Gammon, Pineapple & Chips with a Chimichurri Dressing

Serves 2

Takes 1 hour 15 minutes

Another retro dinner with a zingy twist. The chimichurri dressing pairs perfectly with the sweet pineapple and cuts through the saltiness of the gammon steak. You couldn’t serve this with anything else but chips. Homemade really make a difference and for a healthier version, we have oven cooked rather than fried and even if we do say so ourselves, it works a treat. A simple midweek meal, elevated slightly with these little added extras.

1. Preheat the oven to 180C fan.
2. Place the potato batons in a large bowl and sprinkle with the corn starch, toss to ensure each piece is coated and place on a non-stick baking tray. Drizzle over 2 tbsp of olive oil and the smoked paprika, toss again to coat.
3. Cover well with a couple of layers of foil and place in the oven for 15 minutes. This allows the chips to begin to steam so you have fluffy potato inside and a crispy outer.
4. Remove from the oven and take off the foil, place back in the oven for 40 minutes, flipping every 10 minutes. Cook until the chips are lovely golden and sound crispy when tossed. Turn off the oven and leave in the warmth whilst you cook the rest.
5. Place all the ingredients for the chimichurri into a food processor and blitz to a smooth-ish sauce, pour in an extra glug of olive oil to loosen if you wish. Transfer to a bowl and set aside for later.
6. Cut incisions into the rind and fat of the gammon steaks, this will ensure they won’t curl up when cooking.
7. Set a griddle pan on a medium heat, once almost smoking place the gammon steaks rind-side down and let the heat render the fat for 10 minutes. Flip onto one side and cook for 4 minutes, then turn and cook the other side for another 3 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside to rest whilst you char the pineapple.
8. Keep the griddle on the heat and carefully place the pineapple slices down into the pan. Cook for 2 minutes then flip and cook for 1 more minute. You want the sugars in the pineapple to begin to caramelise to create those lovely char marks.
9. Plate up each gammon steak, with the charred pineapple slices on top. Serve with a generous handful of crispy chips and a sprinkle of salt, drizzle the chimichurri dressing over everything and finish with a grating of parmesan over the chips. Enjoy!

• 2 gammon steaks, as your butcher to do this (smoked or unsmoked, whatever your preference)
• 2 thick slices of fresh pineapple, cored
• 4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chip-like batons
• 3 tbsp corn starch
• Olive oil
• 2 tsp paprika
• Salt, for seasoning
• Parmesan or pecorino, for grating

For the Chimichurri Dressing:

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• Handful of parsley, roughly torn
• Handful of coriander, roughly torn
• 1 red birds eye chilli, stalk removed
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt