Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudgin
from News Talk SEDB.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Last year, I received a cookbook that revolutionized my family, Dinners.
Family has been very oppressive for this book. The book
was called Dinner by Recipe Tin Eats founder Nagi Mahashi.
When I got her on the show for an interview,
I realized I wasn't the only one obsessed with her recipes.
We were inundated with texts of praise for Naggi. Some
people even hosting Naggi parties. We guests all cooked different
(00:33):
meals from her cookbook and website. This week, Naggi has
released another cookbook. It's called Tonight. I'm hugely relieved she
has once again added to my weeknight repertoire. The queen
of the Australian food scene, Naggi Mahashi, is with me again.
Good morning, Naggi, good tay with us morning.
Speaker 3 (00:50):
Thank you so much for having me today.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Great to have you back on the show. Hey, how
are you doing? Because I know that cookbook launch week
is a lot.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
It is. I'm in the midst of the book too now,
But to be honest, I'm just having so much fun
because I could. I feel like the hard work's done
and now I get to enjoy myself and meet people
and talk to great people in the press, and yeah,
it's fantastic. I love it.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
Are you aware of the impact you have had on
all of us home cooks?
Speaker 3 (01:17):
Oh? I love hearing stories from people, to be honest,
it just it almost feels my fire. Does that sound
a bit odd? I don't know. Sometimes I feel like
I'm writing into nowhere when I publish recipes, but then
when I actually hear from people in real life, Yeah,
it just it's really satisfying. It makes me happy.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
You did say when we talked a year ago that
your huge success hadn't sunk in yet. Has it now?
Speaker 3 (01:45):
No, I just more than ever, I think. I just
for me. I just feel like nothing's changed. I just
do what I did ten years ago. It's just I'm
working in slightly different landscape now, but from my perspective,
I'm just doing exactly what I did ten years ago.
Does that sound strange? It doesn't.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
It does because Nigi, ten years ago you had two
people who visited your website, which was you and your mum.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
Yeah, but I still back then, I was posting recipes
I loved, and I was explaining them why the way
I explained. Now, Yes, my photographies come. You know, I've
improved my photography and I've started doing recipe videos for
all my videos. But fundamentally, other than you know, improvement
in skills, it's the same kind of food, same flavor profiles,
(02:35):
same ingredients. Because I still shop at my boring regular,
you know, local grocery store. I don't go to gorme stores.
So yeah, from my perspective, I do feel like I'm
still doing the same things.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
You now get half a billion visits every year. Your
social media following is over five million people. Your last
book was Australian Book of the Year. You run a
charity that donates one hundred and thirty thousand meals a year.
But I actually really love the fact that through the
book you do say, you know, regardless of all that success,
you kind of feel uncomfortable talking about that. Why is that?
Speaker 3 (03:10):
I just I just don't want I don't want fame.
I don't actually know what fame means, but I don't
want it, If that makes sense. I'm actually really happy.
I was always happy behind my keyboard, and then I
did a book and it forced me to come out
and you know, come out from behind my keyboard. And
I do love that, but I don't I don't want
(03:31):
to be on TV. I really don't want ragnags to
talk about me. I enjoyed my privacy. I just want
to sit at home and just cook in my kitchen
and write recipes, take photos and publish them on my website.
That's just me. I don't want to go to you know,
all those those award shows and things that people go
to and you get photographed on the red carpet. I
(03:52):
can't think of anything worse than spending all afternoon getting
your makeup done.
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Do you think, Do you think, Naggie, this is partly
because the success has come at a certain age and
stage of life. You know, like you're not someone who's
this is not your sort of your first foray into
a career, and you're not out there to become, as
you say, famous and get those hits that you should of. Yeah,
you know, maybe there's just a little bit more wisdom
(04:16):
and experience there.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
Definitely, I think so I see it in. I hate
to say, but a level of maturity obviously comes with
age and your priorities just shift, so you hit a
certain age and you just don't crave. I don't care
about going viral, for example, I've never cared about going viral.
For me, it's very much about organic growth and being
happy as well, doing what you enjoy doing and are
(04:42):
comfortable doing. And I'm not comfortable on TV. So yeah,
I'm in my happy place.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
But you are quite famous.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
I think it's a strange. I think I'm just in
people's kitchens. Yeah, because a lot of people use my
spaghetti Bollonais. But it's not like a famous movie star
type famous. It's very different. It's I'm all home, home
body type, if that makes sense, your friend in the kitchen,
that's all.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
So you mentioned before that what drives you is the
feedback that you do get from people. But what else
sort of drives you? Who are you creating these recipes for?
Speaker 3 (05:21):
So? I think first and foremost for me, I just
I genuinely love cooking and creating new recipes, and I,
more so than ever, love eating good food. That fund
of metally is what drives me. And I think because
of that, because I truly love what I do, that's
what keeps me going through the rougher times. Or when
(05:44):
things get really busier, when I'm under a lot of
time pressure, just the fact that I love it. And
it's a bit strange because a lot of people, not
many people, are fortunate enough to work in a field
in which they love. I know a lot of people
in the professional food industry that cook for a living,
not because they love it. It's a job, not a passion.
(06:04):
So when people ask me what my hobby is what
I do on Sundays, it's a really boring answer. I
actually cook, I try something new, or I read cookbooks.
It's really daggy.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Well, look, I'm not a great cook and I could
probably guilty at times of cooking because I have to
feed my family. So these books have been amazing for me.
But I've gone one step further thanks to your books.
Now you know I cook one new recipe a week.
We all go yes, no, does it stay on the
(06:36):
roster or not? Like I've definitely pushed myself because I
feel like I can and it's easy and I'm going
to be able to whip up something gorgeous and tasty
and it's not going to take me all night and
I'm not gonna have to go to three supermarkets.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
And that's exactly the kind of feedback I love to hear.
And I've always said that, you know, when people say,
what's the best advice you can give someone who's starting
out in the cooking journey, my number one advice is always,
you know, enjoy it, don't get stressed out. As you've
become more confident, and as you start enjoying what you've
made because it's so tasty, you just gain that confidence
(07:13):
to go out and start exploring more new dishes. And
then it's just kind of like a snowball effect. You
start experimenting more, you gain more experience, you eat more
types to delicious food, and then all of a sudden
you're a crazy obsessed food blogger.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Somehow, I don't think I'm quite going to get there.
But do you know the other thing about these cookbooks
is they're incredibly generous. There is one they're massive, but
there was so much in here, so many recipes, so
many great tips, so many sauces and ways around things,
incredibly generous.
Speaker 3 (07:50):
I just think they're culled back versions of the manuscript
I originally submitted. Every time you have a fight with
the publisher for what I have to take out good.
I always have more than what I'm allowed to print.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
I did notice at the beginning of this book there's
a bit of a chat. Well it's not a chat,
it's very large capitals talking about salt. What are we
doing wrong with the salt we're using in our cooking?
Speaker 3 (08:14):
Yes, yes, So for me, salt is actually one of
the main things that will make a dish fail or succeed,
and I think so many people get it wrong because
a lot of people there's just such inconsistencies. So chefs
use typically they will use sea salt, and that is
a core of the weight and volume of table salt,
and a lot of people are still cooking with table salt,
(08:36):
and nobody understands that if you use a tea spin
of table salt in a recipe that calls for a
tea spin of sea salt, it's massively over salted and
it's not enjoyable. So yeah, it's very I'm very very
or every single one of my respeeds use cooking salt
or coarse grain salt, and so I just constantly hound
(08:58):
that point home because it can be the difference between
make or break of a dish. To be honest, under
salted dishes taste bland. So you can have all the
levels right, yep, but if you don't have enough salt
in it, it'll taste bland.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
That's interesting.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
Yeah, it's really funny. Like you can make any of
my recipes and if you leave out the salt, you'll
complain that the dish is planned. Then you put the
salt in, and all of a sudden, it's perfect.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
That's the key. There we go. How's Dozer and your
gorgeous dog had a bit of a rough year?
Speaker 3 (09:27):
He did, He's going so well. I'm just so grateful
he came back. And yeah, I'm just very, very lucky.
He's an older dog, but I'm just trying to enjoy
every day I've got with him, and he's happy and
healthy and bouncing around again. And yeah, very lucky.
Speaker 2 (09:44):
Well, because he's a large part of this journey, as
is your mum. Are you moving in with your mum? Oh?
Speaker 3 (09:51):
I did, I did. I'm renovating my home, so we
are trying to move in together just while my home's
being renovated. We're twenty four hours in. We'll see how
we go. Because the last time I tried it, I
lasted five days and then I stormed out.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
So but litt all seriousness, Your mama is actually a
huge part of the business, isn't she.
Speaker 3 (10:12):
She is, She's got her own website, She's part of
the team. I rely on her so much. So yeah,
I mean, I consider her my best friend. But there's
no doubt we are a mother and daughter and we
definitely butt heads. And you know, I'm a bit past
the age of living at home. I left home at eighteen,
so trying to go back is a bit of a challenge.
(10:35):
So we'll see twenty four hours in Francesco. We're doing
okay so far.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
I'm sending you strength. Look, we should we should give
a shout out to your charity, Recipe ten Meals, as well,
because this is providing meals to those in need, which
you fully fund through the profit of Recipe ten eats.
How important is that side of the business to you.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
It's actually the most important part of my business. Everybody
in my team knows it. No matter what's going on.
If people calling sick and they need to they need
a hand in the kitchen. Then if you get a
phone call it five thirty in the morning, you get
out of bed and you go and it's made very
clear to everyone in my team, no matter what else
is going on. Even when I had my cookbook deadlines
to submit the manuscript, my publisher knew that if I
(11:18):
had to deal with the with my food bank, then
I would cancel interviews. And I have had to cancel
interviews to go help out. So yeah, it's the number
one priority because, to be honest, what I always say
to my guys is, every day we have five hundred
people waiting for dinner and you can't not turn up.
(11:39):
You just can't not turn up.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Yeah you are you noticing an increased need for it?
Speaker 3 (11:44):
Yeah? Absolutely will never fill the void. I mean, I
don't know what it's like actually New Zealand, but overhear
the inflations has gone through this through the roof. Cost
of living is just high than it's ever been, so
we're really noticing it.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Yeah, No, same here. So all in all, NAGGI still
no regrets from walking away from that corporate finance job.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
Uh, missing my life as an auditor, I can pretty
safely say I'm not so dear.
Speaker 2 (12:14):
I ask because it's so unfair when you're just celebrating
sort of the end of all is hard work. But
what next.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
I know. Right now, I'm just focused on enjoying the
book tour because this is to be the reward for
the hard work. And then next year, I really want
to bed down and start increasing the number of meals
we're producing it from our food bank. We've just invested
in some new equipment, so I want to start pushing
the boundaries of what we can do there to increase
efficiency and make more meals.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
Naggie, it's been a delight to catch up with you again.
Thank you so much for the book, loving.
Speaker 3 (12:50):
It, Thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
Francisca and Tonight by Nagie Mahashi is in stores now.
Speaker 1 (12:58):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudken, listen
live to News Talks it B from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio out