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Steak and kidney with dumplings July 26, 2007 I was chewing the fat at a local farmers' market with a Welsh Black beef breeder from Mt Bellevue at Myrrhee in Victoria's north east. While I sampled his delicious smoked salamis and bought a couple of his beef and red wine pies, we chatted about using every part of a slaughtered beast. He was telling me how many kilos of fine sausages could be produced from the leftovers and less popular cuts from one of his animals. Real sausages and not those pale rubbery imitations severely lacking in protein. We also got onto the topic of under-utilised cuts of meat. He said oyster blade and skirt steak were often overlooked by the home cook, but he maintains they are among the best cuts for making a good winter’s casserole. In the past year I’ve met two restaurateurs and cookbook authors - Fergus Henderson and Stéphane Reynaud – who are among those promoting respect for the animal by using all parts. Henderson, from St John Restaurant in London, wrote Nose to Tail Eating, a book which transforms the inner organs of beast and fowl into rough delicacies. In his hands roast marrow bones become a real delicacy, served with grilled bread and a deliciously complementary salad of flat parsley leaves. I’ve also enjoyed his little morsels of tripe, coated in crispy crumbs and served with malt vinegar and his glorious roasted suckling pig. I met Reynaud over his pork belly confit. He is author of Cochon et Fils, recently published in English as Pork & Sons. Reynaud runs Villa9Trois in Montreuil, Paris and hails from Saint Agrève in the Ardèche region of France. The annual pig slaughter and the ensuing traditional production of black pudding, sausages for cooking and curing, pate, roasting pork, hams, rolled breasts and other cuts ensures nothing is wasted. He sees the consumer and butcher as close allies. A pity there are fewer independent butchers around. You’d be hard-pressed to find a butcher to talk to at a supermarket these days, specially one who could tell you where the meat came from, how long it had been aged for and how to cook it. As it happened, just before I’d spoken to the Welsh Black beef breeder, I’d visited a favourite butcher and liked the look of the oyster blade so I’d bought a kilo of it and liberated four sheep’s kidneys from his chiller. It was time to pay my respects to the beast. Oyster blade is from the forequarter and can be recognised by the seam of connective tissue that runs down the centre. Don’t remove this. It goes beautifully gelatinous and enriches the gravy as it braises. Dumplings – I’ve loved them ever since I was a child and I suddenly had the urge to eat them again. Easy to make and a good substitute for potatoes.
Steak and Kidney with Dumplings 1kg oyster blade steak, diced into large chunks Dumplings Preheat oven to 180C. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot or cast iron casserole. Brown the steak, in batches if necessary. Remove and keep warm. Toss the kidneys in the pan for a couple of minutes then remove from pan. Add a little more oil if required and sauté the onions, celery and capsicum till the onion softens. Deglaze the pan with the wine. Return the meat and add sufficient water to just cover. Stir in the tomato paste. Season with one teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer then cover and place in the oven and cook for two hours or until the meat is almost soft and tender. Adjust the seasoning if required. Add the dumplings and cook a further 20 minutes, uncovered. The casserole may be thickened with a little flour and water. To make the dumplings, sift the flour, baking powder and turmeric into a bowl and rub in the butter. Stir in the herbs then make a well in the centre and stir in sufficient milk to get a scone-like dough. Form into balls about the size of golf balls and place on top of the meat to cook. Serve with greens and a root vegetable.
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