The weeknight five

The shot you cook when someone is coming over and the fridge is honest. Bright lemon, soft herbs, no chilli. Rice that sits next to fish without arguing.

The shot that makes leftover rice a side worth putting on a plate. Real garlic, enough parsley, a grind of pepper. Butter note without the fridge.

The late-summer pan. Tomato that has been in the sun, oregano, a little basil. Rice you eat from the pot with a fork.

Pesto logic for a rice pot: basil that survives the steam, garlic, lemon. The grains come out green-flecked and oily in a good way.

A weeknight pan of rice that tastes like it sat next to a pot of beans. Cumin and ancho, a little tomato, oregano that actually smells of Mexico. Tear it in when the water hits a simmer.