Steak and Kidney Pie

[futumsch]

Exculsivlely for satellites.co.uk forum. My Steak and Kidney Pie. Just what you need after a hard week while sitting in front of an open fire and a Pint of Beer.

Ingredients:
2 large onions
1 lb to 1 1/2 lbs of beef, (couple of large rump steaks or lean stewing steak)
handfull of shallots
half a dozen or so kidneys
handfull of button mushrooms
small tin of anchovies (optional)
3 beef stock cubes
Bottle of Dark Ale or Stout (not optional)
1 pack of ready roll puff pastry.

Chop the two large onions finely and fry in a large pan til golden brown.
Meanwhile, cut the steak into bitesize chunks, coat with flour and brown in a separate pan.
When the steak is browned, add to the large pan with the onions and add chopped shallots, chopped mushrooms, chopped kidney and anchovies. Stir and cook for a few minutes.
Add 3 crumbled beef stock cubes and half a cup of water. Cook until the stock cubes have dissolved.
Add Beer/Stout til it covers the ingredients, put the lid on the pan and simmer for 45 minutes. Keep tasting and season as appropriate throughout.
After the sauce is like a thick Poop, add to a baking dish and cover with puff pastry.
Brush the pastry with a bit of milk/eggwash or melted butter if you prefer.
Bake in a hot oven for 10-20 minutes until the pastry is light brown and crunchy.
Serve Hot!

Look forward to seeing your creations and variations.

 

[Lazarus]

Now I do like the idea of introducing the Umami by way of Anchovies.

I make a Puttanesca Sauce for Pasta which has melted Anchovies in it and the taste is sensational.

For those unfamiliar, Umami is the fifth taste sensation, after Sweet, Sour, Bitter & Salty and Anchovies are one of the basic ingredients that can help produce the sensation.



But I haven't yet tried them in a Pie like this.

Brilliant idea!

 

[PaulR]

When making egg butties I like to use small pieces of chopped anchovy instead of salt for seasoning.

 

[Lazarus]

Interesting - I can't do that with out standard stock Anchovies as they are tinned and so need using all at once.

Might try bottled ones though - is that what use you? Can take as many as needed and the rest will keep?



When on holiday, we gorge ourselves on fresh (ish) Anchovies which are bigger, white fleshed and meatier. They are gorgeous.

 

[PaulR]

Yes, bottled anchovies.

And on the egg and anchovy theme: Hard boil some eggs, shell and cut in half. Scoop out the hard yolk and mix to a cream with mayonnaise and pepper to taste. Refill the hard egg whites with the yolky cream and then lay a strip of anchovy along the top of each one.

Yummy egg mayonnaise with a difference.

 

[futumsch]

I knew anchovies add a something to the pie, what Raymond Blanc might say in French :'I don't know what', but now you mention Umami, I do remember Heston Blumenthal making Umami sauce from some exotic mushrroms. I sometimes put them into spag bol sauce, (not sure if it's exactly like mama used to make), or a good tablepoon of marmite.

I can't quite get my taste buds to imagine what Egg mayo and anchovies taste like, but I guess thats tomorrows breakfast sorted!

 

[Channel Hopper]

For those unfamiliar, Umami is the fifth taste sensation, after Sweet, Sour, Bitter & Salty

So it's not indigestion then ?

 

[Lazarus]

So it's not indigestion then ?

Don't say that ............. reminds me of the world falling out of my bottom a week or two back.

 

[2cvbloke]

Don't say that ............. reminds me of the world falling out of my bottom a week or two back.

Been drinking the Red Barrel stuff again?