I was watching Rick Stein on one of those Saturday Kitchen clips the other day, and I happened to notice that he’d made little potato cakes to go with a fish dish. I wanted something to go with my lamb madras, and these (with some Indian tweaks) seemed just right. I was amazed how good they were for something thrown together on the fly! Very tasty.

Aloo tikki (makes about 15):

2 large baking potatoes

¼ teaspoon turmeric

¼ teaspoon smoked paprika

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon coriander

1 egg, beaten

100g sesame seeds

Bake the potatoes for an hour or until a skewer comes out clean and easy. Leave to cool.

When cool, scoop out the flesh into a bowl and add the spices and a good helping of salt. Form into small ping-pong balls and leave in the fridge to harden slightly.

When ready, coat the potato balls in egg and roll in sesame seeds until well-coated. Fry gently in a little oil until browned on all sides.