If ‘fusion’ has become a bit of a dirty word in modern cuisine recently, it’s not hard to see why.

The idea of combining age-old, tried-and-tasted recipes and flavours from wildly different cooking cultures, just for the sake of novelty, is bound to result in some odd, even unpleasant combinations.

Chinese-style wok-fried beef in soy sauce, with a French wine and cream sauce, does not work. Curry sauce on chips and cheese is enough to turn you off all three individual components for life. Arguably, the person responsible for putting tandoori chicken on pizza ought to be hauled before a court of law, for crimes against the tastebuds of the world.

But these abominations should not put you off mixing and matching a little bit. And Mexican flavours are particularly versatile in the way they interact with other cuisines – particularly English food, in fact. Something about the fiery, vibrant flavours of Mexican cooking, and the solidly tasty but unshowy taste of good English cooking can compliment each other perfectly.

The most obvious way of doing this is by adding chillies – with discretion, to the right dishes. Try adding a few jalapeños and some red onion to a Shepherd’s Pie or a Cottage Pie at the frying stage and you’ll be amazed at how it invigorates the beef or lamb mixture. Both are dishes that can sometimes lack piquancy or strength of flavour if you’re not careful with seasoning and judicious use of cooking wine. But the sweetness of the red onion and the spice of the chilli will both complement the meat perfectly.

Another thing to remember is that the Mexican talent for superb dips need not be confined to accompanying burritos, enchiladas, fajitas or nachos. The classic ‘Mexican flag trio’ of home-made tomato salsa and guacamole, along with sour cream – can go perfectly with pie and mash or sausage and mash, as a replacement for a traditional meat gravy. Add a bit of chopped red onion, chilli and a dash of lime juice to the mashed potato if you’re feeling particularly daring – and all of a sudden the sausages or meat pie become the least interesting part of the dish.

The same goes for the delicious range of Mexican bean dishes and salads – they are all crying out to be tried in new pairings. Why not try incorporating some refried beans to your traditional breakfast fry-up? Try replacing ketchup with spicy tomato salsa as well, and swapping builder’s tea for rich Mexican hot chocolate, and you have a very different kind of ‘full English’ indeed!