Nothing But Onions

Warning: If made properly, this recipe is very hot. Don't let that put you off though - it is absolutely delicious. If you want to wimp out and cut down on the chillis, do so, but this is a real treat if you go for the full heat. The combination of the soft juiciness of the chicken, the crunchy peanuts and beans and the pervading heat of the chillis are just something to die for.

Serves 2

2 chicken breasts, skinned
2 cloves garlic
20 (or thereabouts) green beans, or mange tout
Chillis (see below for quantity)
4 tbsp roast salted peanuts
8 tbsp water (or stock)
3 tbsp fish sauce
3 tbsp light soy sauce
3 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
Groundnut oil

Prepare all the ingredients before you start cooking.

Slice the chicken breasts thinly and across the grain. Peel the garlic cloves and slice them thinly.

If you're using green beans, top and tail them and then cut them into pieces about an inch in length. If you're using mange tout, leave them whole.

Now the chillis. The best chillis I've found for this are those dried red ones, very thin and about two inches in length. They are also quite hot. You can sometimes get them in shops that sell Thai ingredients, but I don't tend to see them often. If you can't find them (and I often can't), you'll have to use fresh. It's very hard to define the number of chillis in a recipe as they vary in heat enormously. If you're using the dried ones, you need about a dozen. For fresh, if you've got very hot birds eye chillis, six to ten will probably be sufficient. The long thin green ones often found in Indian grocers are good here too - use about a dozen of those. This might sound like an awful lot, but don't worry...

If you want to cut down on the heat (shame on you), try using milder chillis rather than just cutting down the quantity - chillis provide a lovely flavour as well as just raw heat. You could also try removing some of the seeds and surrounding flesh to reduce the heat a little. Don't get rid of all the heat though - the whole point of this recipe is that it has a bit of bite.

Anyway, once you've counted out your chillis, cut them into one inch lengths.

Now, heat a wok or a large frying pan over a high flame and put in a couple of tablespoons of groundnut oil. When hot, put in the garlic and toss it around a little. It should start to turn colour slightly, but don't let it burn. If your pan is really hot, this part should only take a few seconds. Next throw in the chillis and stir them around for another few seconds.

Now add the chicken. Stir fry this for a minute or two until the chicken is turning opaque.

Throw in the beans and stir well. Then the nuts and give another good stir.

Now add all the other ingredients and keep cooking for another minute or two, stirring all the time, until the chicken is properly cooked.

Serve with plain, boiled white rice.

Note: If you find the chillies in this (or indeed in any other dish) were hotter than you expected whilst eating it, drink a glass of cold milk alongside it. There's nothing like milk for soothing away the heat of chillies.