Mashed potato will taste so much better with very unusual 90p ingredient

Former The Great British Bake Off star Briony May Williams has named an unusual ingredient that she believes can elevate the taste of many dishes, including mashed potato.Bought for as little as 90p in some supermarkets, the chef said she's been adding Greek yoghurt to meals like cottage pie "as a little protein boost".

While the food is usually enjoyed with the likes of granola or fresh fruit, Briony says putting a couple of tablespoons into mash can make it "next-level delicious".

"You can also add a little knob of butter if you want, but you can leave it out," she shared.

"Sometimes if you add milk to your mash it gives that creaminess. Greek yoghurt does that too, but it also adds a slight tanginess, so it kind of elevates the flavour a little and gives you this really lovely combination."

Asked whether it tastes better than traditional mash, she added: "I think it has a slightly better taste. It's slightly more complex - obviously mash normally just tastes like mash.

"I still put a bit of butter in there because, come on, we can't deprive ourselves of everything, but with the Greek yoghurt, the consistency is lovely and smooth - really silky - and then you've got that slightly... it's lovely."

Briony says one of the reasons she began adding Greek yoghurt to her meals is to increase her protein intake.

"For me as a menopausal woman, you know, I need to eat more protein. [Also] as you get older, the muscle mass and all that stuff declines.

"So, trying to do little things that will boost protein, without using protein powders or protein bars, you can have it in a cottage pie. It just gives you those extra few grams that might just lift and elevate you."

Having recently incorporated it into a cottage pie, she revealed her husband - her harshest critic - gave it his approval.

"Me and my husband had a tea the other night, and it was so good. I felt so full afterwards even though I only had a small portion, because protein fills you up quicker.

"It's a nice, healthy hit of protein. I just think little things like that can really make a difference," she added.

Briony's food recommendation comes ahead of the release of her debut cookbook, The Retro Recipe Society, which features 50 dishes inspired by her passion for retro cuisine and timeless classics.

The book includes starters such as waldorf salad and carrot, coconut & coriander soup, mains like toad-in-the-hole and chicken caesar orzotto, and desserts including sticky toffee pudding, mini strawberry cheesecake pavlovas, and jam roly-poly.

The chef says much of her inspiration comes from her extensive collection of vintage cookbooks.

"I started looking through them and discovering all these amazing recipes," she shared.

"And I realised that when you start talking to people about old recipes - ones their parents or grandparents used to cook - their faces just light up. People really love the nostalgia and love reminiscing about them.

"So I thought, this would be wonderful, to collate some of these recipes in one book, while also including a few modern twists. I call them the remixes."

The Retro Recipe Society by Briony May Williams (Found, £24.99) will be available online via Amazon, TikTok Shop, Found.US, and all major e-book retailers (£10.99) on 20th October.