Beans on toast is a British staple, and a welcome relief at tea time when you have nothing in the fridge or kitchen cupboards.

Adding cheese is a classic way to make the dish even more delicious. Some even add spice to their beans.

But food journalist and TV chef Nigel Slater recommends adding two main ingredients to make your meal even better.

He should know, as his autobiography is titled “Toast”.

The recipe ensures the classic is “rich in tomatoes and bacon”. The process is “a little more trouble than opening a can, but much more satisfying”, Slater says.

He lists the following ingredients:

• lardons, cubed bacon or pancetta, 200g
• onion, 1
• rapeseed or olive oil, a little
• celery, a rib
• carrots, 2 small to medium
• chopped tomatoes, 2 x 400g
• canned beans (pinto, haricot, broad beans etc), 2 x 400g
• black treacle, 1 tsp
• loaf of sourdough, a lump

Slater writes in the Guardian that the lardons should be fried in a deep-sided pan over a moderate heat.

Then, the onion should be peeled and roughly chopped.

When the lardons or bacon cubes and their fat are golden, add the onion, together with a little rapeseed or olive oil.

If it looks like there seems to be too little fat in the pan, Slater recommends chopping the celery and carrots and adding them to the pan.

Then, you should eave to cook for a full five minutes until it is “fragrant and starting to soften”.

Next, the tomatoes should be added, and the dish left to simmer for 10 minutes.

The beans are then stirred in, and the mixture is left to simmer for a further 10 minutes.

Seasoning – with treacle, a little black pepper and salt – is the second to last step.

Finally, the recipe requires that the bread is warmed in the oven, torn into chunks and served with the beans.