There's nothing quite like sitting down to a roast dinner on a lazy Sunday, but not all of us have the time or energy to spend all afternoon in the kitchen.
With this in mind, I decided to try the brand new Roast Deal Dine In deal from M&S, a very welcome addition to their reliably delicious Dine in for two range.
For £10 for two, M&S shoppers can pick up a roast dinner main and three sides, with mains on offer including boneless butter-basted chicken joint, boneless gammon joint, boneless bacon loin joint, boneless basted beef joint, a whole stuffed chicken or a whole rotisserie chicken.
You're also spoiled for choice when it comes to the side options, which include goose fat roast potatoes, layered classic vegetables, buttery mashed potato, Yorkshire puddings, carrot and swede crush, and gravy.
Surveying the section at my local M&S, I was impressed by the range, but would have liked to have seen some vegetarian mains on offer. Like many people, my partner is a vegetarian, and I would have liked to shared it with him with a nice bottle of red.
I was also surprised to see gravy listed as one of the side options, having long considered this to be more of a condiment than a side. The gravy here did look luxuriously thick, however, and much more substantial than my packet stuff in the cupboard.
I'd headed there with my heart set on the boneless butter-basted chicken joint but found it had already flown off the shelves by midday on a Wednesday. I settled instead therefore on a boneless basted beef joint, which looked temptingly juicy.
I personally find readymade mashed potatoes to be less of a risk than readymade roasties, so chucked some buttery mashed potato into my basket as side number one.
I then grabbed some roast parsnips with butter and parsley, which had a bit of a decadent Christmas Day feel about them, and, naturally, a bag of Beef dripping Yorkshire puddings.
Altogether these items would have added up to £17 without the deal in place, and it was quite satisfying to see the total drop to a much more affordable £10 at the till.
Boneless basted beef joint.
This joint comes with handy instructions on how to cook your beef according to your personal preference. I personally like mine done medium rare, so popped it in for just under the 35 minutes recommended for medium, plus an extra few as I found it to be a little bloodier than expected.
The meat was a little chewier in texture than I'd usually go for, although this could well have been me fiddling about with the cooking times. This was however clearly a high-quality joint with rich, savoury flavour which had me smacking my lips with appreciation.
Buttery mashed potato
This was gorgeously creamy and the ideal light and airy side for a joint of strong meat like beef. All too often, ready-made mash can be a little bland and a bit of a slog, but that wasn't the case here at all.
I simply popped it in the microwave for five minutes until nice and hot, and dolloped a fair mountain of it on my plate. I pride myself on my homemade mash, but have to say this beat some of my better attempts. I could have settled in and eaten a whole bowl of this stuff.
Roast parsnips with butter and parsley
Now, as is sometimes the case when I'm cooking a few dishes at once with my mind in a hundred different places, I did admittedly over-crisp the parsnips slightly, leaving them in for a bit over the recommended 30 minutes.
Luckily, I quite enjoy a slightly charred texture, and all the decadent buttery flavour was still very much there, with a subtle sweetness that really lifted the meal.
Beef dripping Yorkshire Puddings
I do love Yorkshire puddings, but before today had never found a readymade one on par with homemade offerings. With this one, cooked for just four minutes in the oven, I was happily, blissfully surprised.
You could serve me up a plate of these in an upmarket gastropub and I wouldn't grumble. Crisp and golden, with a subtle yet satisfying meatiness, these puddings truly lifted my spirits on a damp Wednesday afternoon. Properly indulgent comfort food.
This meal deal surpassed my expectations and then some, being of very high quality across the board. The Yorkshire puddings were the highlight for me, followed by the cloudlike mash.
For £5 per person, I fount this to be of excellent value, giving the taste and the enormous portion size. As someone with a hearty appetite, I was left defeated at the end, and in need of a nap. Ideal Sunday fare, and I will be returning.
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