Dinner ideas
5 dinners that start with potatoes
Potatoes can start a dinner in five directions: roasted with beans, folded into eggs, simmered into soup, crisped for a bowl or dressed as a warm salad.
Guides
Comparisons, buying guides and the answers to "which one is actually better".
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Cooking technique
Why kale needs more than a quick stir in the pan
Kale needs a short steam or braise before a dry finish. Give the ribs a head start, add a splash of water and do not judge tenderness by colour alone.
Storage and keeping
How to keep cauliflower from going grey
Cauliflower turns grey when exposed tissue dries or oxidises. Keep the head cold and dry, cover cut surfaces and cook before the spots spread.
Buying guides
How to choose beetroot that is sweet, not woody
Look for firm beetroot with unbroken skin and a dense feel. Small or medium roots are easier to cook evenly, while very large roots may have a coarser centre.
Buying guides
How to choose mushrooms that are dry and firm
Good mushrooms feel firm, look dry and smell clean. Check the cap, stem and underside, then choose the pack with the least trapped moisture.
Buying guides
How to choose a cucumber that is crisp inside
A crisp cucumber feels firm from end to end, has even dark green skin and feels heavy for its size. Reject soft tips, yellowing and sunken wet patches.
Storage and keeping
How to keep spinach fresh for longer
Spinach needs cold storage but hates a wet sealed pocket. Remove damaged leaves, use a dry lining and keep fruit such as apples and tomatoes away.
Buying guides
Passata vs crushed tomatoes: which gives the smoother sauce?
For the smoothest sauce with the least work, choose passata. Choose crushed tomatoes when you want a sauce that can reduce further and still taste full.
Cooking technique
How to press tofu without a tofu press
You can press tofu with a tea towel, plate and heavy pan. The aim is a drier surface, not a perfectly flat block or a long kitchen project.
Dinner ideas
5 dinners for a bag of carrots
Roast carrots with beans, blend them into lentil soup, fry them with rice, fold them through pasta or build a spiced traybake around them.
Buying guides
How to choose peas for soup, salad or pasta
Frozen garden peas are my everyday choice for pasta, petits pois suit a smooth soup and fresh peas earn their place in a raw or barely cooked salad.
Buying guides
How to choose an aubergine that is young enough to cook well
A young aubergine feels dense, has taut skin and a green cap that has not dried out. These checks matter more than choosing the darkest colour.