Steak and Kidney Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 kilo stewing steak, diced, we use a mix of shin beef and skirt or chuck steak
- 300 grams ox (beef) kidney, trimmed of fat and membrane and cut into small pieces
- ¼ cup flour seasoned with salt and pepper
- 2 medium onions, chopped medium fine
- 1 whole portabello mushroom, we sometimes us a few chestnut mushrooms, chopped like the onion
- 4 tablespoons fresh beef suet, trimmed from the beef (or use bacon drippings, lard, or butter)
- 1 ½ cups beef stock, or use a blend of stock and stout, brown ale or beer
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- 1 beaten egg
- 1 recipe quantity of suet pastry
Accompaniment
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Description
Chunks of diced steak and kidney covered in rich, tasty gravy and steamed in a suet pastry this time-honoured British dish takes a little preparation time, but is worth the effort
Method
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1
Toss the beef and kidney into the seasoned flour and mix with the chopped parsley, meanwhile, in a large, heavy pan, render the beef suet (or melt the bacon fat, lard, or butter) fry the meat and onions in the hot fat quickly until the meat is lightly brown on all sides and the onions are translucent add the mushrooms and mix in.
Cover with the stock, add the parsley, thyme and stir in the Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste and add any additional seasonings, and bring to a simmer.
Cook very gently for 1-hour then taste and check the seasoning let cool.
Grease a 1.3 litres or 3 pint pudding basin with butter, take a quarter of the pastry for the lid, and set to one side.
Roll out the remaining pastry and line the pudding basin, leaving at least a ½ inch of the pastry hanging over the edge of the basin spoon the cooled meat filling into the basin and brush the edges of the pastry with water, then roll out the remaining pastry to cover the top place on top of the basin and press down well to seal.
Cover the basin with a double layer of greased foil or greaseproof paper, pleated in the middle (the pleats will allow the pudding to expand during cooking) and tie with string, making a little handle with extra string at each side, so you can lift the pudding out of the saucepan or steamer.
Steam the pudding on an upturned, heatproof plate or saucer in a large covered saucepan filled with hot water or a steamer for 2 hours, checking the water level regularly. When cooked lift the pudding out and remove the string and foil or paper.
Serve the pudding either by spooning portions from the pudding basin or after 20 minutes upturn the whole pudding onto a plate and serve with creamy mashed potatoes and peas or mushy peas and Enjoy!
Chef's Tips
No other British dish shows the British eccentricity of calling a savory dish a pudding than Steak and Kidney Pudding. A Steak and Kidney Pudding recipe may at first look a little daunting, but don’t be put off, it is actually quite straightforward and all the efforts are well worth it.
Steak and kidney pudding is a dish made by enclosing diced steak and beef, lamb's or pig's kidney pieces in gravy in a suet pastry. In some areas, a "Steak pudding" is served instead, skipping the kidney from the ingredients.
The pudding is then steamed for a few hours until cooked.
In making a pie, the steak and kidney is usually pre-cooked with chopped onions etc. by simmering for a few hours, before placing it in a pie and baking in the oven.
Usually with Steak and Kidney pudding, the suet pastry is used to line a bowl into which the uncooked steak and kidney mix is placed with onions, stock etc a suet pastry lid is then placed on top and sealed tightly. The top is then covered with muslin cloth, which is tied round the bowl. This is placed in a covered saucepan and steamed for about four hours or until the pudding is cooked. Some recipes then stipulate making a small opening in the top and pouring rich stock into the pudding ten minutes before serving. We pre-cook the filling to cut down on the cooking time.
Steak and Kidney pudding is a popular dish in the British Isles and regularly offered on the menu of pubs and restaurants.
The steak pudding is known colloquially as "Babby's Yead" (Baby's Head) in certain areas of North West England around Bury, Manchester, Rochdale and Bolton.
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