Gourmet Farmer (2010) | Couchpile

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Gourmet Farmer (2010) | Couchpile

Season 2 poster

Season 2

10 Episodes

2011

E01

The Business Of Pig Farming

8/25/2011

In Season 2 of Gourmet Farmer we're in for a surprise. Matthew now has his own family - partner Sadie and son Hedley, to add to his growing menagerie on the farm. It's time to get serious. He has a family to feed and a pig business to grow. To do this, he needs to build infrastructure on the farm to cope with the extra pigs, and find new ways to sell his increasing supply of pork products.

E02

North West Long Table Lunch

9/1/2011

While on the North West coast of Tasmania, herding cattle across the ocean at low tide to Robbins Island, Matthew has a new business idea. The Wagyu beef that he samples here - at Hammond farm, is the best he's ever eaten. Sadly, only foreigners get to taste it. With Nick and Ross, Matthew brainstorms an idea for Long Table Lunches, where the three of them will create multiple course menus from produce sourced exclusively from the local area. As they head up to the North West coast to spend a week sourcing produce, the weather turns bad and the `paddock' lunch they envisaged is under threat. And after locating a barn as an alternative, they find they've bitten off more than they can chew and race against the clock to feed everyone before the guests get too drunk and consume all their profits. The food, however, is a standout, and guest leave contented, while Matthew, Nick and Ross conclude that it was a great - if not that profitable experience.

E03

Beer

9/8/2011

Matthew starts to get hard core with his locavore philosophy when he decides to learn how to make his own brew. Unfortunately, his lesson is interrupted when he finds out his beloved cow Maggie has fallen ill after giving birth to a calf. After a rough patch, Matthew picks himself up and goes out in search of wheat substitutes for his breadmaking and tries out some spelt.

E04

Gone Kayaking

9/15/2011

Matthew reckons he's earned a break from the farm and heads off on a kayaking adventure with Ross and kayaking expert, Nick. They're resolute in insisting on packing nothing but two-minute noodles, as the Picton River is sure to supply a bounty of fish. Alas, Matthew and Ross prove to be less than naturals on the water, and the fish prove to be totally absent. Resisting the temptation to head into a fast food outlet as they're kayaks approach a small town, they call up a sushi maker who has a smarter idea for catching fish, and who prepares a spectacular meal.

E05

Chinese New Year

9/22/2011

Matthew and Ross receive a request from Serbian man John Jovanovic for suckling pig, while manning their Salamanca stall. The suckling pig is to be served at a Sino-Serbian New Year's feast. Matthew is intrigued and offers up a piglet in exchange for a seat at the table. He discovers that his customer is married to a Chinese woman, Janette, and that after less than satisfying Chinese New Year meals at restaurants, they now host their own.

E06

A Burgeoning Empire

9/29/2011

Matthew and Ross have a stall at a new farmers' market, where you can only sell what you grow or source from providores who don't have the means to sell their own product. They see this as an opportunity to expand and try out a few new products. First is B'stilla, a Moroccan pigeon pie that they source from Phil Newton. Next, they go hunting for wallaby and rabbit - produce which is growing in plague proportions and which they can acquire at little cost. While Ross prepares wallaby pie, Matthew goes in search of a rabbit recipe from opera singer Maria Lurighi.

E07

Flinder's Island

10/6/2011

Matthew, Nick and Ross raise the stakes in their long table lunches business idea. This time they take nothing but salt, pepper and a bit of olive oil to an island which has got to have more protein running around it than any other piece of land in Australia.

E08

Wild Food

10/13/2011

Matthew sets out on a challenge to see if he can create a meal from wild food that’s free for the taking.

E09

Viva Italia

10/20/2011

An invitation to Italy affords Matthew the opportunity to learn how to make salami the traditional way.

E10

Vive La France

10/27/2011

Matthew journeys from Italy to France to learn how the French preserve their meat products.

Season 5 poster

Season 5

10 Episodes

2019

E01

Good food needs good soil

8/1/2019

Matthew's Fat Pig Farm Kitchen has been feeding people for over a year now, but he knows that the quality of his food is only as good as the soil it comes from; so, he embarks on a 12-month mission to transform the food he serves.

E02

Fermented Flavours

8/8/2019

Autumn has come around on the farm and Matthew has been told goats are the natural solution to tackling the farm's blackberry problem.

E03

The Elegance of Good Ideas

8/15/2019

With Winter setting in Matthew welcomes a herd of goats to solve his blackberry infestation without using a single pesticide.

E04

Food for the Land

8/22/2019

After having the health of his farm soil tested Matthew receives the results and needs to explore new ways to rest and rehabilitate the damaged earth in his pig paddocks.

E05

The Apple of my Eye

8/29/2019

With Sadie and Hedley away, Matthew has got his work cut out for him managing the farm on his own and repairing winter rot in the farm's apple orchards.

E06

Living the Dream

9/5/2019

If there is an art to outdoor cooking than why not have a barbecue that's a work of art. Matthew realises a long held day dream when he installs an incredible outdoor fire pit built by one of Tassie's most talented blacksmiths.

E07

The Hungry Patch

9/12/2019

Matthew creates an incredible pie with the few things that are available in the garden and learns the intricacies of how to forage for wild food in Tasmania.

E08

Little Wonders

9/19/2019

With Spring in full swing and bugs in abundance, Matthew invites an insect scientist to survey the health and wealth of the farm's insect population.

E09

Two for One

9/26/2019

It's high summer and Matthew is focused on making the most of the garden's first flush of raspberries.

E10

A Year in the Life

10/3/2019

It's been five seasons and lots of hard lessons since Matthew set out to transform his cherished slice of Tassie into a farm that grows healthy food while regenerating healthy soils. He's tried it all, so which ideas worked or didn't?

Season 3 poster

Season 3

10 Episodes

2013

E01

New Farm

3/14/2013

Matthew’s Puggle Farm is under shade and too wet for most of the year, which has hindered his farming aspirations. The experience has confirmed that he does want to pursue this farming life more seriously. Now Matthew wants to upscale.

E02

Chickens, Vegies and Polytunnel

3/21/2013

It’s a year of experimentation and Matthew has kept chooks for eggs, but now he’d like to get heritage chickens at Puggle Farm to free range for their meat. He has also been interested in the differences between heritage chickens and free-range chickens we purchase from the supermarket… their size, colour and especially taste. He has decided to acquire some supermarket-breed chicks to free range himself and compare the taste with his heritage breed.

E03

Festivale

3/28/2013

Matthew has been planning to build a commercial kitchen but the cost is prohibitive. Ross tells him about a caravan fitted out with a commercial kitchen that's for sale on Bruny Island. The mobile kitchen would also be great for Matthew’s other venture – making and selling foods in markets and festivals around Tasmania.

E04

Smoker

4/4/2013

Inspired by last year's trip to France, Matthew decides to add a couple of geese to his menagerie, and while picking them up off a local farmer, he is distracted by a home-built cold smoker. One of Matthew’s visions for the new farm is to experiment with various food processes, and, inspired by the cold smoker, he wants to test new cured products and smoke them.

E05

Shop Special – Cheese, Saffron, Sloe Gin

4/11/2013

Matthew and Nick’s new shop venture, A Common Ground, provides many challenges: meeting demand with a varied supply of seasonal local produce; and maintaining commitment to ethically grown and prepared food whilst managing the bottom line. The shop isn't in the ideal location and a couple of new ideas are needed to increase sales.

E06

Breaking Down a Pig

4/18/2013

Matthew is keen to use all parts of the pig to ensure he’s adding as much value as possible to his future porkers. He has a plan for a ‘Breaking Down’ day, where one pig is broken down into its constituent parts, ready for cooking and preserving.

E07

Cellar Door and Wine Growing Road Trip

4/25/2013

Nick has bought himself a wine fermenter and is hoping to enlist both Matthew and Ross to make a barrel of their own vintage. The three boys go on a Cellar Door road trip around the Tamar Valley, researching wine varieties and winemaking… with a not-so-hidden agenda to secure enough grapes for a barrel.

E08

Beef

5/2/2013

Fifty acres of pasture is a lot of grass to manage, and the local NRM (National Resource Management) – the mob who consult on how to improve and maintain a healthy farm – have told Matthew he desperately needs to get animals to graze his grass… to regenerate it and add fertility to the soil.

E09

Fish

5/9/2013

Matthew, Nick and Ross go on a sailing adventure to Maria Island on Tasmania’s east coast. The boys learn how to sail, meet some keen fishermen, are visited by dolphins and whales, and explore Maria Island hiking and snorkelling at the marine national park. With wondrous views and scenery, they cook up fresh fish, abalone and local produce.

E10

Feast

5/16/2013

It’s been a year since Matthew expanded his business and bought the new farm, and it’s been a steep learning curve for both him and Sadie. Their passion to have visitors at Fat Pig Farm to share and experience their lifestyle and taste products made from the farm has led them to set a date for their very first open day and feast.

Season 4

10 Episodes

2017

E01

Goodbye Puggle Farm

8/3/2017

It’s been over 7 years since Matthew Evans left a busy, city career as a food critic, to become a farmer in Southern Tasmania. Now it’s time to get serious. After selling his original Puggle Farm, he is moving his family to the much larger Fat Pig Farm, where he has a dream to build a farm-to-table restaurant in the upper paddock

E02

Money Matters

8/10/2017

As the building of his new house on Fat Pig Farm gets underway, Matthew sets about improving other areas of the farm in preparation for his new farm-to-table restaurant. Produce needs to be source, the vegetable garden needs a major overhaul – but at the moment, there is a lot more money going out the door than coming in.

E03

Happiness is Handmade

8/17/2017

As their new house nears completion, Matthew and Sadie turn their minds to filling it with artisan, hand-made objects – be it a green-wood milk stool, a ceramic crock for sauerkraut, or a custom timber kitchen created by a boat builder. And with the restaurant foundations finally being laid, Matthew goes in search of inspiration for dishes to put on the menu at Fat Pig Kitchen.

E04

Nose to Tail

8/24/2017

After slaughtering a cow on the farm, Matthew wants to honour this life by using as much of her carcass as possible. After the meat is butchered and the offal turned into fertiliser, he takes the cowhide to a backyard tannery.

E05

Wallaby, Mushroom and Chips

8/31/2017

With native wallabies grazing the same pasture as his livestock, Matthew needs to come up with a solution that allows both to co-exist. And as the completion of Fat Pig Kitchen draws nearer, Matthew turns his attention to maximising other areas of the farm, in readiness for feeding a restaurant full of people every week.

E06

Fire in the Oven

9/7/2017

After nearly burning down one of Australia’s oldest farms, Matthew is inspired to build an enormous, outdoor, wood-fired oven for Fat Pig Kitchen. And with the restaurant opening imminent, Matthew and Sadie go in search of some bio-dynamic wines to serve to customers.

E07

The Final Countdown

9/14/2017

The big day is nearly here – the opening of Matthew’s farm-to-table restaurant, Fat Pig Kitchen. But with a forecast of snow and sleet, will the farm and restaurant be ready in time, to feed 35 hungry mouths?

E08

Grand Opening

9/21/2017

Outside it’s snowing, but inside it’s warm and welcoming for the 35 guests invited to the soft launch of Matthew’s new paddock-to-plate restaurant. But the big question is – after such a large investment, will he be able to recoup his costs and make a living?

E09

Sausage Party

9/28/2017

With the first official Friday Feast, a new market stall and Ross’s sausage-making workshop, it’s a very busy week at Fat Pig Farm. For Matthew, it’s challenging to balance the business side of things with life as a farmer.

E10

Reap What You Sow

10/5/2017

Even though life has become very busy for Matthew, he still manages to find time for a night away with his friends, Nick and Ross, in search of Tasmanian prawns. The chickens come home to roost when a food critic arrives at Fat Pig Kitchen.