Lemony loaf, quick stir-fry and courgette achaar from Ravinder Bhogal

Courgettes don’t have to be boring. Shave them with a vegetable peeler and eat raw with olive oil and lemon juice, spiralise for noodles, grill until blackened and fold the creamy innards into tahini, grate for fritters, roast thick rounds until caramelised, or pickle to brighten gloomier months.

Grated courgette makes a moist, easy loaf that needs no heavy kneading or proving. The mix combines courgettes drained for an hour, flour, pul biber, preserved lemon rind, oregano, parsley and extra-mature cheddar; shape into a round, bake at 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4 for about 40–45 minutes until golden, then slice and serve warm with butter or olive oil.

The stir-fry is a quick weeknight dish: crisp tofu torn into chunks, courgette rounds and spring onions tossed in a sauce of cornflour, garlic, crisp chilli oil, Chinkiang or rice-and-red-wine vinegar, sesame oil, soy and a little sugar.

courgette, courgette loaf, grated courgette, stir-fry, tofu, preserved lemon, pul biber, chinkiang vinegar, spring onions, sesame oil