If you grow your own courgettes, you have the opportunity to pick them small – barely thicker than your index finger – and eat them raw. You can slice them thinly into tiny coins and marinate them with olive oil, lemon juice and basil leaves for an effortless salad. Picked in this diminutive state, their flesh is sweet and waxy, their skin thin and pale. A quiet and elegant late summer dish.
As they get larger, I like to sauté my courgettes with the fat from pancetta or streaky bacon, then sprinkle them with white wine vinegar and whole parsley leaves. You can shave a large courgette into ribbons with a vegetable peeler and brand it on the griddle then dress with chopped anchovies, olive oil and finely chopped and seeded tomatoes. I like the grilled ribbons marinated in salsa verde, too, with jagged pieces of bread to mop up the sloppy, garlicky dressing.
One of my first restaurant jobs was to cook courgettes every night, for every table. After 12 months I couldn’t look at another for years, and even now there is something of a relentlessness about them. When I grow them in the garden, I leave the last few stragglers for the birds to peck at, having had my fill by early autumn. They are dependable – cheap, reliable and easy to cook. A thoroughly good thing to have around.
This week I cut several whoppers into rounds and baked them with pak choi, then returned them to the oven with lemongrass, chilli and coconut cream. We ate them with brown rice. More large ones (they seem to multiply in the fridge) were sliced and tossed with a bosky little tangle of mushrooms, dill and juniper berries. It felt a fitting end to their season.
Baked courgettes with lemongrass and coconut cream
This is best when you allow the dressing to crisp lightly on the courgettes. Once they are pale gold, add the pak choi and coconut milk and bake till the courgettes are nicely toasted. Serves 2-3 with rice
ginger 35g
garlic 4 cloves
lemongrass 2 fat stalks
bird’s eye chillies 2
ground turmeric 1 tsp
sea salt flakes ½ tsp
groundnut oil 6 tbsp
courgettes 500g
pak choi 2 plump heads
spring onions 3
coconut cream 200ml
steamed brown rice to serve
Peel and roughly chop the ginger then put it in a food processor. Peel the garlic and add to the ginger. Remove the outer leaves of the lemongrass and tough ends of the stalks, then chop and add to the bowl.
Slice the chillies in half lengthways, remove the stalks and seeds then add to the ginger with the turmeric and sea salt flakes. Process to a thick paste, pouring in the oil as the blades turn. Set the mixture aside (it will keep for several days, tightly covered, in the fridge).
Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Line a roasting tin with kitchen foil. Wipe the courgettes and slice them thickly (1cm coins) then put them in a bowl. Add the paste and toss to lightly cover the courgettes then place them in the foil-lined roasting tin. Bake for 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut each head of pak choi into 4 down the length and finely chop the spring onions. Toss the pak choi and onions together then, when the courgettes have been cooking for 25 minutes, add the vegetables and coconut cream and toss gently together.
Return the tin to the oven and continue cooking for a good 15-20 minutes until the pak choi is tender (the stems should retain some crunch, with the leaves soft), the courgettes golden. Serve in bowls with the steamed rice.
Mushrooms, courgettes and toasted crumbs
I usually prefer to grill or sauté courgettes. In this recipe they get a couple of minutes in salted boiling water to provide a refreshing contrast to the fried mushrooms and crisp, herbed breadcrumbs. Serves 2-3
shallots 2, large
vegetable oil 3 tbsp
garlic 3 large cloves
small brown mushrooms 200g
Dijon mustard 2 tsp
dill 2 tbsp, chopped
juniper berries 6, lightly crushed
courgettes 450g
To finish:
olive oil 3 tbsp
fresh, white breadcrumbs 45g
pumpkin seeds 2 tbsp
parsley a handful, roughly chopped lemon zest from ½ lemon, finely grated
Peel and finely chop the shallots. Warm the oil in a pan then add the shallots and cook for 6 or 7 minutes over a moderate heat, with an occasional stir. Peel and finely slice the garlic, add to the shallots and continue cooking for 4 or 5 minutes till all is soft, pale gold and fragrant.
Finely slice the mushrooms (to the thickness of a pound coin) and add them to the shallots, letting them cook till soft and light brown (about 7 minutes). Season with salt, black pepper and the mustard. Stir in the dill and the lightly crushed juniper berries.
To finish: warm the olive oil in a separate pan over a moderate heat, add the breadcrumbs and let them cook till pale gold, moving them round the pan regularly. When they are nicely toasted add the pumpkin seeds, chopped parsley and lemon zest and set aside.
While the mushrooms cook, bring a pan of water to the boil, salt it lightly. Thickly slice the courgettes, then add them to the water. Cook for a minute or two till translucent then drain and put them on a shallow serving dish. They should, I think, retain a little crispness, but cook them to your own liking.
Spoon the mushrooms over the courgettes, scatter with the seeds and toasted crumbs and serve.
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