Satays and Bath Ale's Gem

Ok, if you've never made a Satay dipping sauce, here's how. What I like about it is that it's really easy to whip up but impressively tasty at the same time. If you've got people coming over for something to eat and don't have a lot of time to prepare, this is perfect. The only thing you definitely need - trust me - is a blender.

This sauce serves 4.

For the sauce, you first make a paste by blending one onion, 1 whole chilli (take the seeds out if you don't want it too hot), 3 Garlic cloves, and a tbsp of soft brown sugar. In a pan, heat a tbsp or two of oil (vegetable will do - don't use olive) and add the paste over a medium heat. Stir well, cooking the paste out a bit, and then add 3/4 tin of coconut milk, a splash of Soy Sauce, and a squeeze of half a lime - or lemon if that's all you have. Then, add about 125g of crunchy peanut butter. Stir it all in well over a medium heat, and that's the sauce done.

To eat this with, I usually skewer some prawns and either pork or chicken bits (if using chicken, batter strips out and thread through the middle - it stays moister this way) and griddle quickly over a high heat. You can pre-marinate the meat if you like, simply using a basic oriental marinade of soy sauce, garlic, chilli and ginger, along with a little brown sugar.

I had a bottle of Gem by Bath Ales in the fridge and seeing as though it was cold, opted for this rather than the Gaffel Koelsch that I had planned. It worked out well, that underlying sweetness that Gem has setting off the meats nicely and also quenching the heat more than adequately. The Gaffel followed suit later on in the evening, whilst watching 30 Rock. Sorted.