MasterChef star Khanh spills his budget cooking secrets

Masterchef Australia star Khanh Ong has revealed how to whip up delicious meals on a strict budget – including mouth-watering pork and cabbage dumplings for just $6 a plate.

The professional chef, who spoke to FEMAIL before his VIVID Chefs on the harbor event, shared several hacks on how to create more flavor on a budget amid the country’s cost of living crisis.

He says there are countless small ways home cooks can cut corners when it comes to cooking, such as buying pork bones to strip meat off and shopping for the best price.

However, if there’s one thing Khanh doesn’t skimp on, it’s spices. The chef revealed that flavors like coriander and mint bring out Southeast Asian flavors that are dull when they’re missing.

“I set a budget and amount of ingredients and I try to cook with those things all week and I try to show people that food can be simple,” he said, referring to his new Wild Food TV series.

“It doesn’t have to be packed with 20,000 ingredients to be good and there are few techniques and things to learn.”

“But one thing I always recommend is buying spices and stuffing your plates.” I see it all the time: when people make rice paper rolls, they put in a sprig of coriander and a leaf of mint.

‘How do you get flavor out of it? You have to put in 12 pieces of coriander and eight mint leaves, because those are the things that make food really Vietnamese and really Southeast Asian: it’s the loading of spices.’

Khanh also says many find it difficult to prioritize time over money because while it is so much cheaper to shop around for the best deal, most people don’t have the luxury to do so.

“Honestly, it’s a lot harder to do that because you’re sacrificing your budget for convenience and I think that’s the problem.

“I know a lot of people are short on time, but I went out of my way and drove an extra hour from my house because I knew where I went shopping would be cheaper.

“And I went to several different places instead of going to one place to get it all, because the convenience is why it costs more.”

Khanh shared the difficulties he faced when he tried to cook a week’s worth of meals for $50.

“I chose to go to Springvale, Victoria, where I grew up, because I know the spices there cost $1 each and I don’t want to spend $3 or $3.50 for a bunch of cilantro at the grocery store.

“I want to spend a dollar and use the remaining $2 for a packet of rice.

“What I did find is that if you look around, you’re going to find deals. I bought 600 grams of pork bones knowing that I can take 200 grams of meat to make dumplings.’

The Masterchef star also shared budget-friendly ways to buy meat.

“With the meat, I also choose certain meats that I knew were cheaper and tasted great,” he said.

“I made a beef dish yesterday and I usually use an eye fillet or scotch fillet but instead I used a top because I knew it would be thinly sliced ​​and seared quickly – it could be something that costs less because of the way on which you boil the protein.’

Khanh tries to go to farmers’ markets whenever possible because of the discounts.

“Food is discounted on Sundays because they’re not open on Mondays and they want to get rid of things. I never go early in the morning, I always go later, because potatoes are then, for example, 2 dollars per kilo instead of 4 dollars.’

It is important to know which vegetables are special or particularly cheap for the season.

“Pumpkin is very cheap right now, you can get a kilo for $3,” Khanh said. “I just put some pumpkin in bone broth with ginger, onion, spring onion, and it’s a wonderful meal.”

He added, “I often get the chunky chunks of pumpkin and mash it into my rice and it’s so tasty and healthy.”