Recipe

Spicy roots and lentil casserole

Ingredients

2 tbsp oil

1 onion chopped

2 garlic cloves crushed

700g potatoes peeled and cut into chunks

6 carrots, thickly sliced

2 tbsp curry powder

1 litre/13/4 pints vegetable stock

100g lentils

a small bunch of fresh coriander,

roughly chopped

yogurt

Method

Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the onion and garlic over a medium heat for three to four minutes until softened, stirring occasionally. Tip in the potatoes and carrots, turn up the heat and cook for six to seven minutes, stirring, until the vegetables are golden.

Stir in the curry paste or powder, pour in the stock and then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, add the lentils, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the lentils and vegetables are tender and the sauce has thickened.

Stir in most of the coriander, season and heat for a minute or so. Top with yogurt and the rest of the coriander. Serve with rice or naan bread.

Potato frying tips

After cutting potatoes, soak in cold water for at least 30 minutes. Dry potatoes thoroughly before frying.

Prawn and ginger noodle salad

Ingredients

250g rice noodle

250g large, cooked, peeled prawns

1 small mango, peeled and sliced

4 tbsp soy sauce

2-inch piece of ginger, finely grated

1 lime, juiced

a large bunch of fresh coriander,

roughly chopped

Method

Soak the noodle in boiling water for six to seven minutes, until tender. Rinse under cold running water then drain and put in a bowl with the prawns and mango. Whisk the soy sauce with the ginger, lime juice and some black pepper and pour over the noodles. Scatter the coriander over and toss together.

Tip

Preparing rice noodle: After softening noodles with water, they must be kept moist or they will turn hard.