Rick Stein's secret? Fresh and simple

Rick Stein says he would love to do a TV show in New Zealand and Australia on our ''civilised'' food. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Rick Stein doesn't hold with all that "cheffy" stuff. He doesn't do foams or frozen air or other examples of culinary alchemy.

"Some experimental cooking is a joke. It's over-complicated."

World-renowned chef Stein is in New Zealand to present two live theatre shows, showing his style of cooking and experiences gleaned from his television shows in France, Southeast Asia and Spain.

The shows, called Rick Stein's Food Odyssey, will include bits about his life, his dear departed dog Chalky, his philosophy on food, and the food itself. The food is a reflection of the quality of the ingredients, messed about with as little as possible.

Having visited New Zealand six times, Stein has a good idea of what we do well here. Oils, chocolate, wine of course, and fish.

"I went to the Auckland Fish Market and saw things I've never seen before. There was this great big thing called an oil fish, prehistoric-looking, and I thought, 'what on earth would you do with that'?"

New Zealand is a foodie's country, Stein believes. He's tried plenty of it - in recent years because of his business interests in Australia - in the 1960s, when he worked in Hawkes Bay and hitchhiked around the country. He even spent his 21st birthday in Kaikoura, eating crayfish.

"That was one of the few things worth eating here in those days. That, and fresh fruit ice cream. I'd never had anything like that before."

Stein would love to be able to make a television show in New Zealand and Australia, similar to those he has made in other countries. Our time has come, he believes. Our food is "civilised".

His passion for fresh food, as well as sustainable fishing and farming practices, has taken him around the world many times, and won admiration from audiences and fellow cooks. He is recognised as being gimmick-free, and is not interested in professional slanging matches.

Stein started out 35 years ago with a seafood restaurant in Padstow, in Cornwall. Since then the business has grown to include a further four restaurants, a delicatessen, a patisserie and a gift shop, a cooking school, and hotel rooms.

He co-owns, with his fiancee, Sarah Burns, a restaurant on the New South Wales coast, and has shares in a Hunter Valley winery. And he's still aiming for perfection.

"Even when I'm cooking at home, I'm still trying to turn out the perfect fillet of fish. I'm nearly there, I think."

* Rick Stein's Food Odyssey is at the Aotea Centre tonight at 8 and tomorrow at 2pm. To book, see the-edge.co.nz