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During the cold, winter months, we all crave comforting meals to keep us warm, and nothing hits the spot quite like a homemade cottage pie. Hearty, comforting and full of flavour, the dish has been popular with Brits for years; however, making it may be a little more complicated for some.

Not to worry though, as a recipe expert has come up with a simple way to take the dish to the next level. According to her, adding a simple ingredient to the sauce can make all the difference when it comes to boosting the taste of the classic winter dish.

Mimi Morley, Senior Recipe Development Manager at HelloFresh, recently shared her top tip for whipping up the perfect pie. It's not the first time she's helped people transform their dishes either, as she previously shared a handy trick to transform shepherd's pie too.

With thousands of followers on Instagram, HelloFresh is a brand worth listening to, as so many people follow its easy recipes. Sometimes we all need tips to help make our cooking experiences a little bit easier.

When asked what to add, Mimi said: "Tomato ketchup! It adds sweetness, tanginess and umami. Key to depth of flavour in your cottage pie."

Little you may know, tomato ketchup can lead to really enhancing the taste of cottage pie. It can make it taste better by adding sweetness, tanginess and acidity that will cut through the richness of the gravy.

Some people think it makes such a difference that certain recipes even recommend incorporating it directly into the filling for balance alongside Worcestershire sauce. While traditionalists might like to add other sauces like brown sauce or none at all, ketchup provides a popular flavour boost.

It can be particularly useful if the gravy lacks depth or needs a lift. It has more uses than you may think.

The piece of cooking advice is good to know, as most people have the ingredient lying around at home. Sometimes you can make use of it to boost the flavour of your favourite dishes.

You can stir it into the sauce, or meat mixture, to help give your pie a punch. That's all there is to it, and it can make a big difference.

If that doesn't convince you enough, social media users have also praised the trick on Reddit. Many admit to adding it to their recipe, or simply squirting some on top of their pie.

One said: "Ketchup with cottage pie is nice. I have ketchup with cold lasagne too." Another added: "Yes. I thought it was the standard sauce of choice."

A third replied: "It works for me. So does adding brown or Worcestershire sauce. Not at the same time though. They all add a little bit of tang that cuts through the gravy."

Meanwhile, a fourth also commented: "The idea of putting ketchup on something that has gravy in disgusts me but, in this one case, it really makes it taste good."

So, there you have it. Many people admit to loving the unusual twist. It's simple to pull off too if you want to give it a go!