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Add the honey and cumin seeds and cook for a further 5–6 minutes. The colour of the radishes will gradually start to run and form a glaze. When nearly all the liquid has evaporated, remove the pan from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), Gas 4. To prepare the mackerel, place 4 sheets of foil on a work surface – each sheet about the size of a newspaper. Divide the shallots, lemons and herbs between the pieces of foil, placing a pile in the middle of each sheet. Place the mackerel on top and score the fish with a sharp knife. Drizzle with the olive oil and a tablespoon of water and fold the foil over to form small parcels.

Place the parcels on a baking tray, put in the oven and cook for about 8–10 minutes. Remove from the oven, open up the parcels and transfer the fish to plates. Gently reheat the onion and radish mix, divide between the plates and serve.

Cod with clams, curly kale and wild garlic (#ulink_09b39035-ad5a-531b-aff9-d07cd6124795)

Serves 4

4 tbsp rapeseed or extra-virgin olive oil

150g (5oz) butter

4 × 150g (5oz) cod fillets, skin on

400g (14oz) small, fresh clams, in shells

2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped

200ml (7fl oz) perry (cider-like drink made from pears) or cider

225g (8oz) curly kale, stalks discarded

110g (4oz) wild garlic leaves, or 110g (4oz) fresh spinach and 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped

Zest of 1 lemon

3 tsp finely chopped chives

Salt and black pepper

When buying cod, go for thicker fillets from larger fish, as these have the best flavour and don’t break up too much during cooking. Wild garlic can be found in woodland and by the side of the road; the leaves should be picked before the heads flower. If you can’t find it, use spinach and chopped cloves of garlic instead.

Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F), Gas 5. Set an ovenproof pan or roasting tin on the hob over a high heat and, when the pan is hot, add the rapeseed or olive oil and 25g (1oz) butter. When the butter has melted, fry the cod fillets for 2–3 minutes on each side, until they are golden-brown all over.

Transfer the pan to the oven and roast the fish for 5 minutes until just cooked through. Remove the pan from the oven, cover with foil and set aside to rest.

Meanwhile, put the clams in a colander and wash thoroughly under running water, discarding any with broken shells or those that don’t close when they are tapped against the side of the colander.

Set a large saucepan over a high heat and, when hot, add the clams, shallots and most of the perry or cider. Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 2–3 minutes, until the clams have opened and the liquid has slightly reduced.

Clean out the colander and place it over a similar-sized bowl. Pour the clams and cooking liquid into the colander so that the liquid drains through to the bowl. Return the liquid to the pan and set the clams aside. Discard any which haven’t opened during cooking.

Bring the liquid to the boil and cook until reduced and thickened. To finish the sauce, add half of the remaining butter to the pan and whisk to combine. Season with salt and pepper and then keep it warm until you are ready to serve the dish.

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil and add the curly kale. Cook for 2–3 minutes until just tender. Drain the kale well and place in a frying pan. Add the remaining butter, wild garlic leaves (or spinach and garlic) and lemon zest, and cook over a medium–high heat for just 20 seconds, to wilt the wild garlic. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

To serve, divide the kale and wild garlic leaves between plates and place the cod on top. Add the final splash of perry and the chives to the clam sauce. Then spoon some of the mixture over the cod and arrange the clams on top. Pour the remaining sauce over the fish and clams, and serve.

Trout with green beans and almonds (#ulink_210d802c-8ec6-5dc0-b800-574b0a6ffe5c)

Serves 4

4 fresh trout, gutted but with the heads left on

150g (5oz) butter, melted

75g (3oz) whole, shelled almonds

300g (11oz) French beans, topped and tailed

Salt and black pepper

With trendy new varieties of fish arriving from all over the world, we tend to forget how good our own locally-sourced species can be. Trout is a prime example – it’s available all year round and, served with almonds, it’s a classic fish dish.

Place each trout on its back and open up the ribcage with a knife. Using sharp kitchen scissors, cut the backbone in two places – at the highest point near the head and the lowest point by the tail. If you prefer, you can ask your fishmonger to do this for you.

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F), Gas 6. Brush each fish, inside and out, with half the butter and season with salt and pepper. Butter a roasting tin and place the fish in the tin, pressing each one down with its ribcage pointing up.

Bake in the oven for 6 minutes and then add the almonds to the tin. Cook for a further 5–6 minutes, then remove from the oven. You can tell when the fish is cooked when you can pull out the backbone easily. Do this for all four fish.

While the fish is cooking, bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil, add the beans and cook for 4–5 minutes, or until just tender. Drain the beans and place in a warmed bowl.

Place the fish on plates and add the remaining butter to the hot roasting tin. Remove the almonds from the tin and add to the beans. Season well with salt and pepper. To serve, place the beans and almonds into the cavity of each trout and spoon over the hot butter from the tin.

Wok-fried chicken with ginger, chilli and wild garlic (#ulink_a94fa9f3-d384-5cb4-af4a-a327d731e6e0)

Serves 4

4 × 175g (6oz) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4 tbsp cornflour

1 tbsp corn oil

2 tbsp finely chopped root ginger

6 spring onions, sliced on the diagonal into 2cm (¾in) pieces

1 red chilli, finely chopped

2 bunches of wild garlic leaves or 225g bag of baby spinach

1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped

4 tbsp dark soy sauce

Salt