A Croydon chef who used to cook for Stormzy has revealed how to whip up tasty family meals - for just £1.

Lorri Quaye, 29, rustled up the recipes after she was left unable to work as a restaurateur at the beginning of the pandemic.

The chef - who cooked for Stormzy - started sharing low cost meals on TikTok to help others.

But when people saw her £5 classics they asked her to whittle down the bargain recipes to just a quid.

And the high-end looking dishes - like beetroot lemon spaghetti and tomato tortellini - look good enough to eat in a restaurant.

Lorri, who buys the ingredients from budget lines in Lidl, Aldi and Tesco, says the key to keeping the cost down is to buy vegetables individually in order to curb waste.

She's shared her budget recipes on social media and has been heaped with praise from those financially struggling as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Now she's put her £1 per portion recipes into an e-book 'Pound Plate', which she fittingly sells for £1.

Lorri said: "The reason I started was to give people different and practical food.

Your Local Guardian:

"With everything that’s been going on I thought it was fitting to create affordable meals.

"Everyone seemed to be getting into new hobbies during the start of lockdown and food is something I'm just passionate about.

"I've always loved to cook and grew up in a house with women always cooking all the time.

"With my recipes not only are they value for money, but you get in a lot of your five-a-day.

"Some of them don't even come up to the full £1 so if you wanted to pop a carrot in, pop one in. They are vegetarian dishes and 90 per cent vegan.

"I've had people get in touch telling me that they've lost their job or they are struggling financially and they've really found my recipes helpful.

"I also wanted to address the issue we have globally about reducing our plastic intake where possible.

"For these recipes you don't need to buy a whole bag of onions, only to use half and sling them away.

"Most supermarkets sell vegetables singularly. This cuts down on waste, cost and plastic. It's a winner really.

"They are just full of joy."

To buy a copy of Chef Lorri's £1 recipe book visit; https://www.eggbrunchclub.com/

RECIPES

1) Vegetable Dumplings; cost 76p

Your Local Guardian:

Prep; 15 mins

Cooking; 1 hour

Ingredients;

- Self Raising Flour 150g

- 1 Potato

- 1 Carrot

- 1 Onion

- Salt 1tsp

- Pepper 2tsp

- Garlic Powder 2tsp

- Olive Oil 2tsp

Your Local Guardian:

Method

- Gradually add water to flour and fold in.

- Kneed dough for a minimum of 10 mins then cover and put aside to rest for minimum of 1 hour.

- Bring frying pan to medium heat and add olive oil.

- Add diced onions, carrots and potatoes. Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

- Cover and let simmer for 12-15 mins on medium-low heat then put aside to cool.

- Kneed dough for another 5 mins and roll into disks. Cover with tea towel to keep soft.

- Add vegetables mix to middle of disk and fold into desired dumpling shape.

- Bring frying pan to medium heat and add olive oil.

- Fry on 1 side for 45-60 seconds.

- Remove oil and add 100ml of water. Steam on medium heat for 5-7 mins.

- Ready to serve.

2) Three Cheese Tomato Tortellini; cost 94p

Your Local Guardian:

Prep; 5 mins

Cooking; 15 mins

Ingredients;

- Three Cheese Tortellini 250g (Aldi)

- Tomatoes with herbs 440g

- Salt 1tsp

- Pepper 2tsp

- Garlic Powder 2tsp

- Olive Oil

Method

- Bring frying pan to medium heat and add olive oil

- Add chopped tomatoes with herbs and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

- Cook on low heat for 10 mins then put to side to rest.

- Boil tortellini for 6-9 mins then add to tomato sauce and mix well.

- Ready to serve.

3) Vegetarian Sweet Potato Pie; cost 98p

Your Local Guardian:

Prep; 5 minutes

Cooking; 30 minutes

Ingredients;

- Sweet Potato 400g

- 1 Onion

- Kidney Beans 400g

- 1 Large Carrot

- Salt 1tsp

- Pepper 2tsp

- Garlic powder 2tsp

- Paprika 2tsp

- Olive Oil

Method;

- Peel sweet potato and cut into piece.

- Boil sweet potato for 15-20 mins.

- Slice onion and grate carrot.

- Bring frying pan to medium heat and add olive oil, add sliced onions, carrots and drained kidney beans.

- Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika and mix well.

- Cook for 10 mins and then put in oven dish to rest.

-Drain sweet potato, season with salt and pepper then mash.

- Cover bean mix with sweet potato mash.

- Put in oven for 15 mins.

- Ready to serve.

4) Beetroot Lemon Spaghetti; cost 88p

Your Local Guardian:

Prep; 10 mins

Cooking; 20 mins

Ingredients;

- Sliced Beetroot 300g

- Spaghetti 200g

- 1 Lemon

- Salt 1tsp

- Pepper 2tsp

- Garlic Powder 2tsp

- Olive Oil 2tsp

Method;

- Put spaghetti in water to boil for 15 mins.

- Add sliced beetroot into blender and blend until smooth.

- Bring frying pan to medium heat and add olive oil.

- Add blended beetroot and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and add 2tsp of lemon juice.

- Put on low heat and let simmer for 5-7 minutes.

- Add cooked pasta to beetroot sauce and mix well then lemon zest to garnish.

- Ready to serve.

5) Mozzarella Sticks and Carrot Dip; cost £1

Your Local Guardian:

Prep; 10 mins

Cooking; 5 mins

Ingredients;

- Mozzarella 200g

- Tortilla Crisp 200g

- 1 Carrot

- Salt 1tsp

- Pepper 2tsp

- Garlic Powder 2tsp

- Olive Oil 2tsp

Method;

- Take mozzarella out of bag and persevere liquid.

- Add 2 tbs of flour to mozzarella water to make batter (can use an egg instead if you have one).

- Cut mozzarella into rectangular pieces and add to batter.

- Crush tortilla chips in bag and add mozzarella pieces.

- Shake bag until the mozzarella pieces are well covered.

- Freeze battered mozzarella pieces for minimum of 20 mins.

- Bring fry pan to medium-high heat and fry mozzarella sticks for 1-2 mins.

- Chop carrot and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and olive oil.

- Put in blender and add half of 150ml of water. Blend until smooth.

- Ready to serve.