My all time favourite recipe to cook at home is Jamie Olivers Thai Chicken Laksa from his book 15 minute meals. It is impressive, tasty, quick and filling. Now, as I have gone vegan for January, there are a few things in this recipe that I can’t use, so I am adapting it. I’ve also never covered this recipe on my blog so here is the perfect excuse. If you want to use chicken like Jamie does then go ahead, but I think the vegan Quorn pieces work well! The first time I made this it took me just over 30 minutes. With a bit of practice it really does only take 15 minutes. The tip is to have your ingredients out and ready, your pans hot and your water boiled.

Also I know that there are a lot of ingredients in this but most will be multi use items!

Serves 4 and is 702 calories per portion

Ingredients

For the ‘Chicken’

200g of frozen vegan Quorn pieces

1 heaped teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

1 tablespoon agave syrup

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 fresh red chilli

For the laksa

1 knorr vegetable stock cube

1 butternut squash , (neck end only)

2 cloves of garlic

5 cm piece of ginger

1 fresh red chilli

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

½ a bunch spring onions

1 heaped teaspoon peanut butter

4 dried kaffir lime leaves

½ a bunch of fresh coriander

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon low-salt soy sauce

300 g eggless noodles

2 bunches of asparagus , (600g)

1 x 400 g tin of light coconut milk

3 limes

Method

Ingredients out • Kettle boiled • Griddle pan, high heat • Large lidded pan, high heat • Food processor (coarse grater & bowl blade)

START COOKING

Toss the Quorn pieces in the chinese 5 spice and place on the hot griddle pan, turning every few minutes until cooked through (12 minutes).

Pour about 800ml of boiling water into the large pan and crumble in the stock cube.

Trim the stalk off the squash, roughly chop the neck end (don’t peel, and keep the seed end for another day), then grate and tip into the boiling stock.

Peel the garlic and ginger. Swap to the bowl blade in the processor and add the garlic, ginger, chilli, turmeric, trimmed spring onions, peanut butter, lime leaves, coriander stalks (reserving the leaves), sesame oil and soy sauce. Blitz to a paste, then tip into the stock and add the noodles.

Trim the asparagus and cut in half. Add to the pan, pour in the coconut milk, and as soon as it boils, taste, correct the seasoning with soy sauce and lime juice, then turn the heat off.

Drizzle the agave syrup over the quorn, squeeze over the juice of 1 lime, scatter with the sesame seeds and toss to coat.

Serve with the laksa and lime wedges, sprinkling everything with the coriander leaves and slices of fresh chilli.