Salt-baked beets and spuds with aioli recipe

There’s nothing better for a lazy chef than to put food in the oven and step back while it does all the work. This dish is a perfect example, and full of flavours inspired by Spanish and southern French cuisine. It is also full of colour – especially if you use different colours of beetroot and potatoes. You will need to soak the cashews overnight to make the aioli.

Serves 4
1.5kg coarse sea salt
750g fresh beetroot, preferably red, yellow and Chioggia varieties
750g potatoes, preferably pink and purple
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For the aioli
1 pinch of saffron threads (about 20)
200g raw cashews, soaked overnight and rinsed
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar or the juice of ½ lemon
2 or 3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 Set the oven to 200C/400F/gas 6. Spread half of the salt over the base of a baking tin. Pierce each potato and beetroot a couple of times with a fork. Arrange them on the tray and cover with the remaining salt. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour, or until tender.

2 While the vegetables are cooking, make the aioli. Put the saffron threads in a cup and pour over 2-3 tbsp boiling water. Leave it to steep for 5-7 minutes.

3 Meanwhile, drain the cashews then blitz with the vinegar, 1 tsp salt, the saffron water (remove the threads), an additional 150ml water and the garlic cloves, and blitz until very smooth.

4 When the vegetables are cooked, shake off the excess salt and slice in two, then serve with the aioli, accompanied, if you wish, with a fresh green salad.

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