KATIE BROWN - 3 DEC 2020

There is nothing like an Instagram story for introducing food envy around dinnertime. Cori Gonzalez-Macuer, father, stand-up comedian, regular on Three’s 7 Days and well-known for his role in What We Do in the Shadows, shares culinary works of art on the regular. I sounded him out to see if he would share a favourite recipe with us to help remedy the envy situation, and while I was at it, I took advantage of the opportunity and fired a quick Q&A at him to see what the go is in his world these days.

Catch Cori performing with comedian friends on Thursday 10th Dec at Auckland’s Ponsonby Social Club: tickets available here via Undertheradar.

KATIE - DESCRIBE A TYPICAL DAY FOR YOU:

Cori - Usually get woken up around 6am by my alarm (my 5 year old daughter, Freddie). Then I make breakfast, prepare her lunch, if we have time we'll go for a fluffy at our local cafe, then it's a school drop off. Every day is different. I'm working on some stuff in the U.S. so it's been taken up by Zoom meetings most of the year. On the days that I don't have Freddie, it usually means I was working the night before, which in turn means the following day runs a bit slower than the previous.

BEST CAREER MOMENT TO DATE:

For stand up it was probably winning the Billy T Award. For everything else it was being in What We Do In The Shadows. It opened up a lot of doors and I got to travel around and meet some pretty cool people.

GO-TO RECIPE WHEN TIME IS TIGHT:

Packet mi goreng with a fried egg and chilli flakes on top.

SOMETHING THAT IS EXCITING YOU JUST NOW:

Fred started school in July and is obsessed with maths and reading. Can't think of anything cooler than her reading to me at the moment.

BEST NEW DISCOVERY YOU'VE MADE:

Benedict cafe in Newton has just opened around the corner from my place. I highly recommend it.

THE TOP 3 TRACKS ON YOUR SPOTIFY 'ON REPEAT' PLAYLIST (OR YOUR CURRENT FAVOURITES):

Most played is probably “Savage Love” because it's Fred’s fave at the moment. I'm liking every song in The Phoenix Foundation's new album, Friend Ship.

SOMETHING YOU'VE WATCHED RECENTLY THAT HAS INSPIRED YOU:

I only watch serial killer docos so if anything I'm constantly inspired to solve the crimes I read about in the paper.

SOMETHING YOU'RE REALLY GREAT AT:

Procrastinating

SOMETHING YOU'RE REALLY NOT GREAT AT:

Meeting people for the first time

A LITTLE-KNOWN FACT ABOUT YOU:

I shared a bunk bed with my brother till I was 18 and in my first year of uni. I was prettttttty cool.

Cori’s Beef Ragu Pappardelle

DIRECTIONS

This works best with beef cheeks but apparently they're "out of season" at the moment, so I got a cross cut instead.

I put a rub on it of paprika, cumin, coriander seeds and salt and pepper and sear it all over. I put it in the slow cooker along with chopped carrots, onion and celery that I've sweated out in a pan, a can of chopped tomatoes and a decent amount of tomato paste. I also add chicken stock and soy sauce.

Let it cook for 8 hours.

Boil pappardelle until al dente. Chop fresh parsley to put in with it once done.

The beef should be falling apart now. Put it on top of the pasta, add parmesan and you're done!

Keep up to date with Cori: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram