Oven Baked Italian-Style Pork Stew With Buttery Sweet Potatoes

Before you begin...

This recipe takes around 5-10 min to prep, so get your casserole dish and all your ingredients ready, then wash your fruit and veg

Note: Make sure your dish is oven-proof and safe to use on the hob. Don't have one? Start cooking in a large, wide-based pan then transfer to an oven-proof dish and cover tightly with foil

Now, let's get started!

Preheat the oven to 220°C/ 200°C (fan)/ gas 7, then boil half a kettle

Heat a large, wide-based hob-safe oven-proof casserole dish with a matching lid with a drizzle of vegetable oil over a high heat

Once hot, add your diced pork shoulder to the dish with 1 tsp [1 1/2 tsp] [2 tsp] flour and a pinch of salt and pepper and cook for 4-5 min or until browned all over

Meanwhile, top, tail and dice your carrot[s] roughly

Peel and slice your brown onion[s] into thin wedges

Peel and roughly chop your garlic

Chop your potatoes in half

Add the sliced onion, diced carrot and chopped garlic to the dish with your chilli flakes (can't handle the heat? Go easy!) and dried oregano and cook for 1 min or until fragrant

Once fragrant, add your chopped tomatoes and chicken stock mix with 350ml [450ml] [600ml] boiled water, a pinch of salt and pepper and a pinch of sugar

Stir it all together, bring to the boil, then cover and put the dish in the oven for an initial 30 min

Add the chopped potatoes to a large piece of tin foil (or two!) with a large splash of boiled water

Scrunch the foil around the potatoes to form a tightly sealed parcel and add to a baking tray

Put the tray in the oven for 55-60 min or until the potatoes are tender

After the stew has had 30 min, remove the lid and cook uncovered for a final 25-30 min or until the sauce has thickened and the pork is cooked through (no pink meat!)

When everything is nearly ready, trim your green beans

Add the trimmed green beans to the other side of the baking tray with the potatoes

Add a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper and return to the oven for 5-6 min or until the green beans are tender with a bite

Once cooked, remove the dish from the oven, add your balsamic sundried tomato paste and leave to stand for 5 min for the flavours to develop – this is your Italian-style pork stew

Transfer the cooked potatoes to a heatproof bowl with a knob of butter and a pinch of salt and pepper, then crush lightly with a fork – these are your buttery crushed potatoes