Wonderful Garden: What's the recipe for the perfect Sunday roast? Hint: no ketchup

A proper Sunday roast is about as British as you can get. Recent research, carried out for BBC Good Food's 25th anniversary, revealed it to be the nation's favourite dish, beating fish and chips to the top spot.

I generally think people should eat what they want but the Sunday roast is sacrosanct Diana Henry

But despite our love of the iconic meal, it appears we as a country can't agree on the correct way to make it.

Traditionally a Sunday roast consists of meat - usually roasted beef, chicken, lamb or pork - alongside a range of either boiled, steamed, or roasted vegetables, but not everyone is capable of sticking to the rules.

Fans of the roast have taken to Twitter to name and shame some of the worst crimes against the dish they've been unfortunate enough to witness over the years.

Possibly the worst roast dinner ever? pic.twitter.com/5SAog6CA
— George Short (@geoshortie_7) September 23, 2012

Transgressions include omitting gravy entirely and instead adding a dollop of ketchup and mayonnaise in its place, swapping roast potatoes and fresh vegetables for potato waffles and frozen veg, and the roast burrito.

A Sunday roast without gravy is a sorry thing Xanthe Clay

Others chimed in with more specific rules, such as: Yorkshire puddings should only be eaten with roast beef and nothing else, while others believe new potatoes hold no place in "a civilised society" when it comes to roast dinner.

I've said it before; in a civilised society there is no place for New Potatoes in a Sunday Roast. #stopthemadness
— Dr Chris Coleman (@drchriscoleman) September 14, 2014

#SundayRoast #RoastDinner Carrots in, Peas in, Cabbage in, Roasties in, Yorkshire pud ONLY with beef. Stuffing only with Pork. No mash. Fin.
— timbevan-19DESIGN (@timobevan) October 17, 2016

Chicken does not belong in a Sunday dinner. #unpopularopinion
— Robyn Selby (@robyn_selby) April 27, 2014

Chips have no place in a Sunday roast. https://t.co/8mMtNmsoQB
— FurnessGirl (@FurnessGirl) August 9, 2015

While there is some debate over which meat is the correct one to choose for your roast, Telegraph columnist (and author of 10 cookbooks) Diana Henry says it's not the meat we need to focus on: "I generally think people should eat what they want - but the Sunday roast is sacrosanct.

"You can have any meat you want - in fact even a big roast fish is fine by me (well, just about) - but the accompaniments should be fairly traditional. Roast or mash potatoes are a must."

Fellow Telegraph columnist Stephen Harris, chef-patron of Michelin-starred pub The Sportsman, says: "Sunday roast should be meat, gravy, roast potatoes, two veg – one green, one root – plus apple, mint or horseradish suace depending on the meat. Yorkshire puddings are included if the meat is beef."

Telegraph food writer Xanthe Clay also revealed her own preferences for a proper Sunday roast: "There must be gravy - a Sunday roast without gravy is a sorry thing.

Xanthe Clay says a Sunday roast isn't complete without gravy

"And there must be plenty of crispness going on - crisp chicken skin, crackling, crunching roast potatoes - even the gorgeously caramelised fat on a big rib roast of bed will hit the spot.

And there absolutely has to be a proper pudding to follow...Fruit salad does not count Xanthe Clay

"And mustard - none of your fancy French stuff, which is frankly a bit beige and boring. Proper hot English mustard is the thing, gloriously vibrantly yellow and with a nose tingling flavour to match.

"One not-strictly-traditional thing I love to add is fresh watercress, posies of it pulled from a bunch rather than the tangles that come in a bag from the supermarket. I know, salad with a hot dinner sounds weird - but the fresh spiciness of watercress livens up the dish brilliantly, and it soaks up that gravy a treat.

"And there absolutely has to be a proper pudding to follow - ideally something hot like a crumble, cobbler or pie. Fruit salad does not count."

Diana Henry's rules for a traditional Sunday roast