I decided to go all out Indian for dinner the other day and made chicken tandoori, biryani rice, spiced vegetables and cucumber raita. Okay, so I cheated on the tandoori and biryani by using powder mixes (they were still delicious!) but the vegetable dish was made from scratch.

This one is modified from Rick Stein’s Far Eastern Odyssey. He recently went on a trip around Southeast Asia to Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Bali, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The series was shown on BBC and when I saw them visiting Ibu Oka’s babi guling stall in Bali, I knew I had to get the book if just for that amazing mouthwatering paste to marinate the pork in. I have this idea to try it with pork belly sometime in the near future. The Malaysian dishes just made me incredibly homesick. Of course the book also has a wide selection of other pretty special and I have to say, quite authentic dishes.

The glutton in me was so happy at dinner! Needless to say, leftovers were enjoyed for many days after. This dish is actually really simple to make and goes to show what a few spices can do to liven up a healthy stir-fry vegetable dish.

Spiced Cauliflower, Carrots and Beans

Serves 3-4 as a side dish

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1/2 large white onion, sliced into half moon slices

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 red chilli, deseeded and sliced

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Half a carrot, cut into 1 x 3cm sticks

150g cauliflower, cut into small florets

100g french beans, cut into 3cm pieces

50ml of water

Salt to taste

1. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wok over medium heat. Fry the sliced onions until soft, then add in the mustard seeds, cumin, fennel seeds and chilli and keep stirring for 2-3 minutes.

2. Turn the heat up to medium high. Push the onions and spices to one side of the wok, add in the remaining 1 tbsp of oil and stir fry the carrots and cauliflower for 2-3 minutes. Add in the french beans and turmeric powder and fry everything together for another 2-3 minutes.

3. Add in the water so the vegetables can lightly simmer to soften for another 3-5 minutes. Season to taste.