Some cultures like it hot while others, like me, prefer food on the wimpish side of warm. I do like the flavour that chillies add to food like curries and Mexican dishes, but I just can’t take the heat.

Some chilli aficionados will tell you that they can detect subtle nuances of flavour between, for example, a blisteringly-hot Scotch bonnet and a tiny, but equally incendiary, Thai bird’s-eye chilli; but when your mouth is on fire and your eyes are streaming, subtle is not a word I would use!

Capsaisin is the stuff that gives chillies their bite, and it’s mostly contained in the seeds and ribs, so removing them tones the heat down a bit. Everyone’s tolerance to chillies is different, so my recipes contain just a gentle amount for cowards like me, but you can of course add as much as you like. And the usual word of warning – don’t touch your eyes or face while preparing them, and wash your hands thoroughly afterwards as chillies can give you a nasty sting.

I like burritos, but I usually get into a sticky mess trying to keep the filling in the tortilla when I eat them.

So, instead of wrapping the contents, I warm the tortillas, spread them with bean paste, top them with lettuce, sliced grilled chicken and spicy salsa, and then eat them with a knife and fork. Less fun, but less messy, too.

I was never quite sure just how much to use when adding harissa, the fiery North African chilli paste. Half a teaspoon didn’t seem enough, so I would add more and then regret it afterwards. But I’ve got the lamb meatball recipe just right (for me) now.

Baharat is the Arabic word for spice and is really a mixture of whatever spices you like. I use ground coriander, cumin, paprika, cinnamon and black pepper, a blend which I find works well with lamb, but you can add other spices like cardamom, nutmeg or ginger.

Then there’s one of my favourites: pork with sweet chilli sauce. Once you have assembled all the ingredients, the dish only takes about 10 minutes to cook, so with some noodles or rice, it’s a fast, easy and tasty supper.

According to Pat Chapman’s Curry Bible, Bombay potatoes didn’t originate in Bombay. Like chicken tikka masala, they are an invention of British curry houses and there are dozens of recipes for them, so you “pays your money and you takes your choice”, as the saying goes.

I like to add nigella seeds, tiny black seeds which are sometimes referred to as wild onion or black onion seeds, although they have nothing to do with onions, and you can find them at Smart Supermarket.

Bombay potatoes are good with just about anything, from curry to barbecued chicken kebabs, and any leftovers are really nice sliced up and fried until crispy.

Pork medallions with sweet chilli sauce

(Serves 4)

1 large pork fillet, about 600g, trimmed
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
100ml chicken stock
150g bottle sweet chilli sauce
1 small can pineapple chunks in natural juice, drained and juice reserved
1 heaped tsp cornflour
1 green or red chilli, deseeded and shredded
Noodles or rice to serve

Cut the pork fillet into two-centimetre slices, then whack each one gently with your fist until they are about one centimetre thick and season with salt and pepper. Heat two tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and, working in batches, fry the slices over high heat for three minutes, turning once. Transfer them to a plate.

Add the onion to the pan and fry until starting to soften, then stir in the garlic and ginger and fry for a minute more. Add the stock to the pan, together with the chilli sauce and pineapple juice and bring it all to the boil. Mix the cornflour with a little water, add enough to the pan to thicken the sauce and simmer for two minutes. Stir in the pineapple, return the pork to the pan and simmer for two more minutes. Sprinkle with the shredded chilli, then serve with noodles or rice.

Spiced lamb meatballs with couscous

(Serves 4)

400g lean minced lamb
50g breadcrumbs
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp baharat spice*
4 tbsp chopped fresh mint
Harissa paste
Salt and pepper
1 egg yolk
Olive oil
1 onion, chopped
400g can chopped tomatoes
400g can chickpeas, drained
250g lamb or beef stock
250g couscous
400g hot chicken or vegetable stock
Juice of ½ lemon

Put the lamb, breadcrumbs, half the garlic, the spice, two tablespoons of mint, half a teaspoon of harissa, a good pinch of salt and the egg yolk into a large bowl and mix them well together. Shape into walnut-sized meatballs and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan and fry the meatballs until well browned all over, then transfer them to a plate. Add the onion to the pan and fry until starting to soften, then add the rest of the garlic and fry for a minute more. Add the chopped tomatoes, chickpeas and stock and return the meatballs to the pan. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for 20 minutes or until cooked through.

Meanwhile, tip the couscous into a large bowl. Mix one or two teaspoons of harissa, according to taste, into the hot stock and pour it on to the couscous. Add two tablespoons of olive oil, the remaining mint and the lemon juice, then let it stand for about five minutes until the stock is absorbed. Spread the couscous on to a large shallow dish and pour the meatballs on top. Scatter over some extra mint and serve.

*For baharat spice, mix a teaspoon each of ground coriander and cumin, a teaspoon of paprika, a large pinch of cinnamon and plenty of ground black pepper.

Chicken tortillas

(Serves 4)

1 yellow pepper, cored and diced
4 tomatoes, peeled, deseeded and diced
2 small onions, chopped
1 or 2 red or green chillies, according to taste, deseeded and chopped
1 tbsp tomato paste
Juice of 1 lime
½ tsp sugar
Salt and pepper
2 x 400g cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp smoked paprika
½ tsp each ground coriander and cumin
Olive oil
Crème fraîche or sour cream
4 chicken breast halves
4 tortillas
Half a small iceberg lettuce, shredded
Cayenne pepper to serve

Mix together the pepper, tomatoes, one chopped onion and chilli. Stir in the tomato paste, lime juice and sugar and season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill until needed.

Tip the beans into a pan and crush them with a potato masher. Stir in the remaining chopped onion, the honey, paprika and spices, add three tablespoons of olive oil and three tablespoons of crème fraîche, stir over medium heat until hot, then cover the pan and keep warm.

Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and either grill, fry or barbecue them until cooked through, then cut them into strips.

While the chicken is cooking, wrap the tortillas in foil and put them in a preheated 200˚C oven for 10 minutes.

To assemble, spread the warm tortillas with the bean mixture, add a handful of shredded lettuce to each one, then top with the chicken and spread the salsa over. Add a splodge of crème fraîche and a dusting of cayenne pepper and serve.

Bombay potatoes

(Serves 4)

6 medium-sized potatoes, about 1kg
3 tbsp sunflower oil
½ tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp each ground coriander, cumin and turmeric
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
Large pinch dried red chilli flakes
30g butter
2 tbsp mango chutney, chopped
3 small tomatoes, peeled, deseeded and cut into strips
1 tbsp roughly-chopped fresh coriander
½ tsp nigella seeds

Scrub the potatoes, then cook them whole in boiling salted water for 15 minutes and drain. When they are cool enough to handle, peel them and cut them into large dice. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and fry the mustard seeds until they start to ‘pop’. Add the rest of the spices, lower the heat and fry gently for two minutes.

Stir in the ginger and chilli flakes and cook for a minute more. Add the butter, mango chutney and potatoes and cook, stirring and turning until the potatoes are tender.

Stir in the tomatoes and chopped coriander and cook for two more minutes. Turn into a warm serving dish and sprinkle with the nigella seeds.