So Fresh and So Green

“Cooking” a dish, and by that I mean readying it to be eaten sometimes requires no heat, pans or boiling water whatsoever. Last weekend, I cooked for the gardeners on Charles Dowding’s No Dig weekend course, and 4 hours before I was due to serve lunch, Charles picked some pak choi and fennel that were full of flavourful crunch and literally teeming with life (bugs and grubs in vegetables never put me off - it only means someone else thinks they’re delicious). I’d never served raw pak choi before, but the white stalks and deep green leaves were sweet and slightly hot, both characteristics would have been dulled with “cooking”. So I kept it fresh. Serve this with roasted chicken or fish, or with a bubbling, cheesy baked rice. It goes without saying that this is best with very, very fresh Pak Choi. If the leaves are at all floppy, use some very finely sliced celery and spanking fresh spinach instead.

2 heads fennel, finely shaved on a mandoline

2 heads pak choi, leaves separated and very finely sliced from top to bottom

1 small bunch flat-leaf parsley, leaves finely chopped

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

30ml lemon juice

salt and pepper

50g toasted mixed seeds

50g very finely shaved parmesan

Toss the vegetables and herbs together to combine, then stir the oil, lemon and salt and pepper together in a little bowl before pouring over the vegetables. Toss to combine, then scatter over the seeds and parmesan. Toss once more before tipping onto a platter to serve.

PS- as a food stylist, this is one of my favourite things to serve. It’s soothing to look at and