In a world filled with ready-made pastes, jars of pre-mulched garlic and citrus juices in squeezy bottles (do not use these! They’re pasteurised, contain preservatives, and taste like rubbish), sometimes it’s nice to grab a whole pile of aromatic fresh stuff and chop, squeeze, grate and shred the living daylights out of it just for the mess it creates. And for the way those lovely, spiky, sweet-sour Asian flavours taste. Not that we’re averse to cracking open a darn good purchased curry paste when time is short. We’re SO not. But if you like to unwind over a chopping board, and work your angst out on a pile of unsuspecting fresh ingredients, then here’s a dish for you. We find something meditative in the process of finely hand-chopping ingredients but if you don’t want to go that route, just give the turmeric, ginger, garlic, lemongrass, and palm sugar a rough chop, then shove them in the food processor with the fish sauce, lime juice and pepper. Blitz away! OR, take a hybrid approach and finely grate what you can using a microplane, then hand-chop the rest. Whatever gets you there. For ease, we’ve given processing instructions in the recipe method.

SERVES 6

2 tbsp finely chopped or grated fresh turmeric, or 2 tsp dried turmeric

1 tbsp finely chopped or grated ginger

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated

2 stalks lemongrass, white part only, chopped

2½ tbsp finely shaved palm sugar

2½ tbsp fish sauce

juice of 1 lime

1½ tsp ground white pepper

6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

2½ tbsp vegetable oil

chopped roasted peanuts, sliced chillies and Asian herbs (mint, Thai basil, coriander), to serve

Coconut rice

600g (3 cups) jasmine rice, rinsed and drained

375ml (1½ cups) coconut milk

Cucumber salad

3 tbsp finely shaved palm sugar

2½ tbsp lime juice

2½ tbsp rice vinegar

3 tbsp fish sauce

3-4 Lebanese cucumbers, thinly sliced

Combine the turmeric, ginger, garlic, lemongrass, palm sugar, fish sauce, lime juice and pepper in a food processor, then process until smooth. Combine with the chicken thighs in a large bowl and toss to coat well. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, then refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight. Drain the chicken thighs well, reserving the marinade. Heat the oil in large, heavy-based frypan over high heat, add the chicken, skin side down, then cook for 5 minutes or until golden. Turn, then cook for another 2 minutes to seal. Transfer to a baking dish in a single layer, pour over the marinade, then bake for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through.

Meanwhile for the coconut rice, combine the rice, 750ml (3 cups) water and the coconut milk in a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then cover the pan and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook for 12 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed, taking care during the final part as the rice can catch on the base of the pan – you may need to reduce the heat to low. Remove the pan from the heat and stand, covered, for 10 minutes for the rice to finish cooking. 

For the cucumber salad, combine all the ingredients except the cucumber in a large bowl and whisk to combine well and dissolve the sugar. Add the cucumber and toss to coat. When the chicken is ready, scatter the cucumber salad over, then scatter with the peanuts, chillies and herbs. Serve with the rice passed separately.