Toasted-Spice Kelewele with Roasted Groundnuts and Lime Chilli Salt

Method

1. Toast the whole cloves and star anise in a small dry frying pan over medium-low heat for 1 min 30 sec, shaking the pan, until fragrant and a shade darker; don't let them smoke. Cool for a minute, then grind them to a fine powder in a spice grinder or mortar and mix in the grated nutmeg. Freshly toasted spices give a much deeper aroma than ready-ground ones.

   Add in this stepWhole cloves 3Star anise 1Nutmeg, freshly grated 1 pinch

   medium-low heat

2. In the same pan, roast the peanuts over medium-low heat for 6 min, stirring often, until golden and the skins start to crack. Tip them into a clean tea towel, rub to loosen the papery skins and blow or pick them away.

   Add in this stepRaw shelled peanuts 50 g

   medium-low heat

3. Peel and roughly chop the ginger, garlic and shallots and chop the scotch bonnet. Pound everything in a mortar with the ground spices and the salt to a coarse, thick paste, or pulse it in a mini chopper without water. A thick paste clings to the plantain and caramelises instead of steaming.

   Add in this stepFresh ginger 20 gGarlic cloves 1Shallots 1Scotch bonnet pepper ½Salt ½ tsp

4. Peel the plantains and cut them on the diagonal into 2 cm thick slices, halving any large ones. Pat dry, toss thoroughly with the paste and marinate for 30 min.

   Add in this stepVery ripe plantains (yellow with plenty of black spots) 2

5. Finely grate the lime zest (green part only) and rub it between your fingers with the flaky salt and chilli flakes until fragrant. This is the finishing salt.

   Add in this stepLime (for zest) ½Flaky sea salt 1 pinchChilli flakes 1 pinch

6. Pour the oil into a dry, heavy 20 cm pot, no more than one third full and at least 4 cm deep. Heat over medium-high heat for 7 min, to 170 °C, checked with a thermometer. Keep a lid at hand, never leave the oil unattended and never let water get into hot oil.

   Add in this stepVegetable oil for deep-frying 600 ml

   medium-high heat

7. Fry the plantain in small batches without crowding (number of batches: 2), each batch over medium heat for 4 min 30 sec, turning gently, until deep amber with almost-black caramelised edges and a soft, jammy inside. Adjust the heat to keep the oil between 165 and 175 °C, and lift each batch onto a rack.

   medium heat

8. While still hot, toss the kelewele in a bowl with the lime chilli salt so it sticks. Pile onto a plate, scatter over the roasted peanuts and serve at once.