Fiji the Foodie Haven

Channel TEN Australia launched an exciting international food and travel show Foodie Adventures with Ash Pollard which premiered last September. This six-part series follows renowned foodie Ash Pollard as she travels to amazing locations in Italy, to offbeat adventures in Thailand, Fiji and Monaco.

Ash explores the colours and flavours of each region, seeking out unique indigenous dishes while engaging with and learning from colourful local food identities. Then, Ash flies home to Melbourne where she invites a celebrity guest to dinner. She recreates the new recipe she learnt and serves it up to a different celebrity guest each episode.

The Fiji episode was filmed on the Coral Coast and was supported by Tourism Fiji and Nanuku Auberge Resort, this episode followed Ash as she explored the stunning coastline of Fiji uncovering produce-rich areas such as the iconic Sigatoka Markets (aka ‘Fiji’s salad bowl’). Working with Nanuku’s own Executive Chef, Oliver Scarf, the pair crafted dishes together using local, sustainable and seasonally-sourced Fijian ingredients.

“As clichéd as this may sound, arriving in Fiji was like coming home,” says Pollard. “The Fijian produce was always fresh, and cooking there was such an aesthetic experience. Every morsel on the dish offered its own vibrant colour and unique flavour. After working with Nanuku’s Oliver Scarf, I learnt his greatest lesson is to keep things simple. I’m a great believer in this so I’ll continue the trend in my own cooking.”

The Chief Executive Officer of Tourism Fiji, Mr. Matthew Stoeckel said, “This is a wonderful opportunity to showcase Fiji’s colourful, local produce and unique island cuisine to an Australian audience.”

“We are excited about the culinary movement that is really starting to take shape in Fiji and an increasing focus on fresh, locally sourced produce featuring on restaurant’s menus. We take pride in teaching visitors about local flavours and delicacies, so they are able to share their island experience back home.”

The episode also sees Ash enjoy several emblematic Nanuku activities including enjoying her stunning villa, jet-skiing, learning about Nanuku’s conservation efforts with high-profile Marine Scientist, Kelly-Dawn Bentley and watching mud-crab fishing and traditional ‘lovo’ cooking (an earth oven) with Nanuku’s Josua Cakautini.Watch the Fiji episode here: foodieadventures.com.au/episodes-3/