Meat

This chapter really showcases how you can create a variety of inspiring and mouth-watering dishes with just a few of the right spices. There is something here for everyone – delicious tacos, succulent kebabs, spicy stir-frys, rich curries, fragrant stews, stuffed peppers, delicate grills and sophisticated roasts. If you are new to cooking with spices, Stir-Fried Beef with Black Pepper and Basil is an great dish to start with. It’s so simple, only relying on black pepper to give it all the heat and background flavour you need. It always amazes me what you can do with only few basic store-cupboard spices. The depth of flavour that comes from cumin, coriander, cinnamon and nutmeg, as used in the melt-in-the-mouth Lebanese Leg of Lamb with Spiced Lentil Purée is a perfect example – that’s two dishes and only four spices!