This hearty one pot wonder wonder is perfect now that the nights are getting cooler.
This is a recipe that I adapted from one of my old Weight Watchers recipe books from the nineties. Yes, I’ve been on and off diets since (and way before) then. If dieting was a profession, I think it would be my life’s work although I’m not very good at it. Diets and weight watching aside, this recipe is super delicious and no one will guess that it’s a slimming recipe.
There’s no fat for frying, it’s freezer friendly, great for veggie smuggling and is delicious served with a side of green veggies. It would have been lower in fat but I swapped out the original margarine for butter and added some grated cheese on top because let’s face it everything is better with butter and cheese.
Sometimes my trainer Kathy comes round after we train together for a chat/a cuppa/breakfast or sometimes all three. Last time she came over, she sipped tea and I was preparing this to pop in the oven. Kathy deemed that it looked good, smelled good and is good for you so she decided she’d try it at home. She topped the dish with the potatoes and then headed out delegating the cheese sprinkling to her teenage daughter and friends. When she returned and dished up for dinner, she realised they’d used a whole bag of grated cheese. So maybe her dish wasn’t quite as healthy as she’d planned!
We like our sauce thick so I add some tomato paste to the mince but if you like your meat saucy, use just a tablespoon or skip it altogether. However you make this, it’s sure to be delicious!
Do you think everything is better with cheese? Are you good at delgating?
Ingredients
500g potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly
500g lean mince (beef, pork or turkey)
2 carrots, grated coarsely
420ml stock
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
a generous pinch dried herbs
2 tablespoons tomato paste (optional)
1 tablespoon butter, melted
50g cheddar cheese, grated
How to
- Par boil the potatoes in a large pan of boiling water for 3 minutes and then drain.
- Heat a large non-stick pan until very hot and then dry fry the mince, stirring often to break up any lumps.
- Add carrots and 2 tablespoons of stock to the pan and stir. Cook for about 5 minutes until the carrots have softened and then stir in the flour and the soy and Worcestershire sauce.
- Cook for 1 minute. Mix in the remaining stock, herbs and tomato paste, if using. Bring to the boil, turn down to a simmer and cook uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Preheat the oven to 200C. Transfer the mixture to a shallow ovenproof dish, top with potato slices and brush with melted butter. Cook for about 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
- Sprinkle with grated cheese and cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the cheese has melted.
