Ingredients:
• 1 litre polyunsaturated oil eg. canola oil
• 2 tablespoons ground Aniseed myrtle
• 500g fetta (low salt fetta or soak the fetta in warm water before use)
Preparation:
Prep. time 10 mins
This method can be applied to all of the bush herbs to make flavoured oils for use as butter substitutes or as marinating oils for vegetables or meats. They are so useful that they could best be considered as 'mise en bush items'. The less salty the fetta the better the aniseed myrtle flavour. Other items can also be marinated in this oil, for example, eggplant, capsicum, mushrooms, even olives. The oil is an excellent dipping oil for bread as a substitute for butter. Use light or unflavoured oils since it is the herbs which add the distinctive flavour profile.
Heat 100ml of the oil to 40ºC. Remove from heat and add the aniseed myrtle allowing it to infuse as the oil cools. Dice the fetta and place into a clean glass jar. Cover the fetta with the flavoured oil and the remaining oil. Seal the jar and leave stand for at least two days. The fetta should keep for at least 2 months but 500g of aniseed fetta is easy to eat, adding it to salads, stuffing chicken or pork fillets before baking or simply add the fetta to your favourite antipasti dish.
The above process can also be used for chargrilled vegetables such as capsicum, eggplant, artichokes and mushrooms
