Sri Lankan Crab Curry

Add the basmati rice and 350ml [700ml] water to a pot with a lid and bring to the boil over a high heat

Once boiling, reduce the heat to very low and cook, covered, for 10-15 min or until all the water has absorbed and the rice is cooked

Once cooked, remove from the heat and keep covered until serving 

Meanwhile, peel 2 [4] shallots (you'll use the rest later!) and all of the garlic 

Peel the ginger (scrape the skin off with a teaspoon)

Cut the stalks off the coriander and set the leaves aside for later  

Cut the stalk off of the red chilli[es]

Boil a kettle

Add the shallot, garlic, ginger, coriander stalks, chilli (can't handle the heat? Go easy!) and 1 tbsp [2 tbsp] vegetable oil to a food processor and blitz the lot to a coarse paste 

If you don't have a food processor, just chop everything together finely 

Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) with 2 tbsp [4 tbsp] vegetable oil over a medium heat

Add the curry powder and ground turmeric and cook for 1 min 

Add the blended ingredients, with a large knob of butter and a generous pinch of salt 

Cook for 3-4 min or until fragrant and softened

Chop the hard coconut cream into pieces and combine it with 400ml [800ml] boiled water and whisk to dissolve - this is your coconut stock

Separate the white crabmeat from the brown crabmeat, you'll use the white meat later!

Add the coconut stock, 1/2 tsp [1 tsp] sugar and the brown crabmeat to the pan and cook for 5 min or until it's reached a loose consistency

Meanwhile, halve the cucumber lengthways, scrape the seeds out with a teaspoon and discard, then finely slice the flesh

Chop the coriander leaves roughly

Peel and finely chop the remaining shallot[s] 

Halve the lime[s]

Mix the sliced cucumber, chopped coriander, chopped shallot and nigella seeds in a bowl 

Squeeze the juice of the lime[s] into the bowl and add and a pinch of salt - this is your cucumber salad