Sometimes when you’re having a rough week, you just want to be cooked for. So that’s what I decided to do for Miss M when she was having a crazy time working until all hours. Grocery delivery girl and chef in one! Miss M was a good sport, allowing me to run amok in her kitchen and letting her sous-cheffing skills shine. What a delight to have the luxury of a sous-chef!

We have an Asian theme going on in our eating so, not wanting to let the team down, I stuck to the usual game plan. There was a bit of a limited choice at the small supermarket nearby, and I wanted to keep things healthy, so I went with chicken and cashew stir-fry and Shanghai-style stir-fried aubergine followed by raspberries marinated in balsamic.

The chicken and raspberries were solid performers, but the aubergine took me to another planet. Whilst I have resigned myself to never achieving the heights of the best meal I ever ate – stir-fried aubergine from a street stall in Shanghai – it was a mighty fine substitute. And except for the use of dried chilli instead of fresh, I didn’t really make any alterations to the script! I highly recommend giving Chris Yan’s delicious recipe a go…