RECIPE, STYLING AND PHOTOGRAPH: JOHN GREGORY-SMITH
SERVES 4. HANDS-ON TIME 25 MIN
If you’re vegetarian/vegan, add roasted aubergine instead of the prawns.
• 1 green chilli, roughly chopped
• Small bunch fresh dill, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, finely chopped
• 4 ripe tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground allspice★
• 2 cardamom pods, bashed open with a rolling pin or the side of a knife
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 450g raw peeled king prawns
• Juice ½ lemon
• 15g toasted pine nuts
• Brown rice to serve
USEFUL TO HAVE
• Pestle and mortar or mini processor
1 Blend the garlic, chilli and most of the dill to a paste with a pestle and mortar or in a mini processor adding a good pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper.
2 Heat the oil in a pan (one with a lid) over a medium heat. Add the onion and pepper to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6-8 minutes until golden and soft. Add the garlic/chilli paste and stir-fry for 10 seconds until it begins to smell fragrant.
3 Add the tomatoes to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3-5 minutes until they’ve broken down. Next add the spices, tomato purée and 100ml of just-boiled water from the kettle, then mix well. Cover the pan, turn the heat to low and cook for 5 minutes to allow all the flavours to develop.
4 Turn up the heat to medium-low and tip the prawns into the pan, stirring them in. Cover again, then cook for 3-4 minutes until they’re pink and cooked through. Squeeze in the lemon juice, stir and check the seasoning. Scatter over the pine nuts and the remaining dill and serve immediately with brown rice.