Letting go of summer produce is one of the worst things about the cooler months. But as we bid stone fruit, perfect tomatoes, and the most fragrant mangoes farewell, we make room for things that feed our souls in other ways. Poaching, roasting, preserving. Slowly rendering the fat out of something that will be submerged in silky sauce for hours on end. Things that keep us sustained, food as a source of warmth. Summer food often feels swift - arranging crunchy vegetables on a plate with homemade mayonaise, searing seafood on high heat or eating it raw with a drop of lemon, sprinkling chilli powder and salt over perfectly ripe fruit.
Winter food is meditative. Turning classically hard, hearty produce into supple morsels, rendering meat low and slow, boiling beans in a pool of aromatics to eat for the week ahead. In the spirit of winter food, we're rounding up recipes below that encourage meditative cooking and eating for the cooler months.
Stewed chickpeas with fennel, herbs, and lemony yoghurt
View this post on Instagram
This vegetarian recipe is like comfort in a bowl. Hard to find faults in this dish when you're halfway through it and needing to pace yourself.
The ultimate family-friendly chilli
View this post on Instagram
There's no hidden tricks to this classic chilli recipe. Hearty, warming, and economical, it's a fail-safe weekday dinner in the cooler months.
Poached Mulled Wine Pears
View this post on Instagram
As delicious as you'd imagine. Syrupy, spiced, and supple. Crisp pears transform into melty goodness with the help of red wine and sugar.
Laila Gohar's Beans
View this post on Instagram
Nothing is more comforting than slowly cooked beans in rich aromatic broth. Serve with fried bread and homemade aioli and relish in the simple luxury.
Enoki Five-Spice Chinese Vegetable Soup
View this post on Instagram
Doused with Chinkiang Chinese cooking oil, star anise, ginger and all the good stuff, this chinese vegetable broth will elevate any winter warmer or soup dish.
Orange and olive oil cake
View this post on Instagram
Under Sian Regrave's watchful eye, make use of delicious winter fruits in a cake that will fill your home with the scent of sweet citrus. It's impossible to stop at one slice, trust us.
Sheng Jian Bao (Pan-fried pork buns)
View this post on Instagram
Few things are as meditative (or delicious) as these sheng jian bao. Perfectly fluffy and crispy with a deliciously soupy centre, the homemade version of this deceptively simple recipe will have you raving.
Nduja butter and prawn lumache pasta
View this post on Instagram
Everything Ellie Bouhadana touches turns delicious, and this prawn and nduja pasta is no exception. The glossy sauce is laden with the slight heat of the nduja, and the arresting fragrance of the prawns. The ultimate comfort meal.
Roasted fennel with white beans, green olives and lemon
View this post on Instagram
Tender and caramelised, this delicious dish by the masterful Julia Busuttil Nishimura makes for a perfect standalone lunch, or side to a protein of your choice.
Eye Fillet, Frites, and Salsa Verde
View this post on Instagram
We can't think of a better way to spend a cold night than over a plate of perfectly grilled eye fillet, crispy homemade frites, and a generous dollop of salsa verde. Need we say more?
