Relish

By Rowan Bishop.

Press release

Relish

Chutneys, relishes, preserves, sauces
& dips from around the world
by Rowan Bishop, photography by Carolyn Robertson

Following on from the success of her 2013 book Rowan Bishop with Relish, Rowan Bishop is back to elevate the humble relish to another level.

Along with dipping sauces, preserves, pestos dressings and dips, Rowan shows us how all these sides not only deliver sensational taste and texture combinations but can transform even the simplest dish into a celebration of taste.

Relish is timely considering the tradition of preserving fresh, seasonable
produce has undergone a renaissance of late due to the cost-of-living crisis and people wanting to eat sustainably.

In Relish, Rowan shares recipes that let the natural qualities of the ingredients shine, reducing sugar content where possible and using spices and herbs from cuisines around the world.

Recipes include chutneys, relishes and pickles, such as vine-scented Greek gherkins, eggplant kasundi pickle, and spiced banana and kūmara chutney. Preserves and sauces such as kumquats in vodka syrup, romesco sauce and sauce au poivre vert. Jammy things like burnt orange and bourbon marmalade, black pepper crab apple paste and roasted red capsicum and lime marmellata. Salsas, pestos, dips, dipping sauces including tomatillo Mexican salsa, ponzu and nam jim dipping sauces, char siu glaze and roasted beet and fennel pesto, finishing with useful information on sterilising jars and lids, common weights and measures, wrinkle tests for chutneys and jams and a glossary.

Rowan says, ‘There is something intensely satisfying in opening the pantry door to see jars of preserves you’ve made yourself. Knowing that not only good food has not gone to waste but knowing you’ve created something delicious for very little cost.’

‘The preserving of produce, especially if you have grown it yourself, brings the joy of nurturing edible plants full circle. Gifting homemade preserves represent a gift of time and energy, a taonga, to someone you value. What I hope readers will take from this book is that even on a limited budget, it’s possible to eat gourmet by adding that little bit extra, transporting the ordinary into the extraordinary.’

Rowan Bishop has been a food writer for over 30 years for hundreds of newspaper and magazine columns. Her first cookbook Vegetarian Adventure co-authored with Sue Carruthers was published over thirty years ago, when even the word ‘vegetarian’ provoked reactions varying from amusement to horror as opposed to the popularity and acceptance it enjoys today. She has also written the bestselling cookbooks including Vital, The Vegetarian Adventure Cookbook, The Virtual Café, Rowan Bishop’s Vegetarian Kitchen and Rowan Bishop with Relish. Her food philosophy is that the quality of the food we eat is our best health insurance; that loving what we eat is fundamental to a balanced life; and that learning to cook well is intensely satisfying on a host of complex levels.