Respected cook, farmer, writer, entrepreneur, mother and member of a family business to a beloved restaurant chain, Chat Thai, Palisa Anderson is many things to many people. But ask her what connects her heart to it all, and she will simply reply “real, good food”.
The Thai cultural tenet she grew up being influenced by time and time again was the principle of "nahm jai". The literal translation of this expression is ‘water heart’, though the significance of this beautiful sentiment is mindfulness of how to live with generosity, compassion, empathy and awareness all at once.
While travelling back to Thailand is beyond reach, Palisa became curious to meet those in her community who embody this meaning & whose unique approach to cooking could help keep alive that hunger for a familiar taste of home.
So, from her farm in Byron Bay and its neighbouring salty enclaves to the big smoke of Sydney and some of the city’s best chefs, restaurants and out-of-town destinations, Water Heart Food sees Palisa sharing a very intimate exchange with some of her favourite food Industry icons and rising stars, exploring where their passion comes from and sharing food stories to discover we have more in common than we think.
Episode 1
Thailand is home to many incredible food markets that sell an abundance of fresh and seasonal fruit and vegetables. It's the type of produce Palisa now grows on her farm and supplies to many top-end chefs and restaurants in New South Wales. To start the series, Palisa catches up with chef Christine Manfield at the Mullumbimby markets and then at her farm, where she uses fresh guavas to make a Thai-inspired finger lime, guava and tapioca dessert. Afterwards, Palisa visits one of her customers, executive chef Peter Gilmore, who is at the helm of both Quay restaurant in Sydney Harbour and Bennelong at the Sydney Opera House. Peter uses some of Palisa's fresh striped peanuts to make a simple yet refined mud crab salad.
Boon Cafe's pandan chiffon cake baked by Mahalia. Source: Water Heart Food
Episode 2
In this episode, Palisa meets up with two old friends: fellow second-generation Thais Ari Walpole and Mahalia Barnes (daughter of Jimmy Barnes). They visit the Sydney Fish Markets, and reminisce about their childhood in Sydney over a sumptuous Thai lunch, then get together to cook a few delicious Thai-inspired recipes.
Episode 3
Palisa meets two well-known Sydney chefs to explore how cuisines from different countries can mingle and influence each other. Barbados native Paul Carmichael who's the executive chef at Momofuku Sieobo uses two items often used in Thai cuisine – coconut and pandan – to make a Cuban-inspired dessert, and chef and founder of Longrain and Cook's Co-op, Martin Boetz makes a Chinese-style Thai duck soup.
Episode 4
Back up the coast, Palisa visits two well-known Byron chefs to explore the idea of combining traditional cooking methods with the use of the local ingredients. Ben Devlin of Pipit restaurant experiments with the Thai staple, fish sauce, making a variety of unusual garums. Jason Saxby head chef at Rae's on Wategos adapts traditional Italian recipes by using local Australian ingredients. Palisa and Jason engage in a cook off, each making their version of kangaroo tartare - one Italian-style, one Thai-style.
RECIPE
Kangaroo tonnato
Flathead with emu egg thermidor sauce by Josh. Source: Water Heart Food
Episode 5
In Thailand, foraging for wild ingredients and living off what the land provides is a big part of the way of life for in rural areas. In Byron, indigenous Currie Country woman Arabella Douglas forages for native ingredients and supplies chefs such as Josh Lewis of Fleet Restaurant who Palisa meets. Josh then cooks Palisa a dish using emu eggs before she heads to collect pipis with Arabella to use as part of a sumptuous campfire cook up of local seafood.
