Meals for one: the Sunday Roast
A traditional Sunday roast is something that many of us will have made or eaten, but when we’re just cooking for ourselves it can seem extravagant. How can you make a Sunday roast for one without wasting food and energy?
Cooking a roast for one needn’t be a lot of effort. With just a few changes, popular recipes can be reimagined so they’re easy and worthwhile to make when you’re only cooking for one.
Roast Beef with a Twist
It’s the most traditional of all Sunday roasts, and one of the most beloved British meals. However a whole joint of beef, together with roast potatoes, vegetables and Yorkshire puddings, is enough food to feed a whole family. There are a few things you can do to tweak this classic dish so it’s good for one.
How to do it:
- Buy from a butcher – go to the butcher and ask them to cut you a portion of beef that will suit one person. They’ll give you a good cut, and can give you advice on how long to cook the meat for.
- Save some for lunch – if you want to roast a larger joint, use the rest for sandwiches, casseroles, and fajitas during the week.
- Switch to steak – why not treat yourself and buy a nice piece of steak to eat instead of beef? It doesn’t take long to fry or grill, and everything else can roast together in the oven.
- Buy frozen Yorkshire puddings – for some people this might be roast-sacrilege, but there are amazing Yorkshire puddings available in the frozen section of your supermarket, which are inexpensive and will save you loads of time. Best of all, you only need to use one at a time, and can put the rest back in the freezer to use at a later date.
- Roast everything together – put a small amount of parboiled potatoes and chopped vegetables in a roasting dish, place your meat in the centre, and roast together until cooked. You could even add frozen peas and stock to the pan for the last ten minutes to add more vegetables and flavour.
Contemporary Chicken
Roast chicken is another firm favourite, and it’s very easy to adapt to make a Sunday roast for one.
How to do it:
- Get the right cut – go for a chicken breast instead of a whole bird, or legs and wings if you prefer them.
- Buy a pre-cooked chicken – you can pick up a hot roast chicken at many local supermarkets, as well as roasted chicken pieces to reheat.
- Use your leftovers – as with beef, if you buy a large portion of chicken then just use the rest in other recipes. Chicken is great to add to pasta, salad or wraps.
- Go for different flavours – chicken is the perfect meat to try more exotic flavours with for a contemporary Sunday roast for one. Try roasting a chicken breast with asparagus and baby plum tomatoes, or roasting chicken wings with new potatoes, courgette and red onion. Our delicious recipe for Pesto Chicken with Petits Potatoes is great for a tasty Sunday roast with a twist.
Other Roast ideas
Lemony Pork Meatballs, Tenderstem & Roasted Pumpkin
Pork is another Sunday roast favourite, and there are ways you can adapt it to use in a Sunday meal for one.
How to do it:
- Try roasting pork sausages with sweet potatoes and red onions and serving with a Yorkshire pudding, or roasting pork tenderloin with garlic, rosemary and new potatoes.
- Another great pork recipe that makes a good Sunday roast is our one pan Lemony Pork Meatballs, Tenderstem & Roasted Pumpkin feast – just cut the recipe down so the portion size suits one.
- If you’re a fan of lamb, then try frying lamb steak and boiled potatoes together in a pan and serving with peas and mint jelly.
- Substitute a fillet of fish for your meat, roast squash or veggie sausages instead of meat, or use crusty bread instead of potatoes.
What’s your favourite Sunday roast recipe?
Rachel - Silversurfers Assistant Editor
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