sauces to make even the simplest meal taste amazing

If your time to cook is limited, get into the habit of making a few of these easy sauces over the next few weeks. Keep them in the fridge and then you have way less work to do when it comes to dinner time. Even the simplest plate of chicken and veg tastes more satisfying and happy-making if you a have one of these pots of deliciousness to dollop on top. Plus they are packed with more goodies and non of the processed rubbish of bought stuff.

Here are some of my most used simple sauces and dressings…

Romesco

Aka posh ketchup. This romesco sauce is so versatile and addictive. It has a perfect Spanish balance of vinegar, smoke, sweetness and is packed full of goodness. It can be made in a jiffy using ingredients that I always keep in my store cupboard.

A jar will last in the fridge for a week or two. I love having a jar in the fridge to add to pasta, spoon over fish or chicken; spread on toast and sandwiches or to dip raw veg or bread sticks into. I love it with avocado and eggs on toast too. Everyone I’ve taught this too can’t live without it.

Find the recipe here. Here are some more recipes for inspiration for where to use it:

Romesco toast with goat’s cheese

Roasted cauliflower salad two ways

Storecupboard pizza

Green sauce (my version of a salsa verde)

The lovely thing is that it this so simple but works with all types of meals. It is great with grilled or roast lamb but it is equally at home as a sauce for grilled fish, chicken, steak, roasted vegetables or drizzled on salads. You can eat the leftover sauce on toast and avocado and with eggs. Basically it is a little pot of gorgeousness that will sit in your fridge ready to anoint anything you’re eating with herby freshness. Find the recipe here

Pesto

When I feel we need some more greenery in our diet I reach for pesto. But not the stuff in a jar. I want a hit of fresh, punchy, healthy greens and I’m afraid you won’t get that from the bought stuff. Pesto takes seconds to make and is one of the most useful flavour and health-boosters you’ll master in the kitchen.

It is perfect on sandwiches, on soup, on crostini, stirred through risotto or mixed with ricotta as a topping for roast chicken or with grilled fish. I also use it to stir through steamed or grilled green veg before serving – a sure fire way to help veg-phobes eat their greens. You can thin the pesto out with more oil and a splash of red wine vinegar to use it as a salad dressing with tomatoes and mozzarella in summer.

Find the recipe here, you can use it for the following recipes:

Pea pesto crostini

End of the week veggie stew

Dressings

Never use a sugar-laden shop bought dressing again. Here are the recipes for all the dressings you will ever need. These dressings can be used on salads but are also great on roasted vegetables, noodles, pasta, cous cous or cooked potatoes – kids are much more inclined to eat vegetables if they are coated in some oil and acid.