Ah yes, there's the rub

The sticky heat of the kitchen is the last place I want to be spending any time. A simple plate of leftover new potatoes, fleetingly fried with garlic, seem wonderful dipped in cool, wobbly mayonnaise alongside a crisp salad. Picking at my simple plateful in the garden feels like an indulgence, initially.

But this has to change. I need to find ways of enjoying proper meals while keeping cooking time short. How can you reduce time and lengthy recipes without losing flavour?

Marinating holds the answer. What was once for preserving, tenderising or even masking, is now all about the taste. Marinades deliver complexity without the lengthy preparation, keeping cooking simple – and keeping me away from the kitchen.

I include dry rubs in this category as well as the more usual oil-based type (don't drench with oil, though, just seek to moisten). Remember to brush off excess oil if you are cooking on the barbeque to avoid flame flare-up.

In general, you require a little acid, maybe vinegar or lemon, the oil (neutral or flavoured) plus flavourings such as garlic, spices and herbs. The final ingredient is time, to infuse, but if you are enjoying the sunshine outside, you wont struggle to find that.

Pork kebabs in chilli and ginger

Recipe serves four

500g diced lean pork cut into one inch cubes

The marinade:

A piece of fresh root ginger about 2 inches long, peeled and grated

1 red chilli and 1 green chilli, cut lengthways then sliced (deseeded if you wish)

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed

1 small red onion, grated

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce

1 tablespoon dark brown sugar

juice of a lime

To finish

A little oil to brush on the meat if barbecuing or to add to a pan

A bunch of spring onions, sliced finely in rounds

Leaves of coriander to scatter

A lime or lemon cut into wedges to squeeze over the dish

Method

1 Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a bowl, whisk together well and add the meat. Toss well then refrigerate for at least two hours and up to four, but no longer than this. Soak wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes, to help prevent meat sticking to the wood, then thread the meat onto the skewers. Each cube of meat should just touch the next but not be tightly squeezed up against each other or this will prevent even cooking. Set these aside on another plate. Keep the marinade for now.

2 Heat a wide pan large enough to hold the kebabs, or alternatively cook under the grill or on a barbecue. If pan frying, add oil to the pan. You will only need to brush the meat lightly with oil if using the barbecue and you won't need anything at all if cooking under the grill. Lightly brush away excess marinade from the meat surface with a paper towel, then cook at high heat for 2-3 minutes on each face before giving a quarter turn to each kebab. Ensure the meat is cooked through thoroughly.

If pan frying, you can add the marinade to the pan and allow to boil up around the meat, baste well then remove to a serving dish. If grilling or barbecuing, heat the marinade in a sauce pan and boil thoroughly. Spoon over the kebabs once they are cooked and on the serving dish. Finally, arrange the lemons or limes around the dish with some coriander leaves and spring onions then serve at once.

Lamb chops in an Indian spiced rub

Recipe serves four

3 lamb chops per person

1 tsp of dried red chilli flakes or more to taste

2 tsp coriander seeds

1 tsp fenugreek seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp black peppercorns

A little vegetable oil

3-4 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

salt

Method

1 Place the chilli flakes, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds, mustard seeds and black peppercorns all together in a pestle and mortar and gently pound then grind to a powder. Be careful to avoid any spraying over the sides so you don't lose any of the mixture. Set aside for the moment.

2 Lay the lamb chops out in a suitable dish or tray, such as a roasting tray or a gratin dish. They can be snug but not too overlapping if possible.

3 Drizzle the oil all over so they are moist but not swimming in oil – remember this is effectively a dry rub recipe. Now sprinkle the garlic all over. Massage and rub in well, turning the meat over as you go, to ensure everything is well coated.

4 Now sprinkle half the spice powder mix on the side of the lamb cutlets which is facing upwards, massage this in briefly then turn the lamb over onto its other side and repeat. Refrigerate, covered with cling film, for at least three hours, or up to eight hours.

5 To finish: these are great cooked on a barbecue but equally they can be finished under a grill or pan fried, or cooked in a ridged pan. Ensure the cooking medium (pan, grill, barbecue etc) is very hot then sear the lamb on the first side for three minutes. Season lightly with salt before turning to repeat on the second face. If you need to do this in batches due to space limitations, leave the cooked chops on a plate loosely covered with tin foil while you finish the rest.

Ensure they get a good hot searing, leaving some slightly blackened marks at the edges: the smokiness which ensues enhances the sweetness of the lamb even more. Leave to stand to rest for a few minutes and serve with boiled rice or rice salad and perhaps some breads such as chapatti or naan.