Chicken salad with broad bean relish

Serves 4-6

(Jason Lowe)

Barbecueing on the beach adds a bit of drama to a picnic and an element of heat, too, which always comes in useful as the sun goes down.

Just be careful, however, that you don't light your barbie upwind of any sunbathers – or you may have a bit more than a full-on picnic on your hands.

8-10 free range chicken thighs, boned
The grated zest of 1 lemon
A handful of rosemary, chopped
4-5 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
2-3tbsp olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3-4 heads of little gem lettuce, trimmed and washed

For the broad bean relish

1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 small red chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped
30g fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
tsp ground cumin
75ml extra virgin olive oil
200g podded weight of fresh or frozen broad beans, cooked
1tsp tomato purée
2 tomatoes, skinned, seeded and chopped
100ml water
Half a lemon, pips removed
Salt and pepper
1tbsp fresh mint leaves, chopped
1tbsp fresh coriander leaves, chopped

The night before, mix the lemon zest rosemary and olive oil with the chicken thighs and season, then transfer to a plastic container ready to take to the beach.

To make the broad bean relish: gently cook the onions, garlic, chilli, ginger and cumin slowly in the olive oil without colouring until soft. Add the broad beans, tomato purée, chopped tomatoes, water and the half-lemon (in one piece). Season with salt and pepper and simmer gently with a lid on for 15-20 minutes. Check it from time to time and add a little more water if it seems too dry. When cooked, the relish will have a nice red oily appearance. Remove the half-lemon. Add the mint and coriander to the relish and remove the pan from the heat. Once cool, transfer to a container. Depending when you make this, it will be better if you leave it at room temperature.

To assemble the salad, just barbecue the chicken thighs on a medium heat for 5-6 minutes on each side and serve on top of the little gems with the broad bean relish spooned over – or serve the ingredients separately and let people help themselves.