An early spring laksa

for the paste:

2 or 3 small hot red chillies
2 cloves of garlic
a lump of ginger the size of your thumb
2 plump stalks of lemon grass
5 or 6 roots of coriander leaves and stalks
1 lightly heaped tsp turmeric
a little vegetable oil
1 tbsp tamarind paste

for the soup:

500ml chicken or vegetable stock
400ml coconut milk
300g broccoli or purple sprouting
2 bunches of spinach
2 tbsp nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
100g thin, dried rice noodles
a large handful of coriander and mint leaves

Chop the chillies, peel the garlic, peel and roughly chop the ginger and put them all into the bowl of a food processor. Peel away and discard any tough outer leaves from the lemon grass and roughly chop the tender leaves inside.

Scrub the coriander roots and cut them off, putting them with the chillies along with half the coriander leaves and stems. Blitz them with the chillies then add the turmeric, adding a drop of oil if the mixture needs it to help it go round.

Place a fairly deep pan over a moderate heat, add half the spice paste (keep the other half in the fridge for tomorrow, covered tightly with clingfilm) and fry it, moving it round the pan so it does not scorch. Do this for a minute or two, then add the tamarind paste, pour in the stock and coconut milk and bring it to the boil.

Bring a deep pan of water to the boil, then simmer the broccoli briefly until just tender to the point of a knife. Drain. Clean the spinach thoroughly, remove the toughest of the stalks and tear any particularly large leaves into pieces. Wash the spinach leaves thoroughly. Put the leaves, still wet with their rinsing water, into a hot pan, cover tightly with a lid and leave to steam for a minute or so until they have wilted. Lift out and add, together with the drained broccoli, to the soup. Season with fish sauce to taste.

Cook the noodles as it suggests on the packet. They all vary depending on the exact type and brand. (Some rice noodles only need a quick soak in boiling water.) Chop the remaining coriander leaves and the mint, and stir them into the laksa together with the drained noodles.