Chicken and cauliflower curry with cumin rice

Cut the chicken into 4cm pieces and leave on one side.

Heat a small sturdy frying pan or griddle over a low heat and dry roast the cumin and coriander seeds for about a minute, stirring all the time, until you catch a fragrant aroma. Grind the spices to a powder using a mortar and pestle.

Tip the garlic, ginger and green chillies (leave the seeds in if you prefer a fiery flavour) into the same mortar and continue pounding with a pestle until paste-like. You could also use a small food processor for this. Set aside.

Heat the vegetable oil in a deep frying pan and gently soften the onions for 3-5 minutes. Add the spice paste from the mortar and cook on a gentle heat until the onions turn golden.

Stir in the tomatoes, Madras curry powder and turmeric. Fry for a further 10 minutes until the tomatoes have cooked-down and darkened.

Add the chicken pieces and simmer for 10 minutes in a covered pan 7. Tip in the cauliflower florets, and continue cooking, in a covered pan, until tender – about 10 minutes.

Stir in the garam masala and finish with chopped coriander.

While the curry is cooking, make the rice. Heat a sturdy frying pan or griddle over a low heat and dry-roast the cumin seeds for about one minute, stirring all the time. They should take on a warm and nutty aroma. Transfer to a plate.

. Heat the oil in a large pan and soften the onion, garlic, roasted cumin seeds, cardamom and cinnamon, for about 5 minutes.

. Add the rice to the pan, stir well and pour over about 400ml hot water – or enough to cover the rice and leave an extra 2cm depth of water. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and simmer until the grains are tender and the water has evaporated – about 5-7 minutes. Fluff the grains up with a fork before serving.