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Effortless entertaining as Fiona Smith showcases the winning products from the Cuisine Artisan Awards in the New Zealand Food Awards 2023.

Fiona Smith entertains using winning products from the Cuisine Artisan Awards in the New Zealand Food Awards 2023.

Innovation and sustainability are the keys to success in the Cuisine Artisan Award 2023 at the New Zealand Food Awards – we congratulate all the finalists whose determination and hard work have been rewarded.

WINNER MIXED ROOTS Hot Stuff Curry Oil

Inspired by Indian green mango pickles and paying homage to Chinese chilli oil, this is a smoky, spicy paste that goes just as well with a bowl of curry and rice as it does spread on smoked salmon sandwiches. It has texture and crunch from whole spices and seeds, spiciness and heat from chilli flakes. $14.95 for a 200ml jar. mixedroots.co.nz

FINALISTS MITEYCO LTD Allmite Gold Mild Chilli

A mild kick of heat from red chilli, turmeric and apple cider vinegar gives this tahini-based nutritional yeast spread a savoury warmth. Perfect just on toast or bread, it also pairs with eggs, tomato, avocado and cheese or try it as a flavour boost in soups and casseroles. $11.99 for a 250g jar. allmitegold.co.nz

AUGUSTINES OF CENTRAL Blackcurrants in Cassis

Keeping alive the traditional art of preserves, the rich, tart flavour of South Canterbury organic blackcurrants fuses lusciously with traditional French cassis liqueur syrup. Naturally they are delicious for dessert, but try with game or cheese for a mouth-filling pop of flavour. $17 for a 340g jar. augustinesofcentral.com

AUTOMATIC BAKERY Half Baked Bread – Balsamic Onion & Feta

Now you can have freshly baked artisan bread at home without the fuss and time it normally takes. Topped with housemade slow-cooked balsamic onion jam and crumbles of Danish feta, just pop it in the oven for 10 minutes. $7.99 for a 350g loaf. autobake.nz DONA LOU’S GOAN CUISINE Prawn Balchão Originating in the coastal state of Goa in western India, prawn balchão melds the rich culinary heritage of Indian and Portuguese cuisine. It’s a spicy, tangy seafood dish made with prawns marinated and cooked in a flavourful spice blend. Traditionally eaten with rice, it’s also great on crackers or crusty bread. $12.99 for 200g. donalous.co.nz

HINTERLAND Certified Organic UMF 20+ Mānuka Honey

From one of the few certified organic mānuka honey producers in New Zealand, comes this rare, high-grade UMF 20+ mānuka honey (UMF stands for ‘Unique Mānuka Factor’, an independently certified quality assurance system for New Zealand mānuka honey). It’s a family-run operation with hives deep within the Kaimanawa ranges whose remote location ensures they are not exposed to sprays, pesticides or insecticides. Each glass jar comes with the gift of a ‘whakatauāki’ (Māori proverb) to connect back to the whenua. $130 for 250g. hinterlandfood.com

KĀPITI Kāpiti Bridge Street Blue

Developed to celebrate 100 years of cheese making at Kāpiti’s Bridge Street site, this is a natural-rind, small blue cheese. The buttery, creamy, gooey texture with beautiful blue veins hit the mark for blue and non-blue lovers. tastekapiti.co.nz

ROBBIES BY MRS PICKLES Honey Sloe Gin Pickled Onions

Take a gentle combination of cider vinegar, organic plums, Canterbury pickling onions, raw honey and a soft hint of whole allspice and combine with Lammermoor Pink Sloe Gin to give a gloriously fresh and fragrant taste of summer. $30 for 1kg. robbies.nz

ROYALBURN STATION Royalburn Fine Lamb

Everything about Royalburn lamb reflects a true ‘farm-to-plate’ experience, from the best genetics, the best feed – fresh grass, oats, buckwheat, phacelia, clovers and omega-3 rich chicory – and an on-farm micro abattoir, which means the lambs are born, raised and killed on site, so reducing stress. Finally, there’s an on-farm butchery staffed by trained chefs who dry age the lamb for five days and ensure a true ‘nose-to-tail’ process. All up this means the best-quality lamb we’ve tasted in a long time. royalburn.co.nz

SPICE TREE Chermoula

Kashmiri chillies are blended with freshly ground cumin seeds, coriander seeds, turmeric roots and black peppercorns, parsley, sweet paprika and a touch of garlic and onion to make this north-african-inspired spice mix. It’s bright and fresh, but slightly spicy and tangy. It adds depth to a marinade for meat or fish, or is a pop of freshness sprinkled on veges. $7.95 for 70g. spicetree.co.nz