COCONUT GREEN BEANS AND ASPARAGUS

The best jerk chicken is almost blackened on the outside, courtesy of the onions and garlic. Buy a good jerk seasoning blend and it’s the easiest of marinades to whiz up.

and chill until required (up to 2 hours in advance).

★ Thread the peppers on to 4 skewers at least 25cm long, piercing them through the middle. Arrange the skewers on a plate (this can be done up to 12 hours in advance).

★ When ready to cook, lightly season the chicken fillets with salt and barbecue over hot coals for about 3 minutes on the first side and 2 minutes on the second, until deeply golden and firm when pressed.

★ At the same time, drizzle a little oil over the pepper skewers on each side. Barbecue over hot coals for 1-2 minutes on both sides until the peppers blister and turn golden, seasoning with flaky sea salt towards the end.

★ Arrange the chicken on a plate, scatter with coriander and tuck in some lime quarters. Accompany with the padron pepper skewers.

A light, summery coconut sauce will go with any simply grilled meat or fish, but it is especially good with green veggies.

SERVES 4

★ For the sauce, heat the oil in a large casserole (ideally cast-iron) over a medium heat and fry the shallot, ginger and chilli for a few

minutes until lightly coloured, stirring occasionally. Stir in the garam masala and turmeric, then add the coconut milk, the cornflour mixture and some salt, stirring well. Bring to the boil, then cover and cook over a low heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir well at the end until creamy and smooth.

★ Meanwhile, toss the beans and asparagus with the oil. Cook the asparagus over hot coals for 3-4 minutes, turning regularly until charred and tender. Next add the beans (arranging them across the grates so they don’t fall through the gaps) for another 3-4 minutes until charred and tender. Season and arrange over a serving platter (halving the asparagus, if liked).

★ Just before serving stir in the lime juice, sugar and coriander to the coconut sauce. Spoon the sauce over the vegetables (serve any excess in a bowl alongside) and scatter with the cashews and extra coriander.

SERVES 4 JERK-STYLE CHICKEN 3 tbsp lime juice 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 4 spring onions, trimmed andcutup 2 garlic cloves, peeled 1 tbsp jerk seasoning 600g chicken thigh fillets coarsely chopped coriander and lime quarters, to serve PADRON PEPPERS 250g padron peppers extra virgin olive oil, for grilling flaky sea salt