This fish curry is surprisingly quick and easy to make, yet because of the slightly exotic ingredients, looks and tastes really impressive. You can make the curry paste in advance which means that you can pull the final dish together in a matter of a few minutes.

You’d never think that these basic ingredients could be so dramatically transformed when combined. This takes about 50 minutes in the oven but takes no more than 5 minutes prep time so makes an easy lunch or dinner. Have it with your favourite bread to mop up all the juices.

I used to buy these in the Muslim quarter where I lived in China, they are originally from Shangxi province (near where the Terracotta Warriors were found) and are a very common and tasty street food.

This dish is packed with cumin and slightly smoky spicy heat, reminiscent of commonly used flavours in Xinjiang province in China.

Juicy prawns with tangy tomatoes and coriander. This is great for mid-week when lack of time or energy means a complex meal is out of the question but you still fancy some proper food instead of resorting to toast or instant noodles!

This is probably my most frequently made soup of all time. A family recipe from my hubby’s side!

The little amount of pork used in this dish adds tons of flavour and I find this dish along with plain rice is totally satisfying. I sometimes make egg and tomato to go on the side as well if particularly hungry.

This is one of my favourite risotto recipes and meat-free. It is such a satisfying meal and the fresh parsley and lemon really brightens it up.

An easy one tray dish. If you want to speed up the overall cooking time you could par boil the potatoes first before roasting, but that does mean that extra bit of washing up.

Probably the best Chinese dish when it comes to work vs payoff. Takes less than 10 minutes start to finish and is always delish!

This is my good friend Saher’s recipe for saag paneer which is one of my favourites! Much more vibrant and fresher tasting than a takeaway version.

This one takes a little bit of time and effort with several different components and stages but it’s really worth it.

These fish tacos are light and super fresh and zesty. Packed with vegetables they’re probably as close to healthy and well balanced as you can get when making tacos.

Bibimbap is a Korean rice dish which is usually a mix of meat and vegetables served on plain rice and then mixed up in to a jumble to eat. I like this version which comes with lashings of a spicy sauce made principally of gochujang, an intensely flavoured fermented hot pepper paste.

This recipe is from Ottolenghi The Cookbook, published in 2008, yet it was only recently that I tried this recipe and discovered its brilliance.