Duck the cost

Prime cuts of meat such as fillet steak and rack of lamb can be a fabulous treat, but I'm coming round to the view that cheaper cuts are not only easier on the wallet but are actually much tastier.

Last night slow roasted duck legs proved a wonderful alternative to pricy duck breast. Today a long-simmered beef stew was a great alternative to an expensive roast.

I guess it's the expense of some foodstuffs that gives them their appeal - we're apt to think they must be good if we have to pay heavily. But when the aroma of a hearty casserole is wafting through the kitchen all afternoon, who wouldn't choose that dish ahead of something far fancier?