The famous Laura Thai Marinade

My thai marinade has become infamous with those who frequent our dinner table and also when we are invited to barbeques. I get asked for the recipe all the time, so finally folks, here is the secret to my Thai success!

This amount makes enough marinade to coat 6 chicken skewers, or 2 pieces of meat.

Combine the following in a bowl or measuring cup:

• 1 stalk lemon grass, end roughly chopped
• 2-3 Tbs olive or peanut oil (I use olive)
• 1 fresh red chilli, de-seeded if desired
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped coriander
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 2 Tbs fish sauce
• 2 tsp brown sugar

Mix well, so the sugar dissolves. Pour over your favourite meat - I have done this with chicken, turkey and fish and all have turned out superbly. I think it would taste good on pork, but unsure about red meats.

The marinading can be done an hour before cooking the meat. I usually give it 4 hours.

The meat can then be grilled, barbequed or baked.

Thai marinade in action!

On Tuesday night I had 3 of my gorgeous girlfriends over for dinner and we were having so much fun and laughing without the need for alcohol!

Our dinner was detox friendly, pregnancy friendly and dairy free. 

Not only did we have Thai marinade chicken, but we also had sweet potato slices shallow fried in coconut oil, garlicky goodness snowpeas and a simple & delicious salad provided by Kate & Erin - toasted almonds, broccolini, avocado, tomato and lettuce mix in a balsamic dressing.

Yusheng - the Malaysian Chinese New Year salad!

Gong Xi Fa Cai to all all those celebrating Chinese New Year! We say goodbye to the year of the dragon, and say hello to the year of the snake!


My husband needs to travel to Malaysia quite a lot and he told me about this traditional salad celebration he gets involved in when he is over there. It is known as Yusheng (or yee sang), which translates to Prosperity Toss.

This amazing salad has its ingredients chosen very carefully as each ingredient has a different meaning and if you ask me, it doesn’t sound all that bad healthwise either!


The base of the dish contains capsicum, chilli, jellyfish, sun-dried oranges, red pickled ginger and turnips. These make the base ingredients. Those eating the salad then proceed to add ingredients to build the salad:

• The raw fish is added (usually this is salmon, but traditionally wolf herring was used), symbolising abundance and excess through the year. 
• Pomelo or lime is added to the fish, adding luck and auspicious value. 
• Pepper is then dashed over in the hope of attracting more money and valuables. 
• Oil is then poured out, circling the ingredients and encouraging money to flow in from all directions. 
• Carrots are added indicating blessings of good luck. 
• Shredded green radish is placed symbolising eternal youth. 
• Shredded white radish is added for prosperity in business and promotion at work.

The condiments are finally added:

• First, peanut crumbs are dusted on the dish, symbolizing a household filled with gold and silver. 
• Sesame seeds quickly follow symbolising a flourishing business. 
• Deep-fried flour crisps in the shape of golden pillows is then added with wishes that literally the whole floor would be filled with gold.

Once put together, all the diners at the table stand up and on cue, proceed to toss the shredded ingredients into the air with chopsticks while saying various auspicious wishes out loud. The higher the toss, the more prosperous the year!

What a fun way to start the new year! :)

Summer meal favourites - exotic barbeque and salad

Summertime in Australia calls for the numero uno cooking device to come out and play - the barbeque. While charring meat is not good for you, the slow grilling of meat can be very healthy. And barbeques don't need to be all about sausages! You can make a barbeque an exotic affair with a bit of imagination and motivation, which hopefully this meal will inspire!

It was a gorgeous summer evening in Melbourne, so it calls for a meal to match it - barbequed turkey steaks marinaded in my own home made thai marinade, charred asparagus and zucchini spiced with cumin, mango, spinach & mint salad and a glass of Queensland mango wine. 

A healthy, whole food meal and would be great for a detox (minus the wine!)

Rosy Coleslaw

My rose coloured coleslaw... I got the original recipe from a thermomix party, this stuff tastes awesome and is vegan friendly!

Chop up 1 apple, 1 carrot, 1 beetroot, 2 spring onions (or half a red onion), and half a bunch of coriander. You can add other veg if you like, I added a capsicum to this batch, but have done it with spinach before as well. 
Mix it with the juice of half a lemon, 2 tablespoons of tahini, a good dash of olive oil and pepper to taste. 
This is a great side to barbeques and meats. The apple takes the bite out of the onion but mixes well with the coriander to make it taste very fresh. The beetroot and carrot add earthy flavours, but its not overpowering.

Truly, this one is pinkishly delish! :)

My favourite summer salad - mango mint nom nom

This combination of flavours has to be my all time favourite summer salad and is very popular amongst my family and friends. The best part? It's really super easy to make!

Toast some pine nuts in a fry pan with a little oil. Watch them carefully - they go from nicely toasted to burnt very quickly. When they start to smell fragrant, toss them around to brown both sides. Remove from heat when cooked and allow them to cool on a plate.

Slice a mango, wash spinach leaves, tear up mint leaves, chop up a capsicum and combine with the pine nuts. add some cracked pepper and a drizzle of olive oil and toss. The flavours of the fruit and vegies are so strong, a potent dressing isn't needed.

Don't feel obliged to stay with just these ingredients - depending on what is in the fridge, I may add extras - spring onions, avocado, cucumber and sundried tomatoes have all made guest appearances to the salad.

The mango and mint hit is so refreshing and summery, it is great with barbeques and grilled fish or meats.

Whats on tonights menu? Quinoa Tabouli!

Ok, so its not really tabouli. Tabouli is traditionally made with bulgur, parsley and tomatoes chopped up. This is a bunch of other things chopped up, but its pretty and green and still just as nice to have as a side.

With winter approaching, its important to keep up our leafy greens. They are still out there growing, but because we associate making salads as a summer affair, we tend to skip our raw crunchy fresh veg and replace it with roasted goodies. Don’t get me wrong, roasted vegetables still are a fantastic source of nutrients, however some nutrients can be lost in cooking, so its important to keep up the raw stuff as well!

This salad is chock full of leafy greens, which are a powerhouse of nutritional goodness and are one of the most concentrated sources of nutrients in foods. They are a rich source of minerals (including iron, calcium, potassium and magnesium) and vitamins (including vitamin C, E, K and many of the B vitamins). They also contain a variety of phytonutrients including beta-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin which are important for protecting cells from eye damage and age-related problems.  The darker the green, the richer the nutrients. Kale (also known as Tuscan cabbage) is a favourite among naturopaths and healthy food followers as it very dark green and therefore very nutritious (and delicious!).  To learn more about kale, goto my friend Natalies brilliant blog, where she shows you how to cook kale in 5 ways... http://nataliethenaturopath.tumblr.com/post/21426066710/kale-five-ways-part-i-kale-smoothie

Now its salad making time!

How to make...

1. Cook up ¾ cup of raw quinoa (pronounced keen-WAH) in a rice cooker (the ratio of water to quinoa is 2:1) or saucepan. It should take about 20 minutes to cook. Drain (if cooked in a saucepan) and allow it to cool.
2. Toast a handful of pine nuts in a frypan on a low heat. Once they start to be aromatic and turn golden, take off the heat, they can burn quite quickly. Set aside to cool. *This is an optional extra, but adds new dimensions when added to foods!
3. Using a knife or food chopper (not sure if thats the official name of it, but it chops food, so therefore I name it this!), chop up finely your greens. This can be whatever greens you want. Tonight I used a mix of spinach, rocket, kale and basil. I used a few handfuls of spinach, 1 handful of rocket, a handful of basil and 10ish kale leaves (stalks removed).You could also add parsley, mint (if you’re after a freshness, but I wouldn’t add much), beetroot greens, coriander, mustard greens, carrot tops, celery leaves, bok choy...  Once finely chopped, put into your salad bowl.
4. Chop up any extra ingredients you want. This not only gives you colour, but provides the extra flavours which will complement your greens. Tonight I added pine nuts (see above), sundried tomatoes, red onion and capsicum. Stuck for other vegies to add? I’ve also used tomatoes, carrot and celery. Use your palate to decide what you want. Add the chopped extras to the bowl with the greens.
5. Just before serving, combine all ingredients, add cracked pepper, olive oil and a dash of sesame oil (if you have it), then toss.

Serves 4.

This can served as a side (as pictured above), or by itself. Tonight I served it will salmon cooked in coconut oil and topped with salt, pepper and shichimi (Japanese pepper mix).

Don’t be afraid of your kitchen, it can smell your fear. Instead, face it head on armed with a bunch of ingredients and show it what you can do!

 –Laura x

Whats on tonights menu? Rainbow Salad!

Whats on tonights menu?

It’s getting colder outside, so its good to have a nice hearty meal! Winter doesn’t mean you should give salads a rest either! You can make lighter salads for summer and use more root vegetables (carrots, pumpkin, potatoes, beetroot) in winter. This is one of my favourite winter salads, which I named rainbow salad because its o so pretty to look at! It is a tasty side dish for most meats. I usually have it with fish or chicken.

How to make...

1. Lightly fry up 1 sweet potato, which has been chopped into 1cm cubes. Add salt and pepper to taste.When the colour starts to change (it will go a deeper orange when cooked) and it starts to go a bit brown, add in 1 chopped red onion and 4 chopped broccolini stalks (broccoli also works well). Cook until onion is transluscent and broccolini is a brighter green. Take off the heat and allow it to cool.
2. Grate up 1 medium sized raw beetroot. Add to the bowl.
3. Chop up 4 cups of leafy greens. I use 2 cups of baby spinach, 1 cup of kale and 1 cup of rocket. Use whatever combination you want, but avoid iceberg lettuce! Add to the bowl.
4. Finely chop up 100-150g of sundried tomatoes. These add a fantastic flavour to the mix.  Add to the bowl.
5. Once cooled, add your sweet potato mix to the bowl, then add some cracked pepper and drizzle extra virgin olive oil. Toss just prior to serving (otherwise the beetroot tends to overtake the colour!)

Serves 4.

Another success which shows that experimentation in the kitchen can take your taste buds on an amazing journey. –Laura x