Airdate: Shane Delia’s Spice Journey: Turkey

Chef Shane Delia is back with his second series for SBS, with Spice Journey: Turkey, fusing traditional and contemporary cuisine styles.

Delia was a bit of a natural first time around if food shows are to your liking.

Popular chef Shane Delia’s cheeky personality, zest for life and enthusiasm for food and culture come together in Shane Delia’s Spice Journey – Turkey. The series is the second stage of Shane’s odyssey through the Middle East that sees him travel to exotic and mysterious Turkey.

On his journey Shane explores the historical and cultural foundations of this truly colourful country, experiences the legacy of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires and then creates a contemporary twist on traditional Turkish flavours back in his Australian kitchen.

Turkey is a country where ‘hospitality’ is more than a catch-cry; it’s a way of life. This series is a celebration of Shane’s love for the cultures that make up the fascinating Middle East.

This award-winning chef, restaurateur and cookbook author is best known for his original culinary style of cooking which has fascinated diners at his Melbourne restaurant, Maha, for years. However there’s much more to admire about this ambitious Maltese-Australian than the delectable food he creates.

Episode one –
From their gilded palace on Seraglio Point, the Ottoman Sultans ruled an empire that dominated the Mediterranean between 1453 and 1922, and spread their cuisine and culture throughout the Middle East, North Africa and South Eastern Europe. With renewed pride in their Ottoman past, Turkish chefs are rediscovering the ancient recipes that were served to the Sultans, and serving them to eager diners in restored palaces and renovated timber mansions or konaks. The episode follows Shane as he explores the lifestyle of the sultans. Then, wanting to see how the other half lived during Ottoman times, he joins the people of Istanbul in a public ‘Iftar’ feast, a modern revival of an Ottoman tradition.

Back in his Melbourne kitchen, Shane cooks up three mouth-watering courses, including: blue eye pastirma; lamb, saltbush and compressed melon; and a luscious clotted cream ice-cream with chocolate soil.

Thursday 31 July, 7.30pm SBS ONE.