Mandarin Scotch Bonnet Kosho

Start making the kosho three weeks before you want to eat it. First, rinse the jalapeños and scotch bonnets and leave them to air-dry on some kitchen paper.

Wash the mandarins and lemons in warm water, carefully rubbing any dirt off the skins. Leave on kitchen paper to air-dry.

Halve the jalapeños and scotch bonnets, remove the seeds and pith using a teaspoon, then cut them into tiny dice. Tip into a mixing bowl, sprinkle with ⅓ of fine sea salt and mix well.

Transfer everything to a sieve, then rest the sieve over a mixing bowl. Cover the chillies with a saucer. Leave at room temperature for 8 hours or overnight.

The next day, the chillies will have expelled about half their weight in water. Label and freeze the salty chilli liquid.

Clean your kitchen counter well, then wash an average-sized jam jar and lid, chopping board, large knife and tablespoon. I like to pour boiling water into the jar to make extra sure it’s free from nasties.

Using a citrus zester, zest all the citrus fruit onto a chopping board (don’t use a Microplane or grater). Squeeze the mandarin juice through a sieve and into a mixing bowl. Discard the seeds. Separate and freeze the mandarin juice.

Place the drained chillies on top of the citrus zest, then pour ⅔ of the salt on top. Mix the chilies, citrus zest and salt into each other. Fill the clean jar with the salty citrus and chilli mixture, pressing it down as you go to get rid of any air pockets – they are your enemy!

Clean around the inside rim of the jar with a piece of kitchen paper dipped in white vinegar, removing any stray solids. Close the jar, label it with the date and leave at room temperature for three weeks out of direct sunlight. After three weeks, transfer the jar to the fridge where it will keep happily for six months, ready for when you want to make the prawns.

Juice the zested lemons and mix with the remaining mandarin juice. This mixture is a tasty drink chilled as it is, or sweetened with 2 tbsp sugar and frozen into ice lollies. You could also mix with chopped fresh oregano and use it to cure fish.

Keep the left-over salty chilli water and use it for salting sauces and giving them a little chilli kick. It will keep well in the kitchen for about five days.

The ferment will live happily in the fridge for about six months. It’s great on grilled courgette, in noodle soup, mixed with melted butter and spread over fish after steaming, or mixed with oil and used to marinate chicken breast before pan-frying.