Pea and ham fritters

Serves 4-6

Serve pea and ham fritters as snacks with drinks, or as a starter (Jason Lowe)

I remember fish and chip shops serving pea fritters along with other old-fashioned classics like faggots, but sadly that's a thing of the past now.

You can serve these as snacks with drinks, or as a starter. You can use good-quality shop-bought ham for this, or if you have cooked a ham yourself it's a great dish to utilise the off-cuts. You can serve these as they are or with a minted yogurt dip, or mix some chopped cooked peas with mayonnaise and mint, or another herb.

150g podded weight of peas, fresh or frozen, cooked
150g cooked ham, chopped into small pieces
3 spring onions, trimmed, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable or corn oil for frying
3-4tbsp self-raising flour
About 150ml water to mix

Cut the peas by hand or by giving them a quick whizz in a food processor. Mix the peas, ham and spring onions together and season, then stir in the flour and enough water to make a thick, batter-like mix.

Preheat about 8cm of oil to 160-180C in a large thick-bottomed saucepan or an electric deep-fat fryer. Drop a teaspoonful of the mix in (you can use whatever size spoon you wish, depending if it's a snack or starter) and cook for 20-30 seconds until lightly coloured; test it for seasoning.

Repeat with the rest of the mixture, turning them carefully in the oil with a slotted spoon as they are cooking and draining on some kitchen paper.