A Jar of Assorted Stock Cubes

I can’t emphasize enough how important stock cubes are to create base flavours; even the most basic ones from the supermarket impart a tiny powerhouse of flavour to underpin everything else. I use them in soups, curries, risottos, sometimes even in mac and cheese. There’s nothing shameful about using a stock cube instead of fresh stock, despite the fashion for boiling up vats of bones. It’s a pinch of culinary magic – saline, sweet and gorgeously golden – so use with abandon. Nobody’s going to judge you here.