Tomos Parry’s broad beans with burnt cucumbers, and peas, little gem and anchovy cream

June is one of the most exciting months in the growing season, when spring gives way to early summer, and the first real abundance appears. The best ingredients arrive with a freshness that is impossible to replicate at any other point in the year. This is also when cooking becomes lighter and more spontaneous. Meals move outdoors, tables get larger, dishes can be shared. 

Cooking over fire changes the way you think about summer vegetables. The transformation can be subtle or dramatic. A pea pod blackens and sweetens, lettuce takes on complexity and depth and cool cucumbers become something different entirely when blistered over coals. 

Fire concentrates sweetness, introduces bitterness and creates contrast. A vegetable cooked over flame develops character without losing its identity. The challenge is knowing when it’s just enough. A little char can completely change an ingredient, giving depth and savouriness while still allowing freshness to remain.

Both of these recipes are built around contrast: smoke against freshness, sweetness against bitterness, hot ingredients served alongside cool ones. More than anything, they celebrate the pleasures of cooking with the seasons, making the most of produce at its peak and allowing the grill to do what it does best. 

Broad beans with burnt cucumbers and sheep’s curd

Burnt, savoury, almost meaty cucumber against the broad beans’ earthy sweetness and the sheep’s curd that provides richness and freshness: it just makes sense. Mint oil and green chilli lift everything, creating a balance of cool and warm, soft and crisp. This is best when slightly rough around the edges rather than neatly assembled.

Serves 4. Ready in 30 minutes

podded broad beans 300g

cucumbers 2

sheep’s curd or good ricotta 200g

pumpkin seeds 2 tbsp

olive oil

sea salt

fennel herb or dill 4-5 pieces per plate

For the mint oil:

mint a large handful

green chilli 1

olive oil 100ml

Blanch the broad beans briefly in well-salted water, then refresh in cold water. Peel them, if you have time, but if they’re very young, leave them as they are. 

Blitz the mint, chilli and olive oil until vivid green. Season with salt, then set aside.

Place a dry frying pan or griddle over very high heat. Cut the cucumbers into thick, angled pieces and cook hard until blistered and slightly collapsed. Don’t move them too much. You ideally want burn marks and some softness there together.

In a pan on a high heat, toast the pumpkin seeds until they begin popping. Spread the sheep’s curd over four plates or shallow bowls. Spoon over the broad beans and burnt cucumber while still warm. 

Finish with the mint oil, the fennel herb (or dill) and the pumpkin seeds. Serve with some grilled bread and more olive oil nearby for drizzling.

Peas, little gem and anchovy cream on toast

Peas in the early summer are very sweet. We cook them in the pod, over fierce heat, until the skins blacken and the peas inside steam. The lettuce catches smoke and bitterness while the anchovy cream seasons everything. 

Serves 4. Ready in 30 minutes

fresh peas in the pod 500g

little gem lettuces 2

thick slices of country bread 4

garlic clove 1

olive oil

For the anchovy cream:

crème fraîche 150g

anchovy fillets 5

lemon zest of ½

lemon juice a small squeeze

black pepper

Light a barbecue or get a griddle pan properly hot. You want a high heat here.

Mix the crème fraîche with the anchovies, crushing them with the back of a spoon so that they disappear into the cream. Add the lemon zest, a little of the juice and some black pepper. It should taste overseasoned on its own.

Dress the peas lightly with olive oil and grill in the pod until blackened and blistered. They’ll smell sweet and smoky. Let them cool, then pod them.

Halve the little gems through the root and grill, cut side down, until charred at the edges but still fresh in the middle.

Toast the bread well and rub each slice with garlic while still hot. Spread the anchovy cream generously over the toast. Scatter the peas over and tuck the grilled lettuce alongside or on top. Finish with olive oil and more black pepper.

Food Styling by Emma Cantlay; prop styling by Louie Waller