Ever wondered what on earth to make for smoko? Chances are smoko queen Philippa Cameron can help you out.
Philippa is the cook at Otematata Station, a 40,000 hectare property in the Waitaki Valley. She and husband Joe, along with their daughters Flora, 6, and Evelyn, 4, are the fifth generation of Joe’s family to farm there.
What started out as an Instagram account to find new recipes for herself soon snowballed into a source of inspiration for rural kitchens across the country. Philippa’s @whats_for_smoko account has more than 20,000 followers and her book ‘A High County Life – Tales and Recipes from a New Zealand Sheep Station’ hit shelves in April.
Philippa grew up on a small piggery at Herbert, near Oamaru, but was surrounded by a rural community that shaped her thinking and ideas about how she would want to bring up a family. Sustainability is high on her priority list, and she recently hit headlines with her petition to make seatbelts compulsory in school buses.
Trained as a teacher, she met her pilot husband Joe on night in the Kurow pub after the races. When their daughter, Flora, was six months old they sat down to think about what sort of life they wanted for their family. They both agreed they wanted the same kind of upbringing they had enjoyed – surrounding by land, safe and with a protection of innocence – and so they came home to the farm to continue the family legacy.
Philippa was thrown into the role as cook in 2017 after her mother-in-law passed away suddenly in a tragic accident. While her official job title is ‘cook’, like many rural women, her role encompasses so much more than that. Philippa is proud to be a farmer’s wife, and she encourages others to own the title too.
Describe yourself in 3 words: Loud, talkative, giver – I love to give, be it time or food.
What’s the secret to a good smoko? Something hearty, on time, it’s got to give warmth and create that team environment. Make it inviting, have the kettle boiled, cups out, and a bit of good banter, that makes a good smoko.
What are your go-to smoko staples? Mouse traps. You can’t go wrong. I’m also all about no waste, so stale bread or buns are great for mouse traps. Toppings can be anything, chutney and cheese, bacon, onion soup mix with egg. You also can’t beat a good scone. If any of those come back I halve them and pop them in the freezer, then you can top them as mini pizzas. They love something sweet too, I usually do a couple of savoury and one sweet.
What led you to start whats_for_smoko? I had small children, had fallen into the role as cook and was running out of ideas. I was terrible at scones too! I was searching for those tried and true, never fail recipes. I wanted to create an environment for people to share recipes. I’d read an online comment from someone cooking for harvest asking ‘girls, what are you cooking for your men today?’ Lots of people jumped in and said ‘tell them to cook their own lunch’, it was so negative. For a lot of people it’s their actual job and it’s an important one. I thought, right, we need to normalise this. I often do takeovers of accounts because I want to normalise the role. Farming families are not just about taking your dogs out on the hills. We’re not all dog wallopers or horse riders, we’re not all rugged and useful (not that there’s anything wrong with that either!)
What sort of opportunities have come from your online profile? Mainly heaps of comradery. I’ve met so many people I would never have come across in my life otherwise, people who are isolated geographically, and having someone to chat to brings everyone together. Business-wise I’d never have thought of writing a book, and I get asked to speak at events, which provides a bit of pocket money. There are collaboration opportunities with other businesses – I’ve just opened a package from Agee full of preserving things, and I love to preserve. Knowing I’m able to bring something into the home that we haven’t had to pay for, mainly appliances or kitchen goods, that’s something I never expected. Things like PGW gives the girls gumboots, I’m not in it for that, but it’s nice to be able to provide for the family. The best thing is the connection with others though.
Must-have pantry items? Danish dough hook – it’s great for combining cake mix, scone mix or bread dough. A stash of UHT cream – no one ever has fresh cream! And I swear by my multi cooker – I call it my magic pot. It’s like a slow cooker on steroids, it’s a pressure cooker.
Tell us about your petition to make seat belts compulsory in school buses? It started off when Flora was going to school. We spent thousands of dollars on safe car seats for our children, to then learn I would drop her off in that seat and put her on a bus with no child restraint at all. I asked the bus company if I could provide a booster and they said they didn’t have seatbelts, so I asked if they would consider putting on a minivan, to which they replied ‘we will not be dictated to by parents’. I emailed Fair Go and they said ‘let’s do something’. Buses are tendered by the Ministry of Education and schools have no say in it. Everyone agreed on the problem, but no one was doing anything about it. I started the petition and got 6500 signatures in four weeks, and presented it to Parliament. I’ve just finished my submission to the Select Committee. It’s simply a mother wanting her child to be safe on the way to school. I have the ability to drive her to school each day (2 hours total) but if I can do this for those farmer’s wives who are calving all through winter and don’t have that option, I will. They shouldn’t have to put their children on a bus and hope.
Best advice you’ve ever received? It’s about stressing out about the garden. A friend of mine, Jane Millton, her granny gave it to her and she said “while children are small, they are the flowers in your garden that need tending to, so enjoy them and, when time allows, your actual garden will still be there”. Sometimes you just need reminding kids are only little for so long.
What are you reading/listening to? I have a kindle and read absolute smut at night, terrible romance novels, because it turns my brain off. I’m in the car a lot and often have children with me. We listen to a podcast from Melbourne Museum called The Fact Detectives, which is a great one for kids. Lately I’ve been listening to Stockwhips and Lattes, but my all-time favourite is from Dolly Patron, it’s called Dolly’s World.
Dream way to spend a day? In summer, with the family on the lake. Picnic lunch, good friends, lots of boating. Any other time of the year it would be going for a walk, on my own, getting some fresh air and exploring.
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