I get great pleasure from stuffed foods, from an apple strudel to a vegetable samosa, from a whole roasted bird with a sweet and savoury stuffing to a vine leaf filled with rice and spices.

Black glutinous rice works in both savoury and sweet dishes. It's a popular pudding rice in south-east Asia, where you'll often come across it cooked with water, coconut milk and a pandan leaf.

The tang of tamarind is a great way both to flavour and lighten up slow-cooked savoury dishes.

A quick shallow fry is a great way to transform leftovers, and no more so than in the case of risotto.

Chinese sausage, which is widely available from Asian grocers and online, is sweet, rich, and enticingly smoky. I add it to steamed rice with strips of omelette and a few baby veg stir-fried with soy.

I know my corn plants intimately, and I find it a great pleasure to know them.