First thing’s first. Scallops. They’re tasty, they’re good for you (more than 80% protein, and packed with magnesium and potassium), and they are easy to overcook.

But they’re worth the effort to get right – and by running a few scallop tests, I intend to save you some trouble. (When you can get a good deal from a fishmonger on scallops – it’s worth testing … and eating your results.)

The quickest way to cook scallops, and the best for a risotto, is to sear them in some olive oil and butter. Before cooking them, make sure they’re dry, and then season each side with a sprinkle of salt and black pepper. Kosher salt or ground rock/sea salt are your best options, but using what you have has always seemed reasonable to me.

After that, the two most important things are heat and time. Make sure that your pan is smoking hot (literally!) and that you have a timer ready.

King scallops, or the big guys seen below, take 1:30 on each side to cook. Nothing crazy is going to happen if you go slightly over, but if you’re anything like me, it just takes one minor distraction to go from soft, buttery scallops to tough, disappointing scallops.

So that’s:

a. dry, seasoned scallops
b. smoking hot skillet with some butter and olive oil
c. a timer (1:30 on each side)

Personally, I like to eat the coral (the orange bit that’s attached) but if you don’t, or you’re not comfortable eating roe, then it’s really easy to remove before cooking. Just pull them off!

Make the scallops as your final step, even though I’ve gone and made everything confusing by talking about them first. But they’re much better hot and fresh out of the pan. Plus, the risotto is less likely to suffer from waiting 3 minutes than the scallops are waiting 30 minutes.

Serves: 2 [and easy to halve for 1]

On the Counter

for the risotto

1 medium onion, finely diced
200 g chestnut or portobello mushrooms, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
25 g butter
1.25 L (5 cups) vegetable stock
120 ml (1/2 cup) white wine
200 g (1 cup) carnaroli or arborio rice
130 g (1 cup) peas, defrosted
50 g unsalted butter, cubed
50 g Parmesan cheese, grated
handful of fresh parsley, chopped

for the scallops

25 g butter, melted in a skillet
1 tbsp olive oil
6 large scallops, cleaned, seasoned and dried. (coral removed if desired)

What To Do

Bring the stock to the boil and set aside once it’s boiled.

Melt the 25 g of butter over medium heat until sizzling. Soften the onion in a skillet, for about 5 minutes, then mix in the mushrooms and cook for another 3 or 4 minutes. Add in garlic, stir and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the rice. Turn the heat up to medium high, and stir to coat the grains with butter.

Once the grains begin to turn translucent, add the wine. Stir until the wine is mostly gone. Add 1 ladle-full of stock, stir until nearly absorbed and add more stock. (You don’t have to stir constantly, just ensure the rice does not go dry.)

After 10 minutes, stir in the peas, test the rice for doneness, and add stock in smaller portions until the rice is as firm or soft as you like it to be.

As soon as the rice is ready and the stock level in the pan is low, take the risotto off the heat. Stir in the remaining butter and the parmesan cheese. Mix until well combined and creamy.

Set aside, covered (or serve immediately if not making scallops.)

Meanwhile, when the rice is very nearly done, heat the olive oil and 25 g of butter in a skillet until the butter has been sizzling for a few minutes.

Once the butter is hot enough, prepare a timer for 1 minute 30 seconds. Quickly put the scallops in and leave them unit the timer goes off.

Flip the scallops and cook for another 1 minute, 30 seconds.

Serve the scallops on top of the risotto and garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

Cooking is about much more than a recipe and a stock of ingredients in the house. I’m the kind of person who likes to shop for groceries and food, and the more options, the better. You can sometimes find me agonizing over the perfect lemons or the biggest head of garlic.

One of my favorite places to shop for those ingredients in London probably isn’t the first place people would expect. Maltby Street market has great food to snack on and speciality items to take home, Borough Market is the foodie’s paradise in London, and North End Road is the place for those who like an old-fashioned working class London experience.

However, my personal favorite has to be Brixton Market. Brixton has everything from measure-your-own spices to the freshest shrimp, with the cheapest vegetables and some of London’s best Neopolitan-style pizza in between.

Recently I introduced a good friend and fellow blogger, Natalia, to the joys of Brixton market. We wandered between market arcades, visited shops, stopped at a few stalls and took lots of photos along the way. Check out her blog post about our day on her blog Nat w Londynie (note: it’s in Polish)

I got to spend a little time being a London Tour Guide (which doesn’t happen very often… the accent probably puts people off) in this slightly off-the-beaten-path neighborhood that isn’t actually very far from Central London. As I write this, I again have the Eddy Grant song “Electric Avenue” in my head, which was written about Brixton’s Electric Avenue, the first market street in London to be lit by electricity.

We picked up quite a few things, like shrimp at Jeffries Fish Market, inside Market Row, across from Franco Manca, where you can get some of London’s best pizza. I love Jeffries (and Franco Manca, for that matter). The seafood is affordable, with a great (fresh!) selection and the nicest people. I would go out of the way for their shrimp – the best I’ve had in London, by far.

Plus there’s Nour Cash & Carry, a wholesale, cash-only store where you can buy all sorts of bulk foods, cheap (so cheap!) fresh vegetables and herbs and some really interesting, unusual things. Definitely not the kind of stock you can find at the local Tesco.

Lots of meals have come from my purchases in Brixton, but this one is symbolic of a day roaming between market arcades and local stores in Brixton.

Polenta with Shrimp and Tomato Sauce

Serves: 4

On the Counter

soft polenta:
2 cups (340 g) coarse-ground corn meal (polenta)
8 cups (2 liters) water
1 tbsp coarse sea salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter

tomato and shrimp:

1.5 lbs (700 g) fresh shrimp (prawns), peeled
1 can peeled plum tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot, finely diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp tomato paste
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1/2 cup (100 g) fresh or frozen shelled peas
crumbled feta to garnish
fresh parsley or cilantro to garnish
salt and pepper to taste

What to Do

Start the polenta by boiling the water in a large pot over high heat, with salt. Slowly whisk the corn meal in, until smooth. Simmer, covered, on lower heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste for desired consistency. Once it’s cooked, whisk in the butter until completely melted.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add garlic and shallot, cook for 2 minutes, or until shallot is translucent. Add in chilli flakes and tomatoes, and break up with a wooden spoon. Add tomato paste and about 1/2 tsp salt, stir to combine. Cook for 15 minutes, tasting, until sauce is mostly smooth. Add more salt if needed. Toss in shrimp and peas, and cook for an additional 5 minutes, until shrimp is pink and opaque.

Spoon the polenta into bowls, top with tomato sauce and shrimp, top with feta and parsley/cilantro.

I got nearly every ingredient for this (including the salt!) from Brixton market, so this meal really was a reminder of an interesting Saturday and the joys of shopping around for quality ingredients.

There are times when walking into the supermarket with no plan is a disaster. Other times it’s an inspiration. Thankfully, this recipe transpired from an inspirational trip.

I was wandering through the meat department, as I do, and spotted a beautiful set of lamb steaks. And then I spotted the lovely sticker on the package. 2 for £7. Armed with my 2 lamb steaks and a nice pair of beef rump steaks (to use in a later post), I was ready to go.

There was also a bag of fresh peas languishing in the fridge, which offered the perfect opportunity for… pan-seared lamb steaks and minted mushy peas.

Even though I’ve lived in London for 1.5 years, I haven’t spent much of that time cooking British food. It’s been too tempting to take advantage of all the continental European ingredients – the Italian cheese, French cream and Greek olives. After this success, though, I might have to rethink that stance.

A nice piece of tender lamb (not mutton) is quick to cook (and just as quick to ruin). I pan-seared this, but it would be just as lovely on the grill. You could also make this a pea puree, rather than mushy peas. To do that, just replace the mushing with food processing.

Serves: 4

On the Counter:

the lamb:
4 lamb steaks
6 sprigs-worth of fresh thyme, leaves only
kosher or ground rock salt
1 tsp olive oil for marinade
2 tsp olive oil for pan
the peas:
3 cups (400 g) fresh or frozen peas
4 springs fresh mint
4 tablespoons melted butter

What to Do:

Chop thyme leaves and combine them with a few grinds of salt and olive oil. Mash them up with a mortar and pestle. Rub or brush onto both sides of your lamb steaks. Let them sit for at least 30 minutes. (Don’t skip the marinading – it’s worth it!)

Boil the peas in lightly salted water until tender (about 3 minutes). If using frozen, heat them according to the package directions. Chop mint finely. Once the peas are finished, drain them and combine butter, mint and a pinch of salt. Mash them up with a mortal and pestle, until they are mushy to your taste.

Drizzle olive oil onto a griddle or flat-bottomed frying pan. Heat (on medium-high) until the oil shimmers. Flick a few drops of water onto the skillet to test; if they dance and sizzle, it’s ready. Place your lamb steaks onto the pan and press them down. Don’t crowd the pan; make sure each one has some space. For medium rare, cook them for 4 minutes on each side. Medium: 5 minutes, then 4 minutes. This obviously depends on the thickness of your pieces. Mine were about 3/4 inch thick (2 cm).

As soon as the timer goes off, take them off the heat and let them rest for 2 or 3 minutes on a plate.

On a warm plate, serve peas and lamb. This is also lovely with some french fries or a salad, but I’ll leave that to you!

I had a lot of fun taking photos of this one, so here are two extras that I just had to share. Check out that beautiful piece of lamb!