RECIPE

It’s impossible to imagine eating a pint-of-prawns, or a crab sandwich without pink sauce. Classic cooks will call it Sauce Marie-Rose, and make the mayo from scratch and tit around with the seasonings. Either way, if it’s cold cooked shellfish this sauce is the one to have.

You need a big squeeze or a spoonful of mayonnaise – buy the full-fat version for the best flavour – make the mayo if you must. Add to that a much smaller squeeze of Salad Cream (about 1:4). This is important, it adds a little vinegar-sharpness to the finished sauce. If you don’t want it, you’ll need a few tiny splashes of vinegar or maybe a squeeze of lemon – some people favour Worcestershire sauce and a few drops ofTabasco. Add a half-shot of brandy if you like. Finally, you finish the sauce by stirring in a little slap of ketchup. Just enough to get it pink.

This really is a brilliant little sauce, easy to make and as unpretentious as a prawn cocktail.