As a young man, I spent 6 months travelling around India and Nepal with a mate. I have many great memories and experiences from that trip but one recently sprang to mind whilst preparing a Keralan curry dish. We spent some time in Southern Kerala where we would help the local fisherman land their huge nets directly onto the beach.

One evening we were invited to dinner with one of the fishermen and his family. They lived in a house above the beach on the cliff edge. The fisherman's wife prepared a fish curry for us, using some of the fresh fish we had just help land; one of the best meals I have ever eaten. We spent the evening chatting and relaxing on the cliff top looking out to sea enjoying the food and company.

The fisherman offered us a bed for the night, but it appeared to us the mother-in-law was to be re-homed to make her room available to us, so we politely declined and slept outside of the house just with our bivvy bags under the stars!

Although I can't promise you my Keralan curries are the same recipe as the one we enjoyed that evening, I can certainly tell you my love for this dish was born on that day.