Princess Diana's favourite meal revealed by former royal butler Paul Burrell

Princess Diana's preferred meal has been disclosed by the royal household's former butler.

The Princess of Wales, who lost her life in a car crash in Paris in 1997, was particularly fond of jacket potatoes served with a generous scoop of caviar.

The detail comes from former royal butler Paul Burrell, who writes in his memoir A Royal Duty that he regularly prepared and served Diana her favourite dish during her evenings at home.

"If she had been out...I would make her a cup of her favorite ginger root tea," Burrell shared.

The royal butler continued: "Dinner would be grilled trout or a pasta dish; or a plain [baked] potato with a scoop of caviar, served with a vinaigrette dressing."

Lonely evenings at the palace

Burrell painted a quietly poignant picture of the manner in which those meals were served, describing the solitary nature of Diana's evenings in considerable detail.

Burrell explained: "It was often a solitary meal, served on a wheeled wooden trolley that I pushed into the sitting room before the striped sofa where the princess sat in her white toweling robe."

Burrell added: "I had already pulled the television out of its cabinet at the bottom of the bookcase and into position. Evenings were the loneliest, quietest times for the princess. The chef had gone. Her dresser had gone."

In light of this, Burrell revealed that he made a point of spending time with the princess during those hours, providing her with company during what were otherwise solitary evenings