One-pot recipes for washing up haters

If you’re into washing up, these recipes might not be for you, warns Hannah Twiggs. Spend less time at the sink and cook up three one-pot dishes in no time

This month’s recipes not only save you money, they also save you time at the sink (Sorted)

Who likes washing up? Not I, which is why I’m excited about this month’s one-pot recipes from our Budget Bites column.

We’ve teamed up with Sorted Food to bring you easy, affordable, quick and (most importantly) tasty recipes once a month. With a spiced lamb meatball and couscous bake, one-pot chorizo and broccoli fried rice and lamb spaghetti all’assassina, spend less time at the sink and less money in the shops. Double whammy.

We’ve also provided a handy shopping list for the ingredients (though hopefully most of it will be knocking about already), which are used across all recipes to ensure minimal food waste. You just need to decide where to shop, whether it’s locally or online.

Shopping list

• 500g lamb mince
• 225g chorizo
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 red onion
• 1 broccoli (small)
• 200g cherry tomatoes
• 1 lemon
• 30g fresh parsley
• 30g fresh basil
• 200g Greek yoghurt
• 4 tbsp tomato purée/tomato paste
• Olive oil
• Vegetable oil
• Chilli flakes
• 200g dried pasta (spaghetti)
• 150g couscous
• 250g microwave brown rice

Spiced lamb meatball and couscous bake

This also works really well with beef mince if you can’t find lamb (Sorted)

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

250g lamb mince

3 tbsp olive oil

1 red onion

3 cloves garlic

2 tbsp tomato purée/tomato paste

150g couscous

100g Greek yoghurt

15g fresh parsley

Method:

1. Get the kettle on: Fill a kettle with water and put it on to boil - this will be for the couscous later.

2. Preheat the pan: Add 3 tbsp of olive oil to a large saucepan and place it over a medium heat.

3. Make the meatballs: Roll 250g of lamb mince into 8-10 small even-sized balls with moistened hands straight into the oil. Remember to wash your hands after handling raw meat.

4. Fry: Fry the balls for 5-6 minutes, turning occasionally, until golden all over. Get on with the rest of the dish in the next steps while you wait.

5. Prep the onion and garlic: Halve, peel, and finely dice 1 red onion, then peel and mince 3 cloves of garlic.

6. Transfer: Once the meatballs are golden all over, transfer them onto a plate or the lid of a saucepan - we will finish cooking them later.

7. Add the onion and garlic: Add the onion and garlic to the pan the meatballs were fried in, along with a pinch of salt. Fry for 5-6 minutes, until softened slightly.

8. Add the tomato paste: Add 2 tbsp of tomato paste to the pan and fry for a further 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until darkened slightly.

9. Add the meatballs and couscous: Add 150g of couscous to the pan along with the meatballs from earlier.

10. Add the water: Add 400ml of boiling water from the kettle along with a generous pinch of salt.

11. Boil: Bring everything to a boil, simmer for 1 minute, give everything a quick stir, then take the pan off the heat.

12. Cover and wash up: Cover with a lid and allow to stand for a further 6-8 minutes off the heat, until the couscous has softened and absorbed all the liquid. Crack on with a bit of washing up while you wait.

13. Serve: Once the couscous is ready, fluff the grains with a fork and divide between plates. Finish with dollops from 100g of yoghurt and the leaves from 15g of parsley.

One-pot chorizo and broccoli fried rice

We use brown rice in this recipe to keep things light, but feel free to use any pre-cooked grain (Sorted)

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1 broccoli (small)

225g chorizo

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 cloves garlic

250g microwave brown rice

15g fresh parsley

1 lemon

100g Greek yoghurt

Method:

1. Prep it up: Cut small, bite-sized florets from 1 head of broccoli. We don’t need the stalk for this recipe, but it works well in soups. Cut 225g of chorizo into rough 1cm cubes.

2. Start frying: Add 2 tbsp of oil to a large frying pan along with the broccoli and chorizo. Place the pan over a medium heat.

3. Fry: Allow some fat to render from the chorizo, then whack the heat up to medium-high. Fry for 6-8 minutes, tossing occasionally until the broccoli is soft but still has a slight bite. Get on with the rest of the dish in the next steps while you wait.

4. Prep the garlic: Peel and mince 2 cloves of garlic.

5. Add the garlic: Once the broccoli is ready, add the garlic and fry everything for a further minute, tossing regularly until fragrant.

6. Add the rice: Crumble in 250g of cooked brown rice and fry for a further 5-6 minutes, tossing and breaking the rice up occasionally, until piping hot. Get on with the rest of the dish in the next steps while you wait.

7. Chop the parsley: Finely chop 15g of parsley, then crack on with a bit of washing up.

8. Add the lemon: Once the rice is piping hot, take the pan off the heat. Finely grate in the zest from 1 lemon, squeeze in its juice, and add the parsley. Toss to combine, then season to taste with salt.

9. Serve: Divide the fried rice between plates and spoon over 100g of yoghurt. Tuck in!

Lamb spaghetti all’assassina

The method for this Sicilian classic might seem a little… different. But trust us, you will be rewarded with a banging meal! (Sorted)

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

250g lamb mince

2 tbsp tomato purée/tomato paste

200g cherry tomatoes

1 clove garlic

1 tsp chilli flakes

200g dried pasta (spaghetti)

30g fresh basil

Method:

1. Get the lamb on: Add 2 tbsp of oil to a large frying pan, place it over a medium-high heat, and add 250g of lamb mince and 2 tbsp of tomato paste.

2. Fry: Fry for 6-8 minutes, tossing and breaking up the meat occasionally, until browned and crisp in places. Get on with the rest of the dish in the next steps while you wait.

3. Assemble the tomato broth: Add 200g of tomatoes to a large measuring jug along with 1 peeled clove of garlic, then tip in 500ml of water.

4. Blend it up: Add 1 tsp of chilli flakes, a generous pinch of salt, and then blitz until smooth with a hand blender. We will use this sauce to cook the pasta in the next steps.

5. Add the pasta: Once the lamb is ready, add 200g of spaghetti to the pan. You might need to snap it in half to fit it all in… Sorry Italy!

6. Add the broth: Add ¾ of the tomato broth, bring everything up to a boil and lower the heat to medium.

7. Simmer down: Simmer the pasta in the broth, moving and flipping it occasionally for 12-15 minutes, until soft but still with a slight bite and caramelised in places. The liquid should reduce to a thick sauce that coats it.

8. Add the rest of the broth: Once the pasta is ready, add the remaining tomato sauce and continue to cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Move and flip the pasta occasionally until the sauce has reduced again and some more pasta has started to caramelise.

9. Add the basil: Once the pasta is ready, take the pan off the heat. Season to taste with salt and fold through the leaves from 20g of the basil - we will use the rest for garnish in the next step.

10. Serve: Divide the pasta between plates and top with leaves from the remaining 10g of basil. Tuck in!

In response to the rising cost of living, we have teamed up with Sorted Food to bring you easy, affordable, quick and (most importantly) tasty recipes once a month. Find out more about Sorted and their nifty meal-planning app Sidekick at sortedfood.com/sidekick.