I am a huge fan of meatballs. They’re an easy and cheap way of making meat stretch a long way and they are quick to cook which means they are perfect for a midweek meal.

I’ve been looking for ways of using minced beef that wasn’t just your usual ragu, or meatballs with tomato sauce so when I saw this recipe, I thought I’d give it a try.

This is on the table in half an hour and is a very versatile dish, so would work well with potatoes, pasta or rice.

Recipe from BBC Good Food.

Serves 4

• Cals per portion: 425
• Carbs per portion: 10g

• 500g beef mince
• drizzle of oil
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 200g pack small button mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tbsp sweet paprika
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 1 beef stock cube, made up to 300ml stock
• 150ml pot soured cream
• small pack parsley, chopped
• rice, mashed potato or tagliatelle, to serve

1. Season the beef and shape into walnut-sized meatballs. Heat the oil in a pan and cook the meatballs until brown on all sides. Scoop out of the pan and set aside. Add the onion to the pan and cook for a few mins to soften. Add the garlic and mushrooms, and fry for a few mins until the mushrooms soften and start to brown a little. Stir in the tomato purée, paprika and flour for 1 min, then add the stock, bit by bit, to make a smooth sauce. Return the meatballs to the pan, cover and simmer gently for 15 mins or until the meatballs are cooked through.
2. Stir in the soured cream and most of the parsley, and season to taste. Serve scattered with the remaining parsley, with rice, mashed potato or tagliatelle.