Nigel Slater’s recipes for lentils with aubergine, and figs in sloe gin

Earthy flavours bring welcome depth to the autumn menu

You need a couple of minutes without any distractions to fry a batch of fresh curry leaves. You close the kitchen door, pour a thin film of oil into a wide, shallow-sided pan and place it over a moderate flame. Strip them from their coarse stems, then rain the tiny, emerald-green leaves into the hot oil and stand back while they crackle and pop, then gradually calm themselves. (A lid will help here, but remove it once they stop spluttering.) Shake the pan, watching carefully until each leaf is translucent and lightly crisp. Lift them out with a draining spoon on to a piece of kitchen paper.

You will be left with a pile of crackling, twisted, dark green leaves and a kitchen filled with a warm and smoky perfume. (I did suggest you close the door.) The window between perfection and burnt leaves is a heartbeat, so don’t take your eyes from the pan for a second. If you burn them – as I have done more than once – you will spend days getting rid of the smell.

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