Three delicious recipes from the Agrarian Kitchen's Rodney Dunn, presented at a 'Paddock to Plate' MLA function to demonstrate the new directions in sustainable farming in Australia.

Lamb cutlets with mandarin and cumin salt

Serves 6

12 frenched lamb cutlets
2 tbsp olive oil

Mandarin and cumin salt
2 tbsp flaky sea salt
1 tbsp black peppercorns
Finely grated rind of 2 mandarins
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
1 tbsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp finely chopped coriander

• For mandarin and cumin salt, crush black peppercorns and cumin seeds in a mortar and pestle, then stir in remaining ingredients.
• Preheat a char-grill over high heat. Brush lamb cutlets with olive oil and cook on grill for 1-2 minutes each side. Season with salt and serve immediately.

Beef involtini with radicchio and caramelised onion

Serves 4
Prep: 30 minutes Cook:    12 minutes

4, 175gm slices of beef round or rump
80 ml (1/3 cup) extra virgin olive oil
3 brown onions, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tbsp rosemary leaves
2 raddichio, washed and coarsely chopped
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp brown sugar
Green salad, to serve

Polenta
800 ml milk
300 gm yellow polenta
160 gm (2 cups) finely grated parmesan
60 gm unsalted butter

• For polenta, bring milk and 1 litre of water to the boil in a large saucepan, season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add polenta in a thin stream, whisking continuously, reduce heat to low and cook, stirring continuously using a wooden spoon, for 30-40 minutes or until polenta is smooth and creamy, then stir in parmesan and butter.
• Place slices of beef between two pieces of plastic and using a meat mallet pound to 1mm-thick.
• Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan; add onion, garlic, rosemary and a pinch of sea salt and sauté gently over low heat until caramelised, about 10 minutes. Add raddichio to frying pan and sauté over medium-high heat until beginning to wilt, season to taste then set aside to cool to room temperature.
• Lay flattened meat onto a clean work surface and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Divide caramelized onion and raddichio among beef and spread evenly over, roll up each piece and secure firmly with a toothpick.
• Preheat oven to 180C. Heat remaining olive oil in a heavy-based frying pan over medium-high heat; add beef involtini and sauté, turning occasionally for 4-5 minutes or until golden. Place into oven and cook for a further 4-5 minutes or until medium. Remove to a warm plate, then deglaze pan with balsamic vinegar, stir in sugar to dissolve. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Serve beef involtini over polenta with balsamic spooned over and a green salad.

Spice-braised oyster blade with salsa verde

Serves 4

1 brown onion, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, coarsely chopped
2 stalks of celery, coarsely chopped
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
Rind of 1 lemon
2 cinnamon quills
1 tbsp black peppercorns
1 tbsp clove
1 tbsp fennel seeds
5 whole allspice
1 tsp sea salt
800 gm piece of oyster blade
Dijon mustard, to serve
Steamed kipfler potatoes, to serve
Baby rocket leaves, to serve
Radish, to serve
Extra virgin olive oil

salsa verde
1 cup (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 tsp rosemary leaves
3 cloves garlic, peeled
3 anchovy fillets
1 tbsp small salted capers, rinsed
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
60 ml (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil

• Preheat oven to 160C. In a large casserole combine onion, carrot, celery, garlic, lemon rind and spices with 2.5 litres of cold water. Bring to the boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 1 hour, add oyster blade, cover and place into oven and cook for 3 hours, or until beef is tender.
• For salsa verde, finely chop herbs, garlic, anchovies and capers and combine in a small bowl, stir in red wine vinegar and olive oil and season to taste.
• To serve, remove beef from broth and cut across into thick slices. Strain broth and keep warm. Combine potatoes, radish and rocket leaves, season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and toss to combine. Serve slices of beef topped with a spoon of salsa verde and Dijon mustard with potato salad and beef broth passed separately.