Top four cooking shortcuts, by MasterChef's 2017 winner

It's been, to quote winner of MasterChef 2017, Diana Chan, "a crazy 24 hours. There has been lots of love and support coming from so many different directions, it's been overwhelming."

Her specialty, she says, is "cooking dishes that incorporate lots of greens and herbs - everything that's fresh and creating a well balanced, wholesome meal in under an hour".

Which is what we're all trying to do, every night, isn't it? Here are her top four cooking shortcuts to get you started.

1. Herbs

"I always have lots of fresh herbs on hand, I don't have a herb garden but I usually buy them and put them in a container, wrap in some damp paper towel to keep them moist so they don't dry out and keep longer. Herbs are a great way of injecting flavour into your meals and they're also really good for you. Parsley would have to be my favourite and coriander is a close second.

I use herbs over anything - steamed fish or a chicken on the barbecue, everything gets herbs thrown on. I either make a gremolata out of it which is parsley, garlic and lemon zest to spread over any meat. Or I make a chimichurri, which is parsley, coriander, garlic, red onion, lemon juice, a bit of chilli, salt and pepper and olive oil. I can whip up a quick chimichuirrri for white or red meat. Sometimes I have a lamb backstrap and I'll pan fry it and swipe over some chimichurri, that's really all you need. Herbs are a fantastic way of adding flavour to any meal."

2. Be prepared

"I do meal prep over the week, because as with everyone, coming home after a day of work I want something there almost ready that will make cooking easier. One of the things I do is a big pot of stock every week. I'll get a whole chicken and dissect it and to make the stock, then I'll eat the meat or I'll poach the breast and make it into a salad. I can usually get three meals out of one chook."

3. Flavoured oils

"I love to make my own infused oils, either chilli or something like rosemary. They're a great way to flavour salads or roasted vegetables. Just chuck some rosemary in a jar with olive oil and let that infuse, but when you serve it, heat it up with a bit of garlic for a real kick of flavour. Sometimes herbs need that extra bang when you're serving, so I'll put the infused oil in a pan with crushed garlic and more rosemary and really brighten the flavour. I'll add that to my blanched broccoli or roasted potatoes or whatever I'm cooking, and they have a wonderful light flavour of garlic and rosemary."

4. Hey pesto!

"I usually make a lot when I'm making something like curry paste or pesto, because you always end up with more ingredients than you'll use once, and they'll go to waste otherwise. I pop the leftovers into an icecube tray and freeze them, then the next time I feel like curry or pesto I just pop out a cube and defrost it."