Thomas and Sheena Southam are the creators of the YouTube channel Chasing a Plate. Celebrating great food and the people behind it, they capture their food experiences, the work of producers, chefs and community organisations, and share with their audience of over 200,000 food lovers.

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

Jamie Oliver- he’s relatable and his career has taken so many twists and turns, ups and downs- it’s fascinating. We’d take him out on the boat, catch dinner and most probably serve the two recipes we’ve included below!

2. What’s your most treasured food memory?

We lived with my Por Por and Gung Gung (maternal grandparents) for a while growing up and I often think about the food my Por Por would cook us. It was either traditional Cantonese or her take on Western food. Sunday lunch was often steaming bowls of dried oyster and scallop congee and stir-fried vermicelli loaded with julienned carrot, celery and abalone followed by raspberry jelly swimming in milk. For breakfast, my sister and I started the day with hamburger patties marinated with Shaoxing wine on white toast or runny milky porridge dotted with Salada biscuits. I miss her food.

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

Tomato sauce- we bloody love the stuff and chilli in all forms.

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

A good knife. We travel a lot for Chasing a Plate and more often than not the Airbnb cutlery drawers contain a couple of blunt knives which makes cooking painful. We have a set of Global knives which are awesome but I also love those small Victorinox knives which cost about $10.

5. Who are your food heroes/ greatest influences?

We’re inspired by everyday food heroes- the small business owners working 7 days a week creating incredible food, the street food sellers we meet when we travel who have been selling one dish for decades- we love hearing these stories and sharing them through our mahi.

6. What are the food trends you most dislike?

Anything that is big for the sake of it, dishes that are excessive unnecessarily. And freakshakes!

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

Teriyaki chicken don is a firm favourite- we’ll throw together a teriyaki sauce and make some quick cucumber pickles. It takes no time at all. Thomas does a lot of fishing too and there is always fish in the freezer so fish burgers often show up as well.

8. Name your current favourite cookbooks?

I adore To Asia with Love by Hetty McKinnon and I’m captivated by the recipes (and photography) in Kai by Christall Lowe. And Modern Chinese by Sam Low (read Sam’s confessional here) is top of the pile with Chinese New Year approaching!

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

Involve your guests- if we’re having a taco night we’ll have people help make the tortillas, Thomas often takes our friends and family out on the boat to catch dinner- it’s a lovely way to include people in the meal.

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

Kidney- I’ve tried so many times to like it but I just can’t get there!

11. Name a favourite destination for food/dining

We both adore India- it’s the ultimate street food destination and filming for our channel there has meant we’ve gotten to experience it in a way that’s outside of the norm- a raw chicken being thrown at Sheena (she caught it!) at a fried chicken stall comes to mind. It’s not just the intense flavours of whatever you’re eating but the sounds and smells that accompany a street food experience in India that makes it utterly unforgettable.

12. What’s your ultimate food treat? 

Food that just tastes better when you’re eating it in its country of origin- like durian- you can’t beat sitting on a plastic stool in the sweltering heat of Malaysia or Thailand digging into the creamy, pungent fruit.

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