Kim asked me the question ‘how do you make chilli oil?’ (I’ll bet you’d forgotten, hadn’t you Kim?) The answer is that it’s about the easiest thing to do. Just shove a whole bunch of chillis into a bottle, fill the bottle with good oil and put a top on it. Leave it for at least six weeks to steep then start to use. I am not at all ‘precious’ about it – I don’t sterilize bottles or wash chillis. In fact, I often top up the bottle when it’s about half empty!

These are bought bird eyes. I’d much rather they were my own but mine are too precious (only a handful left now) and too fat to go into the bottle. I do use really good oil though and this is Good Oil – made from hemp seed not from olives. It’s really good stuff!

You can just as easily make it with dried chillis or even chilli flakes but I prefer the flavour of fresh. Sometimes, if I have a glut, I’ll even just shove fresh ones into an already opened bottle of oil.

Other things to try – cardamom, garlic, herbs or other spices – all yummy and all well worth a go.

In short – experiment! It’s easy and you’re highly unlikely to harm anyone unless you do something really daft.

Use it on pizza, in salad dressings, to make roast potatoes, whatever takes your fancy. I can recommend Good Oil for roasties and infused with chilli it’s just about heaven.

Once again, I find myself thinking about food – this diet is really getting to me now. Still, I think I will have got down a whole stone by Christmas and that can’t be bad. In truth, even though I seem to be obsessing about food, I’m actually not having that tough a time – David even reckons we’ve been eating better than ever since I’ve been doing it.

So Kim – any more questions left, then fire away but if not……

Go on – give it a try – you know you want to!

I have done a similar shot before, way back in August 2003.....not sure which I prefer. DM has also shot one of the very chillis that have ended up in here!

Weirdly light through bottles was last year's thing too.