Place the sausage meat, lap cheong and chives in a bowl, and mix using a wooden spoon until combined and the mixture sticks together.

Drain olives and, one by one, cut in half lengthwise and sandwich together around a small amount of the sausage mixture rolled into a ball. You want the olive to be full of meat, but able to fit back together neatly, so don't overfill. Place olives on a tray as you go, and then refrigerate until ready to crumb.

Season the flour with salt and pepper, and spread on a large plate. Combine breadcrumbs and parsley in a large bowl. In a separate shallow bowl, whisk egg together with the milk.

One at a time, lightly coat a stuffed olive in the flour, dip in the egg mixture, and then in the breadcrumb mixture. Place on a tray and chill for half an hour, to help secure the breadcrumbs.

Half-fill a large saucepan with vegetable oil and heat to 160°C (a cube of bread will turn golden in 30 seconds at this heat.) In batches, fry the stuffed olives for 3-4 minutes until evenly golden brown and the meat filling is cooked. Drain on paper towel and salt generously.

Place stuffed olives on a serving plate or bowl with mustard alongside, for dipping. These are also fantastic served with Italian mixed vegetable pickles—giardiniera—which can be bought from quality grocers or easily homemade using the recipe below:

Giardiniera

Prepare vegetables by slicing one red and one green capsicum into strips, cutting 1/4 head of cauliflower into small florets, slicing two celery stalks into 5 cm batons, slicing a carrot and a lebanese cucumber into 5mm rounds, and cutting a small red onion into 5mm thick rings. Add all vegetables to a heatproof bowl. Place 2 cups white wine vinegar and 2 cups of water in a medium saucepan with 3 juniper berries, 3 whole cloves, 1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar, and 2 1/2 tbsp sea salt and bring to the boil. Pour the hot pickling liquid over the vegetables and allow to cool to room temperature. Serve immediately when cool, or transfer to sterilised jars with the pickling liquid (adding olive oil to fully submerge vegetables if needed). Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.

Recipes adapted from Chef Monty Koludrovic in delicious Magazine, July 2020 Italian Issue