fresh, inventive take on modern Asian cooking.

Jarrett was raised on the Sunshine Coast, where he lives with his young family and has been delighting foodies as a chef for the past 25 years. He’s built an extraordinary insider’s knowledge of the region’s produce and suppliers.

For the 2023 Sunshine Coast Asian Food Festival, Chef Dan and his team are offering enticingly aromatic Chinese-style BBQ pork ribs made with local honey: sticky, juicy, incredibly tender slow-cooked pork ribs coated in a Hoi Sin and five spice-flavoured sauce – and Dan says the perfect pairing is a crisp, refreshing lager.

Enjoy the shade and lush surrounds at Spicers Tamarind Retreat with picnic blankets and cushions on the slopes of the grassed amphitheatre listening to the soulful sounds of singer and guitarist Dan McGahan, or join the cooking demonstrations by The Tamarind’s own chefs. The fresh, vibrant flavours of Asia love being paired with a crisp, lively Riesling, and you won’t find a better way to discover its joys than one of the Riesling Masterclasses hosted by wine expert Travis Watson.