Indian Spiced Asparagus Salad with Poached Eggs Recipe

Ingredients

500g potatoes
250g asparagus
1 lemon
2 leeks
1 tbsp cornflour
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin seeds
A pinch of chilli powder
4 eggs
1 tsp garam masala
Sea salt
Freshly ground pepper
100ml + 1 tbsp olive oil

Prep: 15 mins | Cook: 15 mins

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Method

1. Halve or quarter any large potatoes. Pop them in a pan. Cover with boiling water. Simmer for 10-15 mins till tender. Drain.

2. While the potatoes cook, snap the woody ends off the asparagus (if you bend them they will snap where the woody part of the stem ends) and discard. Trim the asparagus into 3 cm long chunks. Finely grate the zest from the lemon. Juice it.

3. Trim the leeks. Slice a cross in the end and rinse out any grit. Slice the leeks in half lengthways. Halve again so you have 4 long lengths per leek. Slice them into long, fine, thin shreds. Put the leeks in a bowl. Add 1 tbsp cornflour and a little salt and pepper. Stir to mix them together. Set aside.

4. Measure out ½ tsp of the turmeric, 1 tsp of the cumin seeds, a pinch of chilli powder (it’s spicy so use as much or as little as you like) and 1 tsp garam masala. Pop them in a small bowl. Add 1 tbsp oil and stir together. Put to one side.

5. Warm 100 ml oil in a deep frying pan or wok for 2 mins over a medium heat. Add the leeks. Fry for 2-3 mins till golden and crisp. Lift out of the pan with a slotted spoon or tongs onto a plate lined with kitchen paper. You’ll probably need to do this in 2-3 batches.

6. Pour the oil out of the pan and wipe it clean with kitchen paper. Add the spice paste. Stir and fry for 1 min. Add the asparagus and boiled potatoes. Stir and fry for 5 mins till the veg are charred and tender. Take off the heat. Stir in the lemon zest and juice.

7. Bring a pan of water to the boil. Crack 2 eggs into separate cups. When the water is boiling, slide the eggs into the pan. Take it off the heat. Cover. Leave for 2-3 mins to poach the eggs (or cook for a little longer for set yolks). Lift out of the pan and drain on kitchen paper while you poach the remaining eggs.

8. Pile the spiced asparagus and potatoes on 2 plates with the crisp leeks. Top with 2 poached eggs. Serve straight away.