Make your food shopping go further with these recipes

Earlier this year, The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) revealed a list of the UK’s most thrown away ingredients. We selected six ingredients and asked Gousto’s senior recipe developer Jordan Moore to devise a recipe for each of the following:

UK’s 6 most thrown away ingredients are:

- Eggs

- Potatoes

- Cheese

- Apples

- Milk

- Bread

From a lacklustre loaf to an over ripe apple in the fruit bowl, here’s how you can repurpose your lockdown shopping to make more meals...

Speedy Sausage & Egg Hash

Sweet mustard and ketchup gives this easy weeknight dish tons of flavour, and it’s a great way to use up leftover eggs too, just fry and add to the potatoes, sliced leek and Cumberland sausages, the perfect breakfast for dinner meal.

Ingredients:

1 Leek

2 British Free-Range Eggs

10g Chives

4 Cumberland Sausages

400g Waxy Potatoes

1 Mustard Ketchup Pot (20g)

Method:

Boil a kettle and cut the waxy potatoes (skins on) into very small chunks. Add the potatoes to a pot of boiled water with a pinch of salt, bring to the boil over a high heat and cook for 10-15 min or until fork-tender

While the potatoes are cooking, wash the leek carefully to remove any grit from between the leaves, then top, tail and slice finely

Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick with a matching lid) with a large knob of butter over a low heat

Once melted, add the sliced leek and a generous pinch of salt and cook for 5-6 min or until they're starting to soften

While the leeks are softening, remove the sausage meat from their skins and discard the skins

Once the leek has softened, increase the heat to medium and add the sausage meat, breaking it up into small pieces with a wooden spoon as you go. Cook for 4 min or until the sausage meat is brown and crispy

Once the potatoes are done, add them to the pan with a pinch of salt and cook for 5-7 min or until brown and crispy

Meanwhile, chop the chives finely

Once the potatoes are browned, stir the chopped chives (save some for garnish) into the pan, then serve up onto plates (keep the pan for the next step!) – this is your sausage & leek hash

Return the pan to a medium-low heat with a drizzle of vegetable oil, crack the eggs into the pan and cover with a lid and cook for 2 min or until done to your liking

Serve the fried eggs over the sausage & leek hash with the mustard ketchup to the side. Garnish with the reserved chopped chives. Enjoy!

Jordan says: “If you like your eggs ‘sunny side up’ but don’t want to risk undercooking them, simply turn the heat on your hob down to low, carefully add a splash of water to the pan and cover tightly with a lid.

“The steam from the water will cook the top of the egg, without it needing to be flipped over. “

Ultimate Mac & Cheese

Our gooey Mac & Cheese is a great way to use up a selection of leftover cheeses and can be made ahead and frozen for convenience. Adapt the recipe to whatever cheese you have leftover, from mature cheddar to red Leicester or for a more complex flavour use blue cheese, gouda or gruyere.

Ingredients (Serves 2, double for 4):

200g Conchiglie pasta

1 Garlic Clove

2 Tbsp Wholegrain Mustard

1 Mozzarella Ball (125g)

135g British Dry Cured Smoked Streaky Bacon

40g Cheddar Cheese

40g Italian Hard Cheese

30g Panko Breadcrumbs

50g Baby Leaf Salad

125g Baby Plum Tomatoes

15ml Balsamic Vinegar

Method:

Preheat the oven to 240°C/ 220°C (fan)/ 475°F/ Gas 9, and boil a kettle.

Add the conchiglie to a pot of boiled water with a large pinch of salt and bring to the boil over a high heat. Cook the conchiglie for 8-10 min or until cooked with a slight bite

Once done, drain the conchiglie, reserving 300ml of the starchy pasta water

Meanwhile, cut the streaky bacon into small, bite-size pieces. Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) over a high heat and once hot, add the chopped bacon Cook for 3-4 min or until crisped, then transfer to kitchen paper and set aside (keep the pan!)

Meanwhile, peel the garlic and grate the Italian hard cheese and the cheddar and drain, pat dry and rip the mozzarella into small, bite-sized pieces.

Return the pan to a medium heat and once hot, add 30g butter. Once melted, add 30g flour and stir with a wooden spoon for 1-2 min or until a sandy paste forms - this is your roux

Gradually whisk 350ml milk into the roux and cook for 5 min or until a smooth, thick sauce remains - this is your béchamel sauce

Meanwhile, grate the garlic into the béchamel sauce and season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Once thickened, add the Italian hard cheese, cheddar, wholegrain mustard, crispy bacon and drained conchiglie with a few splashes of starchy pasta water to loosen the mixture

Transfer the cheesy pasta to an oven-proof dish, then top with the ripped mozzarella, panko breadcrumbs and the remaining chopped bacon, drizzle with olive oil and put the dish in the oven for 20-25 min or until it's golden. Enjoy!

Jordan says: “Try adding leftover cheese and Parmesan rinds to bean soups or pasta sauces to enrich their taste.”

Recipes courtesy of Gousto - gousto.co.uk

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