London lunch box: a recipe inspired by Naughty Piglets restaurant

Griddled baby gem with smoked pancetta, chilli, coriander and miso dressing

Do you make big plans for your days off work too? The night before I’ll list in my head all the grand things I’m going to accomplish. I plan to re-invent myself on my day off. Like starting a detox, cleaning the whole apartment, catching up on life admin, spiralising some vegetables, colour-coding my socks. You know, that sort of thing. Except all too often my days off turn into me eating toasted cheese watching re-runs of The Sopranos, dreaming of a more-organised, spiralised life.

One recent Friday, I wake up full of ideas of what I’ll do. It’s lashing rain outside and I’m tempted just to curl up on the couch with Tony Soprano for company. I glance guiltily at my juicer and wipe the layer of dust off it. Perhaps I really should start that detox. Perhaps that tower of ironing isn’t going to get any smaller by itself. Perhaps today is the day I should sort through that paper work and tidy those bills.

Or perhaps I should just go out for lunch.

Dear reader, I chose the latter. I hop on the bus to Brixton leaving my behind my dusty juicer and mismatched socks. I figure I can grab a quick lunch and then go back to sorting out my life and becoming a better person. Some things – like an excellent lunch – just can’t wait.

I arrive at Naughty Piglets in Brixton at 12pm. The restaurant is empty and I grab a prime seat by the bar and within a few minutes it quickly fills up. Naughty Piglets is run by husband and wife team Margaux Aubry and Joe Sharrat. I start with ham croquettes and a bowl full of hot pardon peppers liberally sprinkled with sea salt. Margaux bustles around the restaurant making sure everyone is happy. She persuades me to try another glass of rosé and I just can’t bring myself to say no. It would be rude not to. I promise myself I’ll be home soon to tackle that juicer. By the time I’m eating their Sri Lankan spiced quail my to-do list has faded away into insignificance. There’ll be other days off and then I’ll reinvent myself, but today I’m content enjoying the brilliant cooking at Naughty Piglets. I forego dessert (I do have some self-restraint) and head home. I eye-up the ironing and then realise I really must see what Tony has been up to. Next week, I promise myself, next week.

This week's lunch is inspired by Naughty Piglet’s BBQ pork belly dish with sesame and Korean spices. For our lunch box version we’re swapping the pork belly for pancetta for a much quicker cooking time, finished with chilli, coriander and a miso dressing. So, go on, treat yourself, it might not make you a better, more organised person but life’s too short to have colour-coded socks.

What you will need

1 baby gem

50g smoked pancetta cut into lardons

2 tsp. olive oil

½ red chilli

1 tsp. miso paste

1 tsp. white wine vinegar

1 tbsp. lime juice

Small handful coriander leaves

Equipment

Griddle pan, frying pan, knife, bowl

Cost to make per portion: £3.85

Preparation time: 15 minutes

How to make it

Slice the baby gem lettuce into quarters. Heat a griddle pan until nearly smoking hot. Griddle the lettuce for 2 minutes on each side until charred. Remove and allow to cool on a plate. Heat a frying pan with a tsp. of olive oil until hot, fry the pancetta until golden brown and crispy. Remove from the pan and drain on kitchen paper. Thinly slice the chilli. Make the miso dressing by whisking together the miso paste, olive oil, white wine vinegar and lime juice until emulsified. Drizzle the baby gem with the miso dressing and assemble your salad, finish with the coriander leaves.

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