Dips are never just accompaniments at our restaurant, the Barbary in central London, but a way of building flavour from the outset. They set the tone for the meal, so it’s important not only to have a variety of spice and seasoning, but also contrast in colour and texture, not least to get the palate excited straight away. These early-summer dips, inspired by the former Barbary Coast (Morocco, Algeria, Libya and Tunisia), are all best served with grilled flatbread, seeded crackers and fresh vegetables. The kaha kaha and machluta dips are both somewhere between a dip and a salad, and go especially well with grilled chicken, while the fava is good with grilled fish. Courgette machluta (pictured top) A fresh, seasonal take on machluta, a traditional pulse soup, in which charred courgette and onion are folded into a cooling yoghurt flavoured with confit garlic and warm spices. It is best made ahead, so the flavours have time to settle and deepen. To make your own confit garlic, simply put a few cloves of peeled garlic …