Good Food's most popular recipes 2016: Best chicken recipes, vegetarian recipes and a magical cake recipe

Neil Perry's kung pao chicken recipe (Recipe here). Photo: William Meppem
Karen Martini's summer vegetable lasagne is meat-free and built around the robust flavours of eggplant, tomato, basil and cheese, cheese, cheese! (Recipe here). Photo: Bonnie Savage
Readers welcomed Rachel Khoo to the Good Food fold, and in particular liked her vegetarian one-pot casserole (which doubles as a taco stuffer) (Recipe here). Photo: Supplied
Back to basics: How to make classic carbonara (Adam Liaw) (Recipe here). Photo: William Meppem. Styling: Hannah Me
Adam Liaw's 'like-magic' marmalade custard cake wowed readers (Recipe here). Photo: William Meppem
Adam Liaw's meat-free five-mushroom pasta recipe (and why good cooks take ingredients away) (Recipe here). Photo: William Meppem
Pete Evans' paleo-friendly shepherd's pie (with cauliflower mash) (Recipe here). Photo: Pete Evans
Neil Perry's classic chicken cacciatore (ready in one hour) won hearts and stomachs (Recipe here). Photo: William Meppem
Hellenic Republic's ever-popular (and oft-imitated) Cypriot grain salad (Recipe here). Photo: Pat Scala
Adam Liaw scored again with his keep-it-simple approach to a pork belly porchetta with fennel, chilli and sage (Recipe here). Photo: William Meppem
Just in time for Christmas - this interview with Heston Blumenthal about perfect baked potatoes was a hit (10 tips here). Photo: Edwina Pickles

If you're the family cook you've no doubt got a dog-eared, grease-splattered recipe book that contains all your gems. Well here are some more to add to the collection.

These are the chefs' recipes that most captured the attention of Good Food readers in 2016; from quick, mid-week dinner ideas such as a five-mushroom pasta, to Adam Liaw's spectacular marmalade cake (it separates into layers of sponge and custard while baking).

And while fad ingredients and diets come and go, simple chicken recipes show no sign of going out of fashion. Australians are eating an average of 43 kilograms of chicken each year, so perhaps that's not surprising. Neil Perry's Sunday night style chicken cacciatore was our most popular chicken recipe, and Perry's chilli-heavy kung pao chicken was another strong contender, showing that Australians are also acquiring a taste for super spicy food.

Magical marmalade custard cake. Photo: William Meppem

British cook Rachel Khoo was welcomed into the Good Food fold in 2016. But it was not a French-style sweet treat that readers latched on to, but rather Khoo's one-pot, smoky chickpea and eggplant dinner.

Good vegetarian dishes are always sought-after, and may explain why Hellenic Republic's Cypriot grain salad has again been a winner at Good Food. Long-time Good Food contributor Karen Martini also had a winner with her vegetarian summer vegetable lasagne - so if you haven't already, give it a whirl in your household this week; it's a great way to kick off a summer of cooking.

And finally, we thought we'd share one of our most popular stories of the year. Good Food's Annabel Smith spoke with megastar chef Heston Blumenthal and got his top tips for making the perfect roast potatoes. We've included a link in the gallery above (just in time for Christmas).