Bangers and mash done with the right onion gravy. Pork sausages browned hard in the pan so the skins crackle, brown onion caramelised low and slow until the sugars come out and the colour goes deep mahogany, and a Gravox base built up with the pan fond.

The British pub classic only works if each component is done right. The sausages need to start in a cold pan with a splash of oil so the fat renders out gradually rather than splitting the skins; the onions need at least 15 minutes on low heat to caramelise, not just soften; the mash needs enough butter to drink (70g for four large potatoes) and milk warmed before it goes in so the potatoes don't seize.

Gravox is the Australian household shortcut here. Whisked into the pan after the sausages come out, with a splash of water and the deglazed fond, it pulls the whole dish together without the half-day commitment of a real demi-glace.

Pub food, kitchen-table edition. Peas on the side, English mustard on the table. A pint of bitter or a glass of red. Sit-down food made on a weeknight.