I love my electric steamer. It’s the first new piece of kitchen equipment I have bought in years that has completely won me over. It’s like a health-and-beauty spa for food, without the harshness of flame or the drying nature of an oven.

I now dream up new things to steam at the slightest opportunity. Not just green vegetables, potatoes and fish, but oysters, egg dishes and custards; silken tofu flavoured with soy and chilli; Chinese glutinous rice and pork wrapped in lotus leaves; pork and ginger dumplings, and individual steamed marmalade puddings. With two racks I can cook an entire meal without picking up a saucepan.

There is something so light and soothing about steaming that for the first week I overcooked everything and burnt myself twice. I now treat the steam with more respect, removing both food and fingers before they have been in the sauna too long.

It’s time to pack away heavy casseroles and stockpots for another year, and go full steam ahead into spring.

Ingredients

Prep: 20mins plus salting
Cook: 20mins
Serves: 4

This is a steamed version of the “grand aioli” of Provence, using lightly salted fresh Icelandic cod.

600g cod fillet, skinned
1tbsp coarse sea salt
600g baby potatoes, unpeeled
1 bunch baby carrots, peeled
300g fine green beans, topped
4 hard-boiled eggs, halved
1tbsp small, whole black olives

METHOD

Place the fish in a shallow dish and scatter with salt. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for two hours, turning once.

Rinse the fish thoroughly in cold water and pat dry. Steam the potatoes over simmering water for 20 minutes until tender, the carrots for 10 minutes, the beans for 5 minutes. Steam the fish for 6 minutes.

Gently break the fish into large pieces. Arrange the fish, vegetables, eggs, and olives on four dinner plates around small bowls of aioli.

Aioli

Prep: 5mins
Cook: 5mins
Makes: 250ml

True provençal aioli was made only with garlic and olive oil, but it is now best known in this rich, silky mayonnaise form.

2 egg yolks
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1tsp Dijon mustard
Half-tsp sea salt
1tsp lemon juice
100ml light olive oil or grapeseed oil
100ml extra virgin olive oil

METHOD

Whiz together the egg yolks, garlic, mustard, salt and lemon juice. Gradually, in a steady trickle, add the light olive oil, then the extra virgin, whizzing until thick, smooth and silky. For a lighter result, beat in a dash of boiling water.

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