Posted by kathryn in Blogging

Most nights I enjoy cooking a meal, I find it relaxing, engrossing and it gives me a sense of wellbeing, through nourishing and nurturing Richard and myself with good food. I’m also in the fortunate (?) position of having a partner who can (and is happy to) cook as well. We don’t eat out a lot, probably about once a week and we get take-away about once a fortnight.

As well as enjoying cooking, eating at home gives me control over what I eat. It means I know what’s in there – I can control the type (and quantity) of fat used, I can make sure we’re using quality ingredients, I know it’s fully vegetarian (no sneaky chicken stock or oyster sauce slipped in).

My general food philosophy is that it’s what you do most of the time which counts. If you’re eating well most of the time, then the occasional tripe fudge chocolate torte with cream isn’t the end of the world. Go for your life, really enjoy it and get back to your normal eating patterns tomorrow.

However, if eating out is your “most of the time” then you need to be more careful about your restaurant and take-away choices, because this is your every day food.

In the eating out choices, Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese are some of the best. Most dishes are low in saturated fat (as long as you steer clear of the curries with coconut milk); the fish used in Japanese is often high in Omega-3 fats; most dishes contain lots of vegetables; miso soup and green tea go along with Japanese food and both have nutritional positives.

All of which makes the Good Food Month Night Noodle Markets a good eating-out option. You can buy Japanese pancakes, which are full of vegies; stirfries with fish, meat or tofu; noodle soups; Indian curries and dals; sushi – all sorts of great things. Most dishes are in the $7 – $9 range, so it’s also a cheap option.

When we visited I bought Chole Pattice (above on the left), which was lovely soft and spicy potato cakes, covered in a hot and sour tamarind chick pea curry, while Richard had a Pad Thai (on the right). The Pad Thai was also good, although it didn’t contain enough vegies, or tofu for Richard’s tastes.

While most GFM events are now fully booked , you don’t have to reserve a seat at the Night Noodle Market. Red lanterns light up the area and you can sit outside, in Hyde Park over dinner and a glass of wine. We’re having such beautiful, balmy Sydney weather at the moment, it would be a shame to miss this experience.

After your meal, make sure you walk through Hyde Park and enjoy the big photographs on display as part of the Art&About exhibition.

• Where: Archibald Fountain, Hyde Park North
• When: now until Friday 20th October
• Time: 5.00pm – 9.00pm Monday to Friday
• Cost: dishes start at $7.00
• For more about Good Food Month, take a look at Cucina Rebecca’s weekly round-up.

13 October, 2006