I am more of a slow cook than a fast one and meals in minutes rarely work for me. If I am that short of time,an omelette or pesto with spaghetti would be dishes I could resort to and never want 15 minutes of frenzied activity when I am already pushed for time. Now I have found a meal that is delicious, easy to make and pretty much ‘one pot’. It comes from Donal Skehan’s book, Meals in Minutes. I like his style of cooking as well as his philosophy. By ‘minutes’ he means minutes to prepare so that his recipes also include stews that take little time to prepare but all day to cook slowly.

2tbsp olive oil
500g beef sirloin, cut into thin strips
1 tbsp plain flour
20g butter
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 small leek, sliced
200g button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
Salt and freshly grated black pepper
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
175ml white wine
Zest of 1 lemon, plus a squeeze of lemon juice
400g fresh egg tagliatelle
100ml double cream
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp smoked paprika
Small handful parsley, chopped

Mix the cream, lemon zest, mustard, paprika with a splash of water and have ready for use.

Put the oil into a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Dust the steak in seasoned flour and then fry in batches until browned all over. Remove with a slotted spoon and put to one side.
Add the butter to the pan and fry the onion and leek for five minutes. Turn up the heat and add the mushrooms. Cook until they are golden. Then add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds more.

Cook the pasta for two minutes in a large pan of boiling salted water, then drain.

Meanwhile, return the meat to the frying pan and pour in the wine. Let it bubble for a minute and then stir in the cream mixture and add the tagliatelle.

Add the lemon juice, toss well and serve with the parsley sprinkled on top.