Oven-roasted sweetcorn with smoky cumin butter

SERVES 4 PREP TIME: 10 MINUTES COOK TIME: 25-30 MINUTES

People with wood-fired barbecues will tell you smugly that nothing tastes better than sweetcorn cooked over coals. Here’s an easy cheat to get a similar result. 4-6 whole sweetcorn, still in the husks For the smoky butter:

2 tsp whole cumin seeds

1½ tsp smoked paprika

Finely grated zest of 1 lime 125g softened butter

Freshly ground black pepper and flaky sea salt, to taste

1 Heat the oven to 200C. Rinse the corn under the cold tap, then set on an oven rack. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, turning over half-way through. Remove from the oven and cover with a clean tea towel for five minutes.

2 Make the butter while the corn is cooking. Set a small frying pan over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds and toast until fragrant. Add the smoked paprika and stir well, then remove from the heat and tip into a small bowl. Add the lime zest and butter and beat together until well mixed. Season well with salt and pepper (use less salt if you’ve used salted butter) and tip out on to a piece of baking paper. Form into a log and put in the fridge to set firmly.

3 To serve, pull the husks away from the cooked corn. Top each one with a slice of smoky butter and eat immediately. TIP: The smoky butter can be made in advance and stored in the freezer for up to a month.