These World Cup themed brunches hit the back of the net
The Women’s World Cup final takes place on 20 August at 11am. If you’ll be cheering on England, fuel up with a belting brunch inspired by the host countries, Australia and New Zealand. We spoke to experts from New Zealand and Australia about the brunch dishes they’d recommend whipping up to really get your head in the game. The match day experience Miles Kirby, chef and founder of the Caravan restaurant chain (famous for its brunch dishes), is a New Zealand native. He suggests taking inspiration from what will be on offer for fans watching the games at the stadium in Wellington. “There’ll be people outside their houses with barbecues set up and they’ll be selling sausages rolled up in a slice of bread with fried onions. It’s something you see every weekend outside supermarkets in New Zealand as well. That’s a real game day thing!” So why not get brunch on the barbie? Whether you go for a whole fry-up or just a sausage sandwich, it’s sure to get you in the spirit. Host nation bunches “Freshness and abundance are the two words that spring to mind,” says Kirby when thinking about Kiwi brunches. “It’s all about generosity – with the food but also the spirit and hospitality.” A textbook New Zealand brunch? “It would definitely be a sharing dish. Something big served in the middle of the table with baked eggs – something like a shakshuka. “Smoked fish would have to be involved too – that’s a big one,” continues Kirby. “There’s a fish called kahawai which is abundant in New Zealand. It’s very oily so takes well to smoking – you often see it on brunch menus in a kedgeree or even just a salad with poached eggs.” If you wanted to recreate this style of dish at home, Kirby suggests using smoked mackerel. “Australians are known for being early risers, so breakfast and brunch are favourite meals here,” says Sydney-based food blogger Lorraine Elliott, AKA Not Quite Nigella. And while lots of the brunches are like ones you’d find in the UK, there are a few key differences in Australia, with sweet dishes playing a crucial role. “A quick takeaway breakfast might be a slice of banana bread, toasted with butter, or thick fruit toast and coffee – we grow a lot of fruit here, so it does tend to be quite seasonal. “We also have some fantastic bakeries turning out really high-quality baked goods like croissants in a range of flavours, scrolls, breads, tarts and pies.” Baked goods are also a popular choice in New Zealand, says Kirby. “All the places you go for brunch in New Zealand go crazy for muffins. In fact, no New Zealand breakfast or brunch table is complete without a tray of savoury muffins – specifically ham, cheese and herb. There are sweet ones as well, with everything from white chocolate to juicy blueberry ones. People get really inventive and they’re always served warm – straight out of the oven.” Big game players When it comes to brunch, we in the UK have lots of similar tastes to our Aussie counterparts, with key brunch ingredients Down Under including “Avocado, eggs, sourdough toast and good, strong coffee!”, says Elliott. Use them in dishes like “the ubiquitous avocado toast (avo toast), eggs either scrambled or poached with smoked salmon, corn fritters, shakshuka, toasties and pancakes,” all of which Elliott says are classics in Australia – just as in the UK. Seeing as it’s for a special occasion, now is the time to take your chosen classic breakfast to the next level and give it a twist. “I love making pesto eggs,” says Elliott. “You add a couple of heaped tablespoons of pesto to a hot frying pan and then break some eggs in the pesto and serve on toast. You don’t even need to butter the bread thanks to the oil from the pesto.” Talking of toast, try switching out the bread, says Kirby. “At Caravan, one of our most popular dishes is cornbread with chipotle butter and we’ve also used it for things like French toast.” Another easy and fun brunch dish is pancakes – swap your regular stack for kimchi-packed versions. “You just make a basic pancake batter, flavour it with soy sauce and add tonnes of kimchi and spring onions and coriander,” says Kirby. “You fry it in the same way you would your usual pancake. It’s great served with bacon.” Or you could up the ante by dishing them up with pork belly. “You’d want to get ahead of that – the day before – and then on the morning you can just reheat it or fry it. Or you could put a pork shoulder in the oven and let it slow cook to make pulled pork. “Getting ahead is always key, particularly with the Women’s World Cup in mind, because you don’t want to be in the kitchen, hearing teams score on the TV but not be able to watch.” What an own goal that would be. Now try: Our favourite brunch recipesIndulgent brunchesBrilliant brunch recipes Our favourite brunch recipes Indulgent brunches Brilliant brunch recipes Originally published July 2023