The Oven has baked its last loaf. This blog is no longer being updated.

My cooking videos appear at youtube.com/janeragavan

I write on food at star2.com

Journalism


This is a random selection of articles that I have written for The Star newspaper. My focus has been mainly on food, but there are also a few unrelated to food. A number of food articles appeared in a recipe column called Don't Call Me Chef.

General Food Features
Trading on a name – Food products whose names are legally protected.
Hail to the Chef – Interview with multi-award-winning Joël Robuchon.
Taste masters – Chefs never know when the mysterious Michelin man ­­– or woman ­­– is at their joint, sizing them up.
Courses and discourse – The People's Potlucks initiative in New York City.
Playing with food – Members of the Experimental Food Society present food that makes you marvel, gasp or even cringe.
Doughnut delirium – Today's doughnuts have a variety of flavours and a rainbow palette.
One man's meat – The two sides to foie gras and other gastronomic delicacies.
Warming up to Scotch – A tour of the Chivas Brothers’ whisky distilleries in Scotland’s picturesque Speyside region.
A toast to London – If London had a taste, Beefeater Gin may just be it.
Taste for Champagne – Jérôme Philipon seemed destined for a job involving champagne, but to land the top post at the House of Bollinger was historic.
Hot favourite – Instant noodles are becoming a staple and a push for healthier noodles could turn them into a 'earth food'.

Non-Food Features
Rising from the ruins – Japan one year on from the March 11, 2011 tsunami.
Incredible journey – An interview with Dwayne Johnson for his film Race to Witch Mountain.
Sole sensation – In tap dancing, the rhythms heard are more important than what is seen.
Soul on stage – For over two decades, Christian Lacroix has told stories through his costumes for the stage.

Don't Call Me Chef
This column was originally co-produced with two of my colleagues. We wrote as "characters" and I was Marty Thyme; the reason for this is irrelevant now. We started writing as ourselves and individually from 2012.

Spread it on a role – What TV characters eat
Meatless and marvellous – 'Neapolitan' pizza cooked without a wood-burning oven
Get a whiff of this – Strong-smelling foods
Bay Area buffet – Eating in Silicon Valley 
Band of bakers – Review of The Daring Bakers online baking group
Gutsy and fresh – Quick tomato sauce
Rock the ramen – Six ways to use instant noodles
In safe hands – Review of The River Cottage Bread Handbook by Daniel Stevens
Portion control – Review of Ratio by Michael Ruhlman
Veg out on cakes – Review of Red Velvet & Chocolate Heartache by Harry Eastwood
Scents to savour – Review of Malaysian Cooking by Carol Selva Rajah
Rice eaters' delight – Review of Everything Rice & Nice by Chef Zam

Written together
The dish I prepared is indicated in brackets

Prickly sweet – pineapple dishes (pineapple-cherry cobbler) 
Loco over coco – dishes using coconut (coconut crème brûlée)
Pep squad – using spices in cooking (prawns with mustard)
Fill 'er up – road trip (rocky road chunky chews)
Take a stab at this – food on a stick (spiral pizza)
Go, go gadget – favourite gadget/appliance/utensil (cauliflower & anchovy ravioli with sage butter sauce using a ravioli mould)
Let there be light – dishes to celebrate Deepavali (prawn varai) 
Ready for a feast – dishes to celebrate Hari Raya Aidil Fitri (pulut serunding)
Chinese favourites ­­– favourite Chinese dish (lotus seed paste pancake)
Cream of our crop ­­– favourite dish or method of preparation (homemade butter)
Everyday getaway ­­– a challenge: making a dish from a country picked out of a hat (sumac chicken and barberry rice from Iran)
Past perfect ­­– retro food; dishes we remember as children (Victoria sponge)
Books for cooks ­­– food from our favourite cookbook writer (Jacques Pépin's French onion soup gratinée)
The envelope please... – to coincide with the awards season, make a prize-worthy dish in a category of one's own creation (coffee meringue ice cream sandwiches for "best make-up")
Mums rule ­­– a dish I learned from my mother (garlic beef)
Celebrate – potluck dishes (golden honeycomb candy)

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