Quick and easy cooking that’s also impressive: who could want for more than that?

When I went to university, I took only a few kitchen essentials to cook with in our tiny halls kitchen. It was a lean operation. Armed with only a knife, board, wooden spoon and frying pan, and chopping over the sink or balancing on the bin, I learned to keep prep and fuss to a minimum. This subji was one of my early creations, and it remains a favourite to this day. It uses mostly store cupboard ingredients, is fancy enough to impress flat (or hall) mates, and requires only a few minutes of prep and the most basic of kitchen kit.

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Courgette, cashew and coconut subji

Curry leaves taste of citrus and smoke, and can be found in Asian grocery stores. If you can’t find them, leave them out.

Prep 10 min

Cook 30 min

Serves 4

50g cashew nuts (1 big handful)

4 tbsp (25g) desiccated coconut

2 tbsp rapeseed oil

1 tsp black mustard seeds

8 fresh curry leaves (optional)

1 large white onion, peeled and chopped

4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

2 medium tomatoes, chopped (or 200g tinned tomatoes – ½ tin)

1⅓ tsp chilli powder

1½ tsp ground cumin

1½ tsp salt

1 x 326g tin naturally sweet sweetcorn, drained (260g net)

850g courgettes, cut into 2cm dice

To serve

Rotis, dairy-free yoghurt and chopped coriander

Put the cashews on a board and run over them again and again with a sharp knife until finely chopped. Put them in a small heatproof bowl with the desiccated coconut and five tablespoons of freshly boiled water, stir and leave to sit.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan on a medium flame and, when it’s smoking hot, add the mustard seeds and curry leaves, and leave until they crackle and pop. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 12-15 minutes, until soft and brown. Add the garlic and fry for three minutes.

Tip the tomatoes into the pan and cook for six to eight minutes, until they’ve broken down into a paste, then add the chilli powder, cumin, salt and sweetcorn. Fry for two minutes, then add the courgettes and cook for five minutes, until tender. Stir in the coconut and cashew mixture, leave everything to mingle for a few minutes, then take off the heat.

Serve stuffed into rotis and topped with a large spoonful of yoghurt and some freshly chopped coriander.