Cucumber, two ways

SERVES 4 // PREP TIME 10 MINS // COOK 10 MINS (PLUS COOLING)

“Spicy miso with cucumber sticks is a traditional snack you’d find in an izakaya in Japan or would prepare at home,” says Kazuki.

4 Lebanese cucumbers, halved lengthways and widthways, bases trimmed Calendula and pansy petals and small nasturtium leaves, to serve SMOKED ALMOND AND SWEET MISO

80 gm shiro (white) miso paste (see note)

65 ml cooking sake

40 ml mirin

10 gm finely grated ginger

80 gm smoked almonds, coarsely chopped HORSERADISH CREAM AND KARASUMI

100 ml pouring cream

50 gm Greek-style yoghurt

1 tsp honey

15 gm finely grated fresh horseradish

150 gm karasumi or bottarga (see note)

1 For smoked almond and sweet miso, combine shiro, sake, mirin and ginger with 50ml water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil and whisk gently to combine. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until thickened (3-5 minutes) to the consistency of honey. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until chilled. Stir in almonds. Place half the cucumber pieces, cut-side up, on a plate. Top with a little smoked almond and sweet miso sauce and scatter with calendula petals.

2 For horseradish cream, whisk cream in a bowl to soft peaks. Fold in yoghurt, honey and horseradish and season to taste. Place remaining cucumber pieces, cut-side up on a plate and spoon over horseradish cream. Finely grate karasumi over the top and scatter with pansy petals and nasturtium leaves.

Note Shiro miso is available from Asian grocers. Karasumi is a salted sun-dried mullet roe, known as avgotaraho in Greece and bottarga in Sardinia. Bottarga is available from delicatessens; it will keep refrigerated for 1 month.