Three tasty recipes to celebrate 100 years of Vegemite

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Vegemite has been a lunchbox and breakfast staple for generations of Australians. This year, the country's national savoury spread turns 100, and to celebrate the brand has released a cookbook of 40 recipes. From bolognese to gravy, soups and even salads, these fresh ideas prove there's so much more to this mitey invention than Vegemite on toast.

Chicken tray bake

Make weeknight meals easier by cooking everything in one pan. This recipe is simple to prepare, requires minimal washing up, and the addition of Vegemite gives it maximum flavour.

INGREDIENTS

• 8 medium or 4 large chicken thighs, bone in and skin on
• 200g halloumi, cut into 1.5 cm slices
• 2 lemons, halved
• 8 chat potatoes (500g), halved
• 1 tbsp Vegemite
• 1 tbsp honey
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• steamed broccolini, to serve

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 160C fan-forced (180C conventional).
2. Place the chicken in a single layer in a large baking dish. Arrange the halloumi, lemons and potatoes around the chicken.
3. Whisk the Vegemite and honey together in a small jug, then gradually whisk in 1 tablespoon water. Pour over the chicken and scatter with rosemary.
4. Roast for 40 minutes or until golden and cooked through.
5. Serve with broccolini.

Serves 4

Tartlets

Vegemite adds a savoury twist to these delicious tartlets – perfect for a light lunch or tasty snack!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 sheets frozen puff pastry, just thawed
• 1 tbsp Vegemite
• 100g firm ricotta, crumbled
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp finely grated parmesan
• 250g mixed cherry tomatoes, sliced into 3
• thyme leaves, to garnish

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 190C fan-forced (210C conventional) and line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
2. Cut each sheet of pastry into 9 squares. Place onto the prepared trays, leaving space in between each piece. Use a knife to score a line around the edge of the pastry, 1 cm in from the sides, to create a border. Prick the base inside the border with a fork.
3. Bake for 8 minutes, until lightly golden. Remove from the oven, and using the back of a spoon, gently press down the centre of each square of pastry.
4. Mix the Vegemite, ricotta, egg and parmesan together in a small bowl until evenly combined.
5. Spread 2 teaspoons of ricotta mixture into the middle of each pastry square. Top with tomato slices.
6. Return the tarts to the oven to cook for 8-10 minutes or until golden.
7. Remove from the oven and garnish with thyme leaves and freshly ground pepper. Cool on trays for 5 minutes before serving.

Makes 18

Barbecue pork chops with Asian slaw

Perfect pork chops made even more so with the addition of Vegemite, which also adds a umami hit to this sensational slaw.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 pork loin chops, trimmed
• 2 tsp Vegemite
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 tsp vegetable or peanut oil
• 2 tbsp roasted peanuts, roughly chopped

Asian slaw

• 2 tsp Vegemite
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• ½ (about 500g) wombok (Chinese cabbage), finely shredded
• 1 red capsicum, finely sliced
• 1 carrot, shredded
• large handful mint leaves

METHOD

1. Remove the pork chops from the fridge 30 minutes before cooking. Whisk Vegemite and honey together in a bowl, then whisk in the vinegar.
2. Drizzle the pork chops with the oil. Heat a barbecue, grill pan or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook the chops for 3 minutes each side, then brush with glaze mixture and cook for a further 1 minute each side or until caramelised and cooked to your liking. Remove and set aside to rest for 5 minutes.
3. Make the slaw while the chops are cooking. Whisk the Vegemite and mustard together in a small bowl. Gradually add the maple syrup and vinegar and whisk until combined. Combine the wombok, capsicum, carrot and mint in a large bowl.
4. Serve the pork with the slaw, scattered with peanuts. Serve dressing on the side.

Serves 4

This is an edited extract from The Vegemite Cookbook: Favourite Recipes That Taste Like Australia, published by Penguin Random House Australia, RRP $29.99. Buy now