Two of Redfern’s leading hospitality brands – Redbird Chinese and Ciccone & Sons – have announced a special collaboration that is set to fire up the tastebuds of Sydneysiders.
From 12 August, the pair will launch a limited-edition gelato, which blends the flavours of Redbird’s famous red braise with Ciccone & Sons’ artisanal small batch gelato to create a tailor-made sweet and savoury taste sensation.
The new gelato incorporates classic Chinese ingredients such as Sichuan pepper, star anise, ginger, cinnamon and mandarin peel, with the addition of a sticky caramelised soy ripple.
Ciccone & Sons will be offering the creation in its pure form, in traditional cone or cup variations, while at Redbird Chinese around the corner, the gelato will be served deep-fried with a verjus caramel, in signature local Chinese restaurant style.
While the Chinese culinary staples used to create the new gelato are typically used by Redbird’s Co-owner and Executive Chef, Hamish Ingham, to braise the restaurant’s namesake dish – a rotating choice of duck, chicken, spatchcock, or pigeon – he says the flavours also translate perfectly to a gelato.
“Our red braise is developed from a traditional Chinese master stock recipe, and features sweet and savoury elements including fragrant Chinese spices, citrus and other secret ingredients,” he explained.
“While we normally use this ‘red braise’ to steep our signature red bird, the flavours lend themselves equally well to a sweet preparation such as gelato.
“When we brought the idea to the team at Ciccone & Sons, they were super keen to experiment with the ingredients, and what we’ve come up with is very exciting – we’re sure it will be popular with customers at both venues.”
Mark Megahey, Co-owner and Gelatiere at Ciccone & Sons, explained the creative process behind the new gelato.
“Hamish brought us a handpicked sample of the specially sourced Chinese ingredients he uses at Redbird, and we then incorporated them into our gelato base, which uses the best Australian milk and cream we can source,” he said.
“We left this to infuse with mandarin peel for 24 hours, and once we were all happy with the intensity of the spice levels, the gelato was churned in our traditional small batch way and a sweet soy ripple added for balance.
“The end result is a gelato that pops with uniquely identifiable Chinese flavours.”
