STICK IT TO ʼEM

Meat on a stick sounds simple enough. But the key? Sunday’s resident chef Sam Mannering says that’s being patient enough to let them cool ever so slightly before stuffing them in your gob.

Chefs like skewers. Dare to wonder why? Because they’re so bloody easy. Marinate, spear, grill. Simple. Sounds like a scene from Game of Thrones. It’s nice to use cuts with a little skin and/or fat on them, because those are the bits that will caramelise up nicely and add more flavour. Skewers are an excellent do-in-advance dish – marinate, assemble and have them all ready to grill. Just remember not to take them directly from the fridge to the grill – give them a little time to relax a bit.

PORK AND COURGETTE SKEWERS WITH POMEGRANATE MOLASSES, PEACH AND ROSEMARY

Pomegranate molasses is one of those enigmatic ingredients that everybody seems to relegate to the back of the cupboard next to the kind of vinegar that’s only used for bee stings. Not any more. It is an excellent addition for marinades – I use it a lot with pork. You’ll see why. A delicious balance of sweet and sour.

PREP TIME: 20 MINUTES COOK TIME: 15 MINUTES SERVES: 3-4

• Two thick-cut pork scotch fillets (about 400g or so should be fine)

• Olive oil

• Handful of rosemary leaves

• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

• Sea salt and black pepper

• Zest and juice of 1 lemon

• 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses

• 3 courgettes

• 1 large golden peach, finely chopped

1. Cut the pork steaks into 2cm chunks and place in a bowl with a good glug of olive oil, most of the rosemary, the chopped garlic, a generous seasoning of salt and pepper, the lemon zest and juice and the pomegranate molasses. Mix everything together well, cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for at least a few hours, so the flavours can get to know one another.

2. A good half hour before you want to serve, remove the meat from the fridge and fire up the grill or oven as hot as it goes.

3. If your skewers are wooden, dunk them in some water. Using a vegetable peeler, peel long strands of courgette on all four sides until you get to the seeds in the middle (discard the middle). Dress the ribbons in olive oil.

4. Alternately thread pieces of pork and bunched up ribbons of courgette onto the skewers – three or four of each per skewer should do it.

5. Drizzle the skewers with olive oil and grill quickly for about five minutes on either side, until nicely caramelised and a little charred. Make sure your grill is really hot. Let the skewers rest for five minutes.

6. In the meantime, chop up the peach and combine with the remaining rosemary and a little olive oil. Scatter over the skewers and serve immediately.

CHICKEN SKEWERS WITH GOCHUJANG, CUCUMBER AND SESAME

I’m glad that Korean food is starting to get the recognition it deserves in this country. I’m lucky here in Auckland – there are some outstanding spots to visit. Accordingly, gochujang is becoming more and more commonplace, which is splendid. It’s chilli paste, but oh, what a chilli paste. Sweet and hot, with a punchy level of umami. The sort of thing we can all aspire to be. The brand I use is Maeil; it’s fairly available. It’s become the new miso. Everyone seems to have a tub of it in their fridge now. You’ll be surprised how much you use it.

Make sure you are liberal with the sesame seeds. The more, the better, really. They’ll caramelise deliciously under the grill. Just give them a minute to cool down. Mister impatient here is speaking from first-hand experience.

PREP TIME: 20 MINUTES, PLUS MARINATING TIME COOK TIME: 10 MINUTES SERVES: 2-4

• 450g boneless chicken thighs

• 1 tbsp gochujang paste

• 2 tbsp sesame seeds (black, white or both)

• 2 tsp soy sauce

• Pinch of salt

• Sesame oil

• Half a cucumber

• Handful of roasted peanuts

1. Cut the chicken into 2-3cm chunks and combine in a bowl with the gochujang, sesame seeds, soy sauce, salt and a teaspoon or two of sesame oil. Combine everything together well, cover and chill for up to two days for the flavours to meld.

2. As always, if you’re using wooden skewers, soak them in some water for a bit – this stops them from burning. Get your grill – be it a barbecue, or an oven – up as high as it will go. You want it hot!

3. Thread the chicken onto the skewers – about four chunks per skewer works well. Don’t bunch the meat together too closely – otherwise it won’t grill properly.

4. Once all the meat is skewered, drizzle with a little more sesame oil and scatter over a bit of salt, and then quickly grill for 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown, crisp and caramelised, and no longer pink in the middle. Take off the grill and set aside to rest for five minutes.

5. In the meantime, dice the cucumber and roughly chop the peanuts. Combine the two with a little sesame oil. Serve the skewers while they are still hot, with the cucumber and peanut mix scattered on top.