Jennifer Yee Collinson

04/11/2023

Our inaugural phone food photography masterclass with was held today in collaboration with Thanks to the superstars who gave up their Saturday to learn photography principles and to put them into practice with some hands-on exercises using their smart phones.

11/10/2023

My favourite fast breakfast. My mum Jean-Ying would often make us kids a hot breakfast like this before school. Lup cheong Chinese sausage rice with greens w a fried egg and a dash of light soy. It would set us up for the day. Sometimes the fried eggs and lup cheong would end up in our sandwiches for school lunches. Either way, mum was thinking well ahead to ensure us kids would head to school with a high protein brekkie & lunch. That occasionally meant friends would want to trade their jam sandwiches for mine. If I wasn’t so eager to eat my egg & sausage lunch I could have earned a bit more pocket money from my mates! tha@nzeggs

10/10/2023

A bit late to post this but I reckon these are perfect partners - when the eggs are fresh laid & bluffies are in season, make these delicate chawanmushi.

09/10/2023

Some mornings I’m in the mood for silky scrambled eggs, not the Uni hostel type that sits in a Bain Marie for the entire service but just set wistful curds, 2 eggs with a dash of milk or cream, well seasoned and gentle amalgamated with a pair of chopsticks. B**g toast the toast on and in this case have the cooked asparagus at the ready. I prefer to oil my pan like they do and when it’s medium hot add the eggs and give it the 20ish seconds of attention it needs. Push the curds as they appear into a puddle and there you have it.

07/10/2023

Sunday morning eggs! You can’t beat them for setting you for whatever the day throws at you. I’m reminiscing about these at Sherwood when I was snowed in Queenstown and flights cancelled. Baked eggs with garden greens & dukkah on sourdough.

06/10/2023

The ultimate egg brekkie! Soft boiled eggs from feathery creatures obsessed friend .hugues , shokupan from our dearly missed & asparagus because ‘tis the season & there is something about eating these young tips dipped in runny yolks with fingers that feels just a bit naughty. Happy Saturday!!

03/10/2023

Planning a weekend with friends, join chef Kit Perera and I for a fun & delicious Sri Lankan masterclass and shared lunch! You’ll learn about the special herbs & spices that make this cuisine so flavoursome & distinctive, as well as good for you. This will be part demonstration and part hands-on. Come make light and fragrant roti and fresh coconut sambal with us and more! Please DM us to reserve a place as there are limited seats. Cost is $185 per person. Bookings are essential.

02/10/2023

If you're a food communicator, have a food business or just want to create professional looking food images, this is for you! Learn how to create magical images using your phone camera for web-pages and social media in this hands-on masterclass with pro-tips from award winning food photographer Alan Gillard.
We will provide ingredients, props and stylist guidance along with a delicious shared lunch. So come have some fun and try out new techniques you can use straight away! Bookings are essential so please DM us if you would like to reserve a place. Cost is $185 per person.

22/07/2023

And just like that it’s happened! Thank you to all who came to .akl this afternoon to celebrate an afternoon of conversation with Fungi of Aotearoa author who took us on a magical mushroom journey. All accompanied by delicious wine, an aromatic woodsy mushroom consommé & buttery mushrooms on toast. A big thank you to Melanie, Courtney, Eddie, Charlotte & Kate - the dream team at Lamplight and to Phil from for beautiful oyster, shiitake & enoki mushrooms to play with and for the stunning display.

30/06/2023

Flounder toast. My current lazy way to eat more fresh fish. Plenty of ginger, Chinese black olives, tomato, dill, coriander, Shaoxing on buttery brioche.

22/06/2023

The secret is out!!! is coming to Auckland! Liv Sisson, author of Fungi of Aotearoa, will be in conversation with me at Lamplight Books on Saturday 22 July.

The event starts at 3pm with a drink on entry. Liv and I will talk Fungi, mychorrhiza and the “how and where” to discovering the world of fungi in Aotearoa.
This will be followed by an opportunity for Liv to answer all your fungi questions and a mushroom tasting prepared by moi.
Email any questions and photos for identification in advance to [email protected]

Tickets are $15 and very limited! Link to buy in bio (https://tinyurl.com/FoATicket)

Contact Lamplight by phone or email with any event queries.


akl

04/06/2023

Homestyle steamed egg w dashi, ginger, light soy,
Ikura caviar by & Chinese chives from my garden.

08/05/2023

If you’re in Welly this coming weekend come check out WOAP’s Eat Your Words Symposium this Saturday (at Victoria University’s Pipitea Canpus) I’m joining Aussie mate on a panel and sharing stories of culture & heritage through food & travel writing.
There are two tickets for Session Four to give away if you’d like to come. Just let us know below. We will draw two names & will advise winners by DM!!

05/04/2023

I love the gentle bite of mustard greens 🥬 (g*i choy) w pork spare ribs braised in ginger, garlic, Chinese black olives, Shaoxing rice wine (shàoxīng jiǔ (绍兴酒)) light soy & toasted crushed NZ grown Szechwan pepper.

17/03/2023

Homestyle Cantonese lends itself to making the most of seasonal ingredients. I’m loving using fresh kumara leaves in place of water spinach ong choy this week. Such a delicious green vegetable which cooks quickly with a slick of oil and smashed clove of garlic. Splash over water or stock and pop on a lid briefly to wilt the leaves then lightly season some soy, fish sauce or oyster sauce. Add a sliced chilli 🌶️ even. Look for kumara leaves at your Asian green grocer’s or on Saturday’s.

07/03/2023

Such an honour to be celebrating International Women’s Day this year with so many inspiring and incredibly talented women in Aotearoa’s food & drink community today. There are many aspects of our food sector that I’ve had the privilege of working in throughout my career whether it’s supporting food start-ups in their infancy or helping improve nutrition literacy so that we can all make more informed and mindful choices in how and what we eat. I started this side gig called culinary journeys three decades ago which allowed me to share culinary experiences and stories across Aotearoa & my adopted home Vietnam with so many other food obsessed eaters connecting them with growers, makers, and harvesters. As a food scientist I’ve had the opportunity to work and forge networks alongside the top brains across sports nutrition & physiology, R&D and alongside colleagues who are now friends across New Zealand, Australia, France, UK and Japan. I’m grateful for all the exceptionally generous people who have stood by me and encouraged me. It’s still a blast every single day!

19/02/2023

Bitter melon or gōyā Okinawan style with spam substituted w speck from I bought from a matter of weeks ago. Look for bitter melon at your Asian green grocers or hike out to Avondale markets Swipe right to see the steps to the finished dish

08/02/2023

Such an honour to be included in this lineup of Aotearoa New Zealand’s women in food and drink. So many I have the privilege to know, admire and be inspired by! Thank you

16/12/2022

This is the special cherry bowl that my mum Jean liked to use for Christmas feasting. The second pic is from the last Christmas she celebrated with the family in 2019. We miss her everyday and and especially on Christmas Day. Here’s to the tradition of always having cherries on the Christmas table. Happy festive season to all!!

14/10/2022

Sneaky Friday tacos!🌮 Juicy Birria & pork carnitas by So glad I finally made it! Happy Weekend!

09/10/2022

Exotic fragrant kiekie flower - a component in a unique "Frozen Duck Pond" New Zealand botanicals Scandinavian snaps made by .artist for tasting conference yesterday.

04/08/2022

Cheese roll & a flat white research trip.

04/08/2022

We can wait to experiment with these exquisite pink & grey oyster mushrooms from Winton growers Rachel & Luke Thanks for going that extra mile for us!!

05/07/2022

Kumara sourdough baby Patrick Thomas born 8:19pm. Birthweight 874g. HEHG stoneground white from + touch of rye & HGRM. .welzenbach baby is still growing strong!

25/06/2022

Incinerator charred cabbage 101. I love an outdoor fire in the middle of winter. Thanks for letting me play X

24/06/2022

Mānawatia a Matariki!

18/06/2022

Rescue mission from the depths of my vegetable bin. Some sad looking watermelon radishes that I’d abandoned turned magically into a quick pickle. Sprinkled kosher salt over the lot and let them hang out for a bit while I did a pickling liquid with some sliced root ginger, apple cider vinegar & a good couple of splashes of Chardonnay vinegar and some sugar. Let the pickle juice cool completely before immersing the drained radish slices into their pickling bath. Coaxed them back to life it did. Damn tasty if I say so myself.

25/04/2022

If you are interested in attending the 2022 Symposium please diary these dates! 27th and 28th November to be held at
Te Manawa Museum of Art, Science and History
Palmerston North
Further details on the website.

2022 New Zealand Symposium of Gastronomy and food history information page.

12/04/2022

Hello fellow gastronomers! I thought you might like to know a something about a project I’ve been involved in for the past year with the FAR Foundation for Arable Research. It’s rather extraordinary what life presents to you as I actually worked with the team at Timaru Milling Co. making Diamond pasta back in the mid-90s using this exact line of durum wheat 🌾. What a privilege it’s been to help connect Wairarapa growers with chefs, artisan pasta makers and bakers round NZ and ag*in make locally grown durum wheat flour available as an ingredient.
Read more in the feature from Rural Delivery.

In 2016 pea weevils were found in pea seed crops in the Wairarapa. Immediately all crops were destroyed and growing of peas was banned throughout the region in a bid to eradicate this potentially devastating pest. This was a blow to arable farmers because pea seeds were the most profitable crop. 

27/02/2022

Gilding my Sunday supper. Paua & pork dumplings from

12/02/2022

Wish you were here to eat these with us for breakfast, lunch & dinner. .robyn

31/01/2022

Happy Year of the Water Tiger to everyone & especially all the other big pussycats out there! Wishing you good health, happiness & Tigerish success in 2022!
🧧🐯🧧🐯🧧🐯🧧🐯🧧🐯🧧

28/01/2022

Thanks for a fabulous weekend on Kawau. Forever your island wife 😉🤣😂 😘

26/01/2022

This is as close to Vietnam we’re going to get at the moment sadly but I can now get my fix & practice Tiếng Việt & Cantonese with my new friends Ngân & Rico where I can share food stories and talk about ingredients until closing time! Go check out their menu which I’ve included in this post, just swipe left. Thịt bò nướng lá lốt grilled betel leaf wrapped wagyu to go that’s replated on my Minh Tam lacquer platter from Hanoi. 12hr Saigon phở bò w rare beef, springy beef balls, brisket brown rice noodles w lemon bean sprouts and rau húng quế (Thai basil). Truly nurturing.

15/01/2022

Very hard not to scoff a few before buying a bag of Central Otago Sweetheart cherries 🍒 from Alexandra. Yayy for summer stone fruit!

14/01/2022

Balmy evening.

10/01/2022

Sultan plums are tart skinned and sweet juicy fleshed. Best eaten over the sink or on the lawn. It’s either you or the birds but there’s plenty for us as well as friends & neighbours.

09/01/2022

This is how we roll in Gizzy. Homemade fish & chips night by the pro’s. Freshly caught terakihi by the boys.

02/01/2022

A blissfully magical spot to take a sandwich, a couple of juicy plums or apricots and summer reading. The rustle of poplars and willow, tall grass to disappear into. Sadly the state of the Taruheru River that flows past is so bad that there is finally a lengthy restoration project underway. It’s sh*tty state is due to a combination from contaminants from urban and rural land use. Let’s hope with stakeholders are able to reverse this devastation so that the natural ecosystem is restored and we can safely swim here ag*in. But my burning question is what took us so long?

30/12/2021

Simple sticky rice w lup cheong, Chinese mushrooms, dried scallops & prawns. Whenever my folks went on a road trip, mum would make this to have as their picnic lunch. I remember the large wide necked thermos that she use to pack it in when we were kids. I made it for dad’s lunch yesterday to have with his fresh beans and some kohl rabi.