The Salt Book Launch at Mumu Grill

On Monday July 5 2010, the Gourmantic duo attended The Salt Book launch at Mumu Grill in Sydney’s Crows Nest. A few days earlier, I had won a ticket the event when I entered a Twitter competition run by @helenlovesfood of Arbon Publishing.

With the principle of ‘salt wise’ , the Savouring Salt event gave us the opportunity to learn about cooking, experimenting and preserving with salt.

We kicked off with red salt-rimmed cocktails made with 10 Cane Rum and pineapple juice. These were quite a hit and made us think of warm tropical evenings on a cold and wet winter night.

We were introduced to some great wines from Capital Wines in the Canberra region. The Frontbencher Shiraz and the Swinger Sauvignon Blanc were very pleasant to drink and the Ministry Series labels on the bottles make good collectors’ items.

After the official welcome, Fritz Gubler one of the authors of The Salt Book gave the audience an introduction to salt and the concept behind the book.

A salt tasting station was set up along the far end of the bar with 13 different varieties to try.

Not unlike a wine tasting, we were given salt tasting notes with food pairings and suggestions to try at home.

Tomatoes with Halen Mon Vanilla Salt or Strawberries with Tetsuya’s Truffle salt? One can only be limited by imagination.

We overheard Chef Craig Macindoe tell some guests to put a little Murray River Pink Salt in their mouth then eat a cumquat so we tried it. What a sensational taste explosion!

Outside the restaurant under the warmth of outdoor heaters, Chef Chris Cranswick-Smith of Emmilou Tapas Bar was guiding us through the making of flavoured salts.

From citrus zest to Sichuan and stronger aromatics and spices, there were unusual varieties to consider.

The end result was passed around for tasting.

This black salt reminded me of the bits of volcanic rocks I brought back from Hawaii’s Big Island.

We tasted some unusual salt mixes such as black olive salt (my favourite), rosemary salt and a pungent and delicious garlic salt. Flor de Sal and Falksaltvarieties were passed around but I needed a drink after all the tasting.

Inside the restaurant, a cooking demonstration by Chef Craig Macindoe was already underway. Unfortunately, this was as close as I got to Chef Mumu’s segment. A large and eager crowd was gathered around the open kitchen leaving no room to see anything even from the sidelines. Judging by the plates being passed around, we missed out on some great food. However, I got to try the dark chocolate mouse and salted pineapple wafers. They were sensational!

I took the photo above as the crowd began to disperse making room for the next demonstration.

An entr’acte with a promise of what was to follow.

Next, Chris Cranswick-Smith demonstrated methods of curing beef fillets.

This salted strip loin of beef…

… can turn into this cured slab in just a few days…

… a handsome piece which he sliced horizontally for texture.

Grilled salted beef was passed around on this gorgeous pink plate.

There was some audience participation and possibly some live tweeting going on.

The food segments ended with this warm bread oozing with salted chocolate and chocolate brioche slices from Brasserie Bread. A lucky person won this Himalayan Salt Bowl.

Everyone received a goodies bag with The Salt Book (RRP $34.99), Lindt Dark Chocolate with a Touch of Sea Salt and other salt samples. Tickets to the event were $48 and included the book.

Before we left, we chatted with Helen and Richard from Arbon Publishing, Franz Gubler the author and Denea from Gourmet Rabbit. We thanked Chef Craig Macindoe and although we didn’t the opportunity to try his food on the night, we’ll have to return to Mumu Grill.

The Salt Book Launch event was an enjoyable, fun and educational evening. We were quite taken with the concept of the book and left with inspirational ideas. We tried a lot of salt, washed it down with some great Capital Wines and meet two very talented chefs from restaurants we are eager to try.

Mumu Grill
Chef Craig Macindoe
70 Alexander St
Crows Nest

Emmilou Tapas Lounge
Chef Chris Cranswick-Smith
413 Bourke Street
Surry Hills
http://www.emmilou.com.au/