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Embrace energy-efficient cooking with these money-saving recipes recipes

CAROLINA BRICENO, BARNEY DESMAZERY and SAMUEL GOLDSMITH

Big-batch lamb stew

Diced stewing lamb is fine for this recipe, but for the best texture, use diced boned lamb shoulder or neck fillet – ask your butcher to do this.

SERVES 8 PREP 15 mins

COOK 4 hrs EASY ❄

1.5kg diced lamb shoulder

50g plain flour

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 onions, roughly chopped

6 large carrots, halved lengthways and thickly sliced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tbsp tomato purée

1.2 litres lamb or chicken stock

2 bay leaves large rosemary sprig or a pinch of dried rosemary

1 Put the lamb and flour in a bowl, season and toss to coat. Heat the oil in a large frying pan or casserole over a medium heat, then fry in batches for 5-8 mins until browned all over. Tip the meat into the slow cooker. Add the onions and carrots and cook for 5-8 mins until starting to colour, then stir in the garlic and cook for 1 min more. Scatter in any leftover flour and stir for 1 min. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for a few minutes more.

2 Pour the stock over veg, stir and bring to the boil. Pour the mix over the lamb. Nestle in the bay and rosemary, season and cook on high for 3-4 hrs, medium for 5-6 hrs, or low for 7 hrs, stirring occasionally until the lamb is tender. Once cool, it can be frozen for three months. Defrost in the fridge fully and reheat in a pan until piping hot

GOOD TO KNOW 1 of 5-a-day

PER SERVING 554 kcals • fat 36g • saturates 15g • carbs 13g • sugars 7g • fibre 3g • protein 43g • salt 0.4g

Budget Tip

Helping You To Cook Smart

Rising food and energy costs mean that many of us are having to think carefully about getting the most from our budgets. To help with this challenge, BBC Good Food has developed Cook Smart, a supportive campaign bringing together knowledge and ideas to help everyone eat well on a budget. Cook Smart also explores the best energy-efficient cooking methods such as hob cooking and microwaving, as well as using slow cookers, multi cookers and pressure cookers.

Elevate this simple stew with baked dumplings, or turn it into a hotpot by topping with finely sliced potato and baking for up to 45 mins until hot and the potato is tender and golden.

Air-fryer steak

Use your air fryer to cook a steak and you won’t look back. Serve it with your favourite sauce, chips and a seasonal green salad or roasted veg on the side.

SERVES 2 PREP 2 mins plus resting COOK 12-15 mins EASY

2 rib-eye steaks (about 260g each and 3cm thick)

1 tsp vegetable or sunflower oil

1 Pat the steaks dry using kitchen paper or a clean cloth. Brush over the oil, then season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

2 Heat the air fryer for 2 mins at 200C. Put the steaks in the basket and cook for 6 mins, then turn and cook for a further 2 mins. At this point, the steak should be rare to medium-rare. Cook for a further 2 mins for medium steaks, or 4 mins for well done.

3 Remove the steaks to a plate and rest for 3-4 mins. This is a perfect opportunity to make a sauce, if you like (see tip, right).

Budget Tip

To make a quick and easy sauce, mix a spoonful of Dijon mustard with a few spoonfuls of mayonnaise.

For more simple sauce recipes to complement your steak, visit bbcgoodfoodme. com.

Microwave mug cake

Flavoured with almonds, nut butter and cacao, this is a quick and simple way to satisfy your cake cravings – and you don’t even need to turn on the oven .

MAKES 1 PREP 2 mins

COOK 2 mins EASY V

1 tbsp salted butter, plus extra for the mug

1 tbsp peanut butter

30ml almond or coconut milk

1 egg

45g ground almonds

2 tsp cacao powder

2 tbsp xylitol

1 Butter the largest mug you have (to stop it overflowing in the microwave). Put the butter, peanut butter and milk in the mug, and warm in the microwave for about 10 seconds. Stir to combine.

2 Crack in the egg and stir. Tip in the ground almonds, cacao and xylitol, and mix until combined.

3 Put the mug in the middle of the microwave and cook on a high temp (for a 750W microwave) for three 30-second intervals. The cake will look a bit gooey when it comes out, but let stand for 2 mins and it will firm up.

Budget Tip

Mix up the flavours by topping your cake with storecupboard ingredients such as nut butter and desiccated coconut, or serve with a little Greek yogurt or vanilla ice cream, if you have it.