The ubiquitous Thai fish cake, seen on menus up and down the UK, is seldom like the real thing. The texture should be springy ? dare I say it, almost rubbery. Here's my quick guide to getting it right. Enjoy!

Makes 12?16

250g white fish

2 heaped tbsp red curry paste*

1 tbsp green beans, sliced

1 tbsp lime leaves, sliced finely**

1 egg

1-2 tbsp nam pla (fish sauce), to taste

1 tsp sugar

a pinch of salt

oil for deep frying

For the dipping sauce

75ml vinegar

75g sugar

2"? piece of cucumber

1 shallot

1 tbsp crushed unsalted peanuts (optional)

a pinch of salt

1. Put the fish, curry paste and egg into the food processor and whoosh ? you want it to make a homogenised paste. Put into a bowl and stir in the beans and the lime leaves and then add the sugar, a pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of nam pla.

2. Heat a little oil at this point, and fry off a tiny piece to check the seasoning. Different curry pastes have different balances of flavour. Add more nam pla or sugar if you need to.

3. Now slap the mixture around the bowl a bit to aerate the mixture ? you want Thai-style slightly puffy, springy textured cakes.

4. Make the sauce by heating the vinegar and the sugar in a small pan over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Let it bubble a bit just to thicken it slightly. Take off the heat and let it cool.

5. Peel the cucumber and cut it lengthways into four then slice it. Peel the carrot and quarter that and then slice it. Slice the shallot thinly. Add these to the vinegar/sugar mixture, along with the peanuts (if you're using them).

6. Now wet your hands slightly, and form the fish paste into flattish patties: you chose the size! You can have them as big as a plate or tiny bite-sized.

7. Heat the oil for deep frying over a medium heat and fry the fish cakes until puffy and brown. Transfer them onto paper towel as you go, then eat them straight away with the dipping sauce on the side.

* ?I'd recommend Nittaya or Mae Ploy brand pastes if you're not making your own

** ?If you roll the lime leaves up tightly then slice across you will get lovely thin slithers