Sweet and spicy salmon with sesame peanut noodles

You can tell by the long title that I had absolutely no idea what to call this - but it's a total weeknight game changer. This Asian fusion supper is unbelievably flavoursome but takes just minutes to put together, with star ingredients like sriracha, soya sauce, lime, sesame oil and ginger doing all the hard work. Less time preparing = more time for you to put your feet up after a manic day.

You know, taking this sabbatical wasn't a simple decision nor has it always been easy. As much as I'm enjoying the break, I really miss my job. As my grandad often tells me, job satisfaction is more important than remuneration or status. Publishing is a heck of a lot crazier and more fast-paced than people imagine (no, we don't just read all day) but it's also immensely rewarding. Working from home is fun but stepping away from the madness and my wonderful team has been really hard. Still, I know I've made the right decision. I needed this time out and I'm so grateful for all the good it's done.

The unexpected bonus has been this blog. I'm having so much fun cooking and writing and taking photos. Being a perfectionist, I've always been a stickler for following recipes to the tee. Now, having the time and freedom to make mistakes, I've started trusting my own taste and skills more. Developing and tweaking my own recipes is a whole new kind of joy. A little bit of this and a little bit of that and there it is: magic. So yeah, abracadabra, I hope you love this.

Salmon is such a tasty fish, it doesn't need much to make it stellar. Here, I've marinated the fillets in a fingerlickin' combination of sriracha, lime, honey and ginger. It's not really spicy and it's not really sweet despite the honey. It's a happy, happy balance. Don't like sweet with your savoury? Try this simple soy-ginger combination instead: 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar or sriracha, 1 teaspoon grated ginger, 1 minced garlic clove, 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes. It's also great on chicken.

Next, the noodles. OMG. How can something so simple be so good? If you don't eat fish, these noodles are equally great on their own. Soba noodles, made from buckwheat, cook in mere minutes. Drench it in some of this amazing dressing and you're good to go. I've reused that magical combination of sriracha, lime and ginger, and then taken it to the next level with soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, peanut butter, green chillies, brown sugar and coriander. This is ridiculously addictive stuff.

Moving on to sides, I had some leftover Korean banchan so that's what's pictured here. Otherwise, some crunchy roasted broccoli with chilli and garlic is the perfect accompaniment so I've included a recipe for that below. If you're too lazy for this extra step, steamed broccoli works just as well. The fish, the noodles and the broccoli are all packed with flavour but if you feel like a simpler meal, you could either forgo the marinade and season the salmon with just salt and pepper before baking, or you could serve the salmon with jasmine rice instead of the noodles.

You know what's really great about this dish? It tastes really good hot and really good cold. Have leftovers? Do yourself a favour and pack them up for lunch the next day. Soba noodles are usually eaten cold anyway and a night in the fridge allows all the flavours of the fish and noodles to steep and come together. Om nom nom, my friends.

Sweet and spicy salmon

Serves 2.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 boneless salmon fillets
• 2 tablespoon sriracha
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon fresh minced ginger
• juice of 1 small lime

METHOD

Place the salmon fillets, skin-side down, in a 9" square baking dish.

Mix together the sriracha, honey, ginger and lime and pour over the salmon. Turn the fillets in the sauce a few time until they're thoroughly coated.

Cover the dish with clingfilm and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour to allow the fish to marinate.

Remove the clingfilm and turn the fillets a couple of more times. Bake in a preheated oven at 220°C for 15-18 minutes or until the fish flakes easily.*

Optional: Turn on the grill/broiler in your oven and grill for 3-5 minutes or until the top of the salmon is crisp.

Glaze the salmon with any leftover marinade.

Notes: The time will vary depending on the size of your fillets and how well you like your salmon cooked so keep a close eye on your fish.

Roasted broccoli with chilli and garlic

Serves 2.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 small head of broccoli
• 1/2 - 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon ground garlic/1 minced garlic clove
• salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

METHOD

Start preparing while the fish is marinating in the fridge.

Split the head of broccoli into florets, discarding any leaves and the large stem.

Spread the broccoli in an even layer over a sheet of aluminum foil.

Drizzle with olive oil and season with chilli flakes, garlic, salt and pepper.

Put it in the oven at the same time as the fish and bake at 220°C for 20-25 minutes.

Sesame and peanut soba noodles

Serves 2.

INGREDIENTS

• 80g soba noodles
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sriracha
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon peanut butter
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped green chilli (optional but tasty)
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 tablespoon chopped coriander

METHOD

Start preparing while the fish and broccoli are in the oven.

Add soba noodles to a medium-sized pan of boiling water. Cook for 6-7 minutes and then drain.

In a large bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients. Don't worry if the peanut butter separates, it will melt with the heat of the soba noodles. Add the soba noodles and stir until well combined.

Check for seasoning and then sprinkle with extra chopped coriander, sesame seeds and/or roasted and salted peanuts.