Pomegranate miang bites

Miang is one o� my �avourite dishes. It’s an absolute �lavour bomb – sweet, salty, sour and spicy, yet ��esh and light at the same time. I always have a laugh with the bi�d’s eye chillies when �riends a�e a�ound, as it can be ext�emely ente�taining to (accidently) put a little extra in their po�tion. My �riends at

Thai Smile magazine tell me that in Thailand this dish is commonly made with the help o� the kids at home as it is �un and interactive. Traditionally, it uses pomelo and betel leaves, or a range o� sweet and sour ��uits, but I find it delicious with pomegranate. Serves 4 30g whole peanuts 50g desiccated coconut 200g palm sugar (or soft light brown sugar) 50ml fish sauce (soya sauce if vegetarian) 50g tamarind paste 20g pomegranate seeds

lime, diced with skin still on 2 red bird’s eye chillies, thinly sliced 20g ginger, peeled and diced 10g coriander leaves, chopped 20g Thai shallots, peeled and sliced (or 1 banana shallot) 2 heads of baby gem lettuce, separated into leaves

1Preheat

the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Place the peanuts on a baking tray on the top shelf of the oven and the coconut on the bottom shelf and toast for about 15 minutes, shaking the trays every 5 minutes to ensure that they toast evenly. They are ready when both are golden brown. 2Place

the palm sugar and fish sauce (or soya sauce) in a medium non-stick saucepan and warm over a moderate heat, stirring regularly until the sugar has melted and the mixture begins to bubble gently. Remove from the heat. 3In

a food processor, blitz the coconut and peanuts together, then add these to the palm sugar and fish sauce mixture and return to a low heat. Bring back to a gentle boil, then remove from the heat, add the tamarind paste, stir and allow to cool. The mixture should be rich and sticky, and as it cools it should thicken and the peanuts and coconut should settle on the top. At this stage, the miang sauce can be kept in the fridge for use later (if placed in a sterilised jar it will keep indefinitely). 4When

ready to serve, mix all the remaining ingredients together in a large bowl. Give the miang sauce a stir, then add it to the other ingredients, using a spoon to gently mix it through the fresh ingredients. 5Serve

the baby gem leaves piled up nicely on a plate, alongside the miang mixture and allow guests to get stuck in.