5 Minute Food Fix

Packet gnocchi, but make it useful

A message from Simon:

Today’s fix is packet gnocchi. And I want you to not boil it.

I know the packet tells you to boil it. Ignore the packet. The packet does not know your life.

The best thing to do with shelf-stable gnocchi is roast it.

Straight onto a tray. Olive oil. Tomatoes. Garlic. Lemon zest. Olives. Into a hot oven. Done.

What happens is the gnocchi goes golden and a little bit crisp on the outside, but stays so...

Impressing friends with one's cooking skills is truly one of life's joys. Yumi has found a new way that is super easy and you probably have 90% of the ingredients already.

BELINDA JEFFEREY's CHEESE BISCUITS

Combine all the dry ingredients: 300g plain flour, 50g Self-raising flour and a teaspoon of salt. Add in 2tsp mild chilli flakes.

Mix well in the food processor.

Add 40g freshly grated parmesan and a whole grated block of Mersey Valley (250g).

Add 250g cold, cubed butter, whizz the mixture. It will look crumbly...

Yumi organised an adult playdate for HERSELF with a friend for some cooking fun.

It didn't work out exactly to plan but they *did* get to make this amazing gnocchi from Ottolenghi's 'SIMPLE'.

You can find a full version of it in this article - and Simon's recommendation is that you roast up a sweet tomato sauce alongside the gnocchi and then serve with a rocket salad lightly dressed with lemon juice and good quality olive oil.

And here is the SURVEY that we'd like you to please fill out!

It's time to fancy up your humble piece of fried salmon with a recipe from a cookbook that's a couple of years old but Yumi dusted it off and has been cooking from it quite a bit in the past weeks. It's - OTTOLENGHI's 'SIMPLE'.

Simon has good news if you're a fan of the cookbook and its author...

And you can find the salsa and salmon recipe here.

Do you feel like filling out a survey for us? Will help us make better shows. Click here xx

...

Yumi is threatening to host a dog re-naming ceremony to honor Norweigan striker, community boyfriend and everyone's emotional support Viking, Erling Haaland (it's not her hound so technically NO, and also, just no.)

Simon, meanwhile, has been impressing adults with this really easy-to-nail and incredibly yummy Marmalade Self-Saucing Pudding,

RECIPE: Marmalade self-saucing pudding

Serves 4–6

Preheat the oven to 180°C and grease a medium baking dish.

In a bowl, mix one cup of self-raising flour, half a cup of caster sugar and a pinch of salt.

In...

Yumi and Simon have been watching the World Cup football and it's been both fun and heartbreaking. If you're feeling bitter about Australia (or Japan, or Korea, Ghana, Canada etc etc), maybe you can enjoy the bitter feeling with the perfect winter salad.

Crunchy Bitter Winter Radicchio Salad

Toast a half cup walnuts in a dry frypan.

Set aside.

Tear apart a head of radicchio lettuce. Finely slice a small fennel bulb.

Peel two whole oranges and slice into neat discs. Retain any lost juice then add to...

ARE ALL RICOTTAS CREATED EQUAL?

It's a question to kick off today's episode.

Yumi has also been entertaining one of her besties, and whenever she comes to visit that means it's time to revisit the legendary Spanish dessert Burnt Basque Cheesecake. I've been making this for quite a while using Nagi's recipe, but after a visit to unmissable Redfern eaterie, Flyover Fritterie, I was inspired to try adding saffron, rosewater and cardamom.

To make it, follow the directions from Nagi's recipe but use these quantities:

500g ricotta

2 x...

ORZO TRAY BAKE WITH FETTA AND PEPPERS

Turn oven on to 220C.

Quarter 4 peeled red onions, one whole chilli, one roughly chopped red pepper, and split a head of garlic across the hemisphere of the bulb.

Drizzle with olive oil then roast for 20mins until the onions are cooked and the veg are starting to char.

Add in a tin of cherry tomatoes, a tsp of nigella seeds and a tsp of crushed coriander seeds.

Cook for 20 more mins, squash the tomatoes now on the back of a...

Simon and Yumi belly-laugh over some food-related nonsense and it's contagious, so listen if you need to get some sunshine today. Yumi also shares a bit about what happened at her recent (and very fancy) birthday lunch.

And maybe you also need ...chocolate cake? The quite legendary CHOCOLATE CAKE recipe from the wonderful Helen Goh can be found here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yumi and Simon haven't seen much of each other recently so have much to catch up on, including what's going on with Yumi's extremely adoring foster dog, a fantastic Japanese snack that her kids LOVE, and what to do with that leftover chilli oil you've had cluttering your pantry ever since the Great Chilli Crisp Oil Fad of 2014...!

If you want to buy the crunchy "osembe" crackers, they look like this. They're not available at all Asian grocers and the lesser imitations are distinctly LESSER - so make sure they're Japanese and make sure they're Shoyu...

There's no need to feel sad and scurvyish this winter with this pasta that Simon has been regularly making that bursts with lemony flavour and sunshine.

(Also, has someone seen the *real* Yumi? because this one seems uncommonly interested in sport and not just sport but men's sport and therefore must be bodysnatched, please send help.)

PASTA AL LIMONE

RECIPE

Measure out 200g linguine and set it in a large pan that has a lid that fits.

Zest 2 lemons into the pan. Add in a bashed clove of...

SIMON'S BACK!

Yumi is veering wildly off her personal brand and getting deeply engaged with the Men's World Cup football (!) - and wants to talk with Simon about World Cup foods, catering when watching from home and just how food can get us into the spirit of a truly global sport. The restaurant they're raving about in Sydney? It has a strong instagram game.

Simon is pretty excited because even though coastal Vic is in its most DEPRESSING era (winter), there are foods that can give us comfort.

WINTER DAAL...

Yumi and Jen unpack some of the latest "trends" in butchering and abusing innocent dumplings.

If you want to order Jen's favourites?

Here's the Chinese words 潮州粉粿

Or at yum cha, you could ask for a "Chiu Chow Fun Gor"

More info here.

Thanks for listening and to see Jen live, check out her webpage for the most current info.

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Yumi is excited about the events she's going to be part of that includes a one-on-one chat with Adelaide food legend and the woman behind 'Pawana' restaurant, Durkhanai Ayubi.

In preparation, she cooked one of the truly delicious (but achievable!) recipes from the revered book, also called 'Pawana'.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yumi and Jen laugh uncontrollably as they try to convince each other of the veracity of adding various foods to a pot pie.

Lasagna?

Possibly.

In a pot pie?

Let's discuss.

To find the SBS recipe in question, try here.

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One of Yumi's friends went away with a group of friends for the weekend and what transpired in the kitchen and food planning has been cause for a pause for thought (and significant irritation).

What happens in your group of friends?

Any thoughts or feedback always welcome at foodfixemail@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yumi and Jen are EXHAUSTED. Yumi is recording in her pyjamas (but only if you can see from the waist down), and decides to go rogue on today's episode.

Inspired by Tik Tok and Instagram account I Am Unique Daily, and wondering out loud whether Resting Bitch Face is a superpower or just ...unfortunate?

For events where you can see Jen live in person, go here.

To listen to Yumi when she's on Double J playing her fave tunes and being generally unhinged, listen via the ABC Listen app.

Hosted...

Fresh off their success at the Sydney Writers Festival, Yumi and Jen get the lols remembering the utter nonsense that was My Day on a Plate. There's a similar column which Jen recommends called The Grub Street Diet, and Yumi likes a hilarious podcast that debunks bad diet advice.

If you want to see Jen live and doing what she does best? She'll be at VIVID SYDNEY in a couple of week.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yumi Stynes and Jennifer Wong make each other laugh and Yumi recounts a story of going grocery shopping with Jen and being feeling like she was with a mega-celebrity.

Jen also talks about her experience eating the Chinese vegetable Kang Kong, also known as Water Spinach - and how to make it really delicious with fermented tofu!

Catch Jennifer Wong live at one of her upcoming dates - including a special FOOD-RELATED lol-fest in June that you can find here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yumi Stynes and Jennifer Wong dig into ideas around the trouble with ethnic food shame as your origin story.

They also have a little yap about Onigiri and why it may be the GOAT of convenience store snacks.

Yumi and Jen can be seen ONSTAGE TOGETHER at the Sydney Writers Festival this week! (Week of 18 May 2026)

More info and for ALL of Jennifer's events, have a look here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today's episode, Yumi and Jen dig deep into where San Choi Bao gets it SO RIGHT as a weeknight dinner that everyone can make out of whatever they have in the fridge.

Jen also has an amazing revelation to share about just why RESTAURANT san choi bao is so delicious and crunchy - and it's a hack you can easily replicate at home.

FIND OUT where you can see Jennifer Wong live via this link...

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"You've met me at a very Chinese time in my life..."

Americans are "China Maxxing" - discovering food, Chinese medicine, and other cultural habits that are life changing! Yumi and Jen unpack.

AND - if you want to see Jen live?

Check out this link for dates - especially check out a free show all about food here on May 23, her show as part of VIVID SYDNEY on June 5, 2026, and Yumi and Jennifer will be onstage together for Sydney Writers Festival's GREAT DEBATE.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com...

Yumi and guest-host Jennifer Wong share their anxieties about what useful skills they'd have in a post-apocalyptic wasteland...

...And Yumi comes through with a really good Yoghurt Flatbread - which is good for right now - tonight even? But may also come in handy if we run out of bread but can still use a frypan.

A very good recipe here, and here, and this is the one Yumi uses which is 3/4 cup Greek yoghurt + 1 cup SR flour.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more...

Yumi gets Jennifer Wong to explain how every regional Chinese restaurant in Australia ...somehow, mysteriously, shares the same menu?

You can find out more about how Jen knows so much about the Chinese restaurants of regional Australia by checking out her book Chopsticks or Fork? - available everywhere. She also has a bunch of shows on in coming months, including Sydney Writers Festival (Yumi also doing a bunch of events), and VIVID, and more. Find out everything Jen has on here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.<...

Jennifer Wong joins Yumi again to talk about DIP - and whether supermarket dip is any good!

EDAMAME GUAC

400g good quality, ripe avocado

150g shelled edamame, boiled gently for 3 mins, drained well

1 bunch coriander, washed well of dirt, then dried in a clean tea towel

spring onions or chives, half bunch

1/2tsp salt, or more to taste

juice of 1 or 2 limes

BLEND EVERYTHING - then taste for seasoning. OPTIONAL - add fresh chopped red chilli

...

Special guest host Jennifer Wong is going to be onstage with Yumi at this year's Sydney Writers Festival's GREAT DEBATE. It's always an absolute hoot and you can find out more here...

But the two foodie loving ladies get to hang out on today's episode and talk about their mothers, Mum cooking tips, and an incredible slice that Yumi has since made several times from Aussie food teacher and author, Belinda Jeffery. Belinda very generously shares her amazing recipe (that her mum used to love!) here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for...

Throwing together a Poké Bowl or Donburi (or "Buddha Bowl" if we must) is a fantastic exercise in customising a dish to suit both individual taste and making use of what's sitting in your fridge!

Having some stand-by ingredients like seaweed salad, a sprinkling of furikake, crunchy fried onions, and the classic Kim-Chi - will set you up to succeed with a bowl that is really tasty but also healthy and colourful. FANTASTIC!

Yumi has a very simple Japanese Omelette recipe to share that'll cost you almost no time but will totally elevate y...

Simon's half-arsed sell on this dish is hilarious and worth the price of admission - but the meal itself is a keeper.

It's his riff on a Nigella recipe: SIMON'S REAL LIFE CHICKEN

Find a wide fry pan with a good-fitting lid, then get

8 chicken thighs, skin on

and you fry them in 2-3tbs garlic oil with zest of a lemon added in, skin-side down, until browned.

Set the chicken aside... and then to the still sizzling pan, add in 500g Basmati rice and stir well.<...

FEEDING KIDS can be one of the most thankless elements of parenting.

They don't like your stuff!

The want the same thing over and over again!

So annoying!

Yumi faces this down on repeat but is excited to get to this extremely fancy - but extremely achievable recipe from this book by Neil Perry. YEP, IN THIS ECONOMY.

Neil Perry's TUNA CRUDO with FINGERLIME DRESSING

INGREDIENTS

400g Sashimi-grade albacore tuna fillet, bloodlines removed

DRESSING

Juice of 2 limes

2...

YUMI has 3 questions for Simon:

PLUS: we go deep into fandom for Anna Jones's WEDGE SALAD WITH RANCH DRESSING recipe from her amazing and highly recommended book Easy Wins.

ANNA JONES'S WEDGE SALAD WITH TAHINI RANCH DRESSING:

CRUMB

Smash 1 clove of garlic and put it in a frying pan with 2tbs olive oil.

Allow to sizzle for 3-4 mins then...

The change in weather has made Simon crave flavours of home... He is particularly inspired by a memoir by food writer Nigel Slater.

It's a nostalgic one as it gets cold, the palate craves comfort. Not unlike Yumi's foster dog, who craves ATTENTION and tries to get it during the recording of today's episode! LOL.

TREACLE TART

Blind bake some pre-bought shortcrust pastry that you've rolled out in a 23cm tart tin until golden.

Allow to cool.

Meanwhile loosen 400g golden syrup by warming it gently. Then...

Yumi had a delightful dinner party experience over the weekend and urgently needs to talk about it!

And as a consequence, urgently needs to talk about this way to do potatoes with capers!

It's from a book called EASY WINS by Anna Jones which Simon has recommended many times over...

ANNA JONES'S BROWN BUTTER POTATOES WITH LIME TARTARE SAUCE

Add 1kg small potatoes to a large pot of boiling, salted water.

Bring it back to the boil then simmer for around 15 mins.

Drain well...

It's HOT CROSS BUNS SEASON and everyone has an opinion on What To Do (and what NOT to do) with this most raisiny of buns.

What are your thoughts on Simon's advice?

Send us an email FoodFixEmail@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Simon is BACK! And what a welcome return.

Yumi and Simon discuss what it was like to have comedian Jennifer Wong onboard as guest host, and Yumi has some tips about what to order - and what NOT to order - when going out for Yum Cha.

And if you want to make Gai Lan (Chinese Broccoli) at home? Here's Nagi's recipe. And to do it at home?

1 Bunch of Gai Lan. If you can't get this vegetable, try it with broccolini, it's very good!

Trim the...

Special Guest Host Jennifer Wong shares a couple of great ways to make instant ramen LESS GRIM.

And if you love Jen and want to see her in person, a good link to upcoming shows is here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Both Jennifer Wong and Yumi have had experience with going viral on social media - which they've decided is low-key pointless - but it doesn't mean they're not both dead keen on trying a great hack when other food influencers recommend one...

It might be as simple as using a fish weight when frying a good quality piece of fish...

Or it could be this little hack as tested by Nat's What I Reckon in this video which, at time of publishing this podcast episode, has 11 million views!

BTW if you wanna...

What is the dumbest gadget you ever bought?

(you can email if you like: foodfixemail@gmail.com )

Yumi and guest-host Jennifer Wong share their thoughts

PLUS - Yumi has a gadget to help your fish fillets turn out AMAZING - that you probably can use tonight at home!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In these terrible times Yumi is self-soothing by re-watching her favourite TV show and Jennifer Wong is re-reading a tried, tested and quite wonderful food book called Sapphires and Garlic by New York Times critic Ruth Reichl (which you can read for free in pdf form here; the chapter on Betty is page 205.)

In it is a fantastic and fantastically simple and humble recipe that the world-famous foodie created - for a frugal, whole roasted chicken.

A FRUGAL REPAST FOR BETTY - WHOLE ROASTED CHICKEN

Preheat the oven to 200C.

JENNIFER WONG joins me as guest host again (don't worry Simon, we miss you!) - and we talk about her amazing book 'Chopsticks or Fork?' - discovering where the name comes from! (It's pretty funny.)

I have an opinion on where some of the truly buried treasures might be found in cookbooks and we unearth one from Belinda Jefferey's 'MIX AND BAKE'. (I said I'd post a link to buy it but unfortunately it's out of stock everywhere! My local library has it - good luck.)

BELINDA JEFFEREY'S SUNDRIED TOMATO NO-KNEAD FOCACCIA <...

Simon takes a break from Food Fixing and so I rope in Jennifer Wong, host of 'Chopsticks or Fork?' on ABC, a show about food, that is also a book.

Jen is funny and literate about food, especially Chinese food, so I thought: Great! Let's absolutely drag this online trend of making dumplings without actually bothering to wrap the filling in the wonton skin. You can see what I'm talking about here.

It's not all ridiculous, though. From Tony Tan, we have a fantastic vegan mushroom dumplings recipe here, which also has...