HFW Spicy pork on little gems

My take on the lovely Thai combo of highly seasoned pork with lettuce leaves.

Use the freshest, sweetest, crispest lettuce leaves you can find. Serves four

as a light meal or starter.

1 tbsp sunflower oil

2 shallots, finely chopped

300g minced pork

2 cloves garlic, peeled and grated

thumb-sized piece ginger (or galangal), peeled and grated

1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

Juice and finely grated zest of 1 lime

1 tbsp Thai fish sauce

1 tsp sugar

2 little gem lettuce, leaves separated

1 small bunch coriander, picked

About 50g plain, unsalted peanuts, lightly toasted

Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan over a medium heat, and fry the

shallots gently for five minutes. Add the pork, turn up the heat and cook for

five to 10 minutes, breaking up the meat with a spatula. Stop when the pork is

cooked and taking on some colour, and any liquid it releases has been driven

off.

Turn down the heat a little and add the garlic, ginger, chilli, lime zest, fish

sauce and sugar. Cook, stirring, for two to three minutes, take off the heat

and add a good squeeze of lime juice. Taste and add more fish sauce or lime

juice if you like. Tip the pork into a bowl and take it (hot or at room

temperature) to the table with the lettuce, coriander and peanuts alongside. To

eat, spoon some pork on to a lettuce leaf, scatter with a few peanuts and

coriander leaves, roll up and tuck in.