Sarah and Otis Frizzell are a vibe; a Mexican flavoured one. They started their cult-followed food truck Lucky Taco in Ponsonby 10 years ago and now they’ve spawned ranges of taco kits, sauces and condiments available nationwide. Recently they smashed out The Lucky Taco Cookbook, jammed with recipes for their iconic dishes, and they found time to sit and chat with LSC.

1. Who would your dream dinner guest be and what would you cook for them?

Otis: Maybe, Ruth Alegria. The chef who taught us on our cooking course in Mexico all those years ago. I’d love to make her all our tacos so she could see how far we’ve come and where we’re at.

Sarah: My favourite person is Otis. He’s also my favourite person to eat with. He’s my dream dinner guest. I’d make him a devastatingly delicious dessert taco, that’s a bit salty and a bit spicy.

2. What’s your most treasured food memory?

Otis: Mum’s cooking. Mum and Dad would have great dinner parties, with huge, homemade curries or bolognese and everyone would cram around the table breaking bread and raving. As a young kid I loved being part of what felt like such an adult experience.

Sarah: Nan’s Sunday Roast & her butterfly cupcakes.

3. What are the ingredients or flavours you could not live without?

Otis: It’s gotta be chilli. From habanero to Sichuan. Basically, I want at least some chilli on everything besides breakfast… And sometimes on breakfast too.

Sarah: Chillies / Salt / Citrus / Chocolate.

4. What is (or what are) your most essential cooking tools?

Otis: A sharp knife and a large, wooden chopping board.

Sarah: My Comal (Mexican hot plate) & a bloody good, sharpened knife. I also love my spice grinder.

5. Who are your food heroes/ greatest influences?

Otis: Well Mum, of course. And Dad. Mum did most of the cooking, but Dad is a great gardener. We always had a vege garden, and eating food straight from the garden is such a great way to learn about food.

Sarah: Peter Gordon, Felicity Morgan-Rhind, Jude Frizzell, Ruth Alegria.

6. What are the food trends you most dislike?

Otis: I don’t hate food trends, I just hate when they get too big. Like… I love fried chicken, but aren’t there enough new chicken joints at the moment? Smash burgers are great, but everyone is jumping on that right now. Overkill is boring, and most of the latecomers do an average job.

Sarah: Foam. I strongly dislike food foams. And drinks served in silly jars.

7. What do you cook when you just can’t be bothered or when time is short?

Otis: We always have the ingredients for a puttanesca pasta in the cupboard. Once the water is boiling, it only takes as long as cooking the spag to make it, and it’s always better than 99% of takeaways.

Sarah: Avo on toasted vogels with Lucky Taco chilli salt & a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime. Or quickly whip some prawns outta the freezer and defrost them. Make a simple, spicy, garlicky prawn spaghetti.

8. Name your current favourite cookbooks?

Otis: The Lucky Taco Cookbook!! And… We’re cooking from Ottolenghi’s ’Shelf Love’ and Sabrina Ghayour’s Persiana Everyday’ pretty regularly at the moment. But I’m very keen to get my hands on Sam Low’s new cookbook. We’ve made a bunch of his recipes that he’s put up online and they’re always amazing.

Sarah: Persiana Everyday by Sabrina Ghayour & Ottolenghi Test Kitchen - Shelf Love.

9. What are your best tips, tricks or hacks for entertaining at home?

Otis: Prep! Prep prep prep. Do as much as you can before everyone arrives. And make food that makes people reach and share… Food is an interactive sport. (Ed: A+ answer).

Sarah: PREPARATION. I’m a very organised person. If you’re organised well ahead of time, it’s stress free entertaining. And don’t make something you’ve never done before. Practice first - do a tried & tested.

10. Are there any foods you don’t like or don’t eat?

Otis: Honestly… I’ll try anything. But I can’t promise I’ll love it.

Sarah: Natto. It frightens me.

11. Name a favourite destination for food/dining

Otis: It’s really hard to go past Dominion Rd. Cheap, quick and delicious… But it all depends really. Depends on the craving…

Sarah: There are SO MANY places I want to go and eat. Melbourne is a great place to experience many cuisines though. What a melting pot of yumminess! Love a good Melbourne foodie adventure.

12. What’s your ultimate food treat? 

Otis: Ultimate food treat? That’s too hard. There’s too many. Sometimes, after a hard session serving tacos from the Lucky Taco truck, Sarah and I sit on the couch and watch some crappy telly and have a giant bowl of Coco Pops… that’s pretty spesh.

Sarah: My ultimate food treat would have to be a ridiculously big hot chocolatey, fudgy, salty, butterscotchy, peanut-buttery, ice cream sundae with chunks of cookie dough (or similar textural wonderfulness), with a smash of passionfruit / raspberry kinda vibe. With whipped biscoff cream, sprinkles and a morello cherry on top.

Recipes from The Lucky Taco…