Brown Stew

This recipe is from Granny Hamill

Ingredients:

Stewing beef, cut in pieces, dusted with seasoned flour

Beef lard/ tallow

Chopped onion

Chopped carrot

Colemans Mustard, 1 spoonful

Method:

Melt the lard in the saucepan and when hot, brown the meat on all sides, then remove it onto a plate

Add the onions and carrots to the saucepan and cook them for a few minutes before you return the meat.

Now cover it with good brown stock or meat juices from your larder.

Bring it to boil once, then turn down the heat or remove it to the side of the range, cover it with butter paper and a tight lid and slow cook it until the meat is tender. About ¾ of an hour before the meat is tender, add the medium sized peeled potatoes. This gives thickness to the stew.

Enjoy

Oxtail soup

This recipe is from Ann Rose Geoghan in Rosemount who is 84 years old

Ingredients:

One good strong ox tail

Onions

Carrots

Celery

Fresh herbs

Mustard powder

Method:

First take the tail apart into pieces , roast them in the oven until all well roasted.

Meanwhile, fry the onions, carrots and celery until it's golden brown.

When it's cool enough to handle, take as much meat as you can off the bones.

Add this to the veg mix, do not throw the bones out yet. 

Add the mustard powder

Add water and bring to a low simmer, put the bones back into the pot as now all the good stuff comes out, Marrow and morsels etcetera.

When it is nicely simmering add loads of chopped herbs and season to taste.

Remove the bones and serve with loads of fresh brown bread.

Liver & Onions

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Beef lard or tallow

Beef tallow can be used as a replacement for any other cooking, be it butter or some kind of vegetable oil.

It has a high smoking point, so it is excellent for frying at high heat. Stored in an airtight container, it lasts for a long time and is another “cut” of the animal that we have forgotten to use.

You can even make candles from it. 

Method

Cut beef fat into small pieces.
Place fat chunks into a large stockpot.
Render the fat.
Remove from the stovetop.
Strain the liquid.
Store in an airtight glass container.

Stuffed hearth

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Black Pudding

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Pressed tongue

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Shin beef with dumplings

Recipe by Nuala Daly

Ingredients:

Shin beef

Diced carrots

Diced onions

Minced garlic

Flour

Beef stock

Tomato paste

Bay leaves

 Thyme

Shredded Suet. Suet is the fat that surrounds the beef kidneys. Ask your butcher for it, rather than buying it in the supermarket.

Method:

Preheat your oven to 160 degree °C  (325°F )

Heat the vegetable oil in a large oven- safe pot or Dutch oven over  medium heat.

Add the beef and brown it on all sides.

Remove the beef from the pot and set it aside.

In the same pot, add the diced onions, carrots and minced garlic. Saut for about 5 minutes until the vegetables start to soften.

Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir them well to coat everything. Cook for an additional minute to cook out the raw flour taste.

Gradually add the beef stock, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. 

Stir in the tomato paste, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper.

Return the beef to the pot along with any juices that have accumulated. Give  a good stir to combine everything.

Cover the pot and transfer to the preheated oven. Cook for about an hour or until the beef is tender and the flavours have melded together.

While the stew is cooking, prepare the suet dumplings:

Using a fork, mix the shredded suet, self- rising flour and a pinch of salt, gradually adding  cold water, a little at a time. Until you have a soft, sticky dough.

When the stew is ready, remove it from the oven. Take off the lid, discard the bay leaves and increase the temperature to 190 °C (375°F)

Using a spoon, drop spoonfuls of the dumpling mixture onto the surface of the stew. Place the pot back in the owne, uncovered and cook for an additional 20-25 minutes, until the dumplings have puffed up and are golden on top.

Serve the shin beef stew hot with the suet dumplings on top. It pairs well with mashed potatoes or crusty bread.

Steak and Kidney Pudding

Pastry:

First you have to make your pastry, its a hot water pastry. 

500g plain flour

110g hard veg fat/suet/beef lard

280g water

2 tsp sea salt

Method:

Add fat and water in a saucepan and let it come to the boil. 

Add salt then add your flour. Stir it until it comes to a nice big ball of pastry. 

Take it out of the saucepan and leave on a floured surface. 

Let it cool down while you’re making the filling. 

Try not to handle it too much. 2/3 is for the base and 1/3 for the lid. 

Flour your rolling pin well. If you use a spring loaded baking tin you should be able to take it off and serve it in all its glory at the table for everyone to ohh and ahh at how brilliant you are.

When it's cool, roll out the pastry. Make sure it's nice and thick and place it in your lightly oiled spring loaded cake tin. 

Make the filling - see below.

Filling:

2 lb round steak

4 lambs kidneys

2 red onions

Red wine

Dijon Mustard or English if you prefer bait of a kick

Flour for dredging

Veg or beef stock

Bunch of fresh thyme

Mushrooms if you wish

Method:

Start by browning the meat - get a nice big pan and plenty of hot olive oil.

Brown the beef a bit at a time then you take it out and put in a bowl.

Dice your kidneys and fry them off too - just to brown - the quickest sere- add them to the beef. Sprinkle the meat with seasoned flour - a light dusting and set aside.

Now deglaze the pan with the red wine - as it's bubbling away add your mustard and sprinkle some flour to thicken the gravy. Set aside. These juices we pour over the meat in the bowl, leave to rest.

You will need a bunch of fresh thyme. Fry your onion in the pan and add some fresh thyme. Sometimes if you’re in the mood you could add some mushrooms. Now add the meat, mix into your pan and mix all together. Now take it off your heat and carefully transfer into your pie case and place the pastry lid on it. 

Brush the pastry edges with water and pinch together with your thumbs. Make sure it's good and sealed and push the pastry down a bit. Put in an oven at gas 6 for about 40 minutes until the pastry is lovely and golden.

Tip - put a flat baking sheet underneath the cake tin just in case any of the gravy makes a break for it.

This pie is delicious with either creamy mash or a nice big baked potato and green beans.

Beef cheek casserole

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Spiced beef hindquarter

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Four quarter beef

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Cottage Pie

Ingredients

1 large onion

3 diced carrots

3 sticks of celery diced

2 lb minced lamb

Tomato puree

1 tbsp stock

2 tbsp worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp bisto gravy powder

Mashed potatoes - 2 lbs 

Frozen peas

Salt n pepper

Optional mature, white grated cheddar

Method:

Fry off your onion, then celery and carrots until they begin to  caramelise in a little olive oil.

Add lamb and fry off until it is cooked through.

Now add just enough water that it's just at the water line of the meat, then add tomato puree to your stock, worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper and gravy powder.

Let it come to a nice rolling simmering boil. The meat should be juicy.

At the last minute add your peas - frozen is no problem as they cook nicely in the pie.

Top with creamy mash potatoes and if you want to go absolutely mad some nice grated white mature cheddar gives it a lovely crust.

Bake in the oven Gas Mark 5 for 35-40 minutes.

Eat at once in front of the television.

Just for you to know - shepherds pie is made with minced lamb and cottage pie is made with minced beef

Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding

Ingredients:

I have been blessed with having an absolute superb butcher in my town - Gillivans in Moate. They’ve looked after me for the past 20 years so they know what I like.

This is not so much a recipe but a method of how I cook roast beef.

I usually buy my beef on a Friday to be used on a Sunday.

On Friday I cover it with Colemans mustard powder and ground black pepper.

I ask for a rib of beef with the bone left on and the butchers ‘dress’ the beef for me. I can only recommend that if you are using this expensive piece of meat then try to get it as aged as possible as it's just delicious.

I get my rib of beef and I put it into my roasting tray, then I liberally cover the whole thing in Colemans mustard powder and black pepper. Rub it into every knock and cranny - it can be a bit of a sticky job but gives it a delicious crust. Don’t be afraid of the mustard powder - it does not make it mustardy at all.

In my roasting tin I tuck slices of red onion and tomato under the beef. This makes a trivet. If you are roasting meat a trivet makes a huge difference to the floor of the meat and your gravy.

I cover it with a clean tea towel and place it down in my basement near my washing machine where it is cold and dark and nobody knows it's there. I never put my beef in the fridge since I brought it home.  All meat should be at room temp going into the oven if you can do so at all. It changes the texture and taste of the meat completely.

Before I put it in the oven,I drizzle it generously with olive oil, particularly along the top edge of the beef - it should be sitting with bones down and fat on top. Put it into a good hot oven - gas 7 for about half an hour until it sort of seals itself. Now is a good time to add a half a bottle of red wine or maybe more. Turn the oven down to gas mark 3 until the beef is cooked. 

I like to serve my beef medium, however it is entirely up to you how you like it.

For my Yorkshire puddings on Sunday morning I get:

4 eggs

1/2 lb flour

Lots of salt and pepper

Fresh milk

I always put the eggs in the bottom of my whisking bowl first then the flour plus salt and pepper - be generous with the salt and pepper.

After 2 minutes I drizzle my milk - usually about half a pint - sometimes more and sometimes less. What you want to achieve is the consistency of good wall paint - I often stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl and leave my whisk on for 20 minutes just whisking the batter. The thinner the batter the lighter the pudding.

Let it settle and rest and then you need a fairy cake tin. I put fat into each cake hole - you can use olive oil, duck fat, suet if you like - it's entirely up to you what your favourite flavour is.

Put it into a very hot oven gas 8 and after 10 mins take it out and pour your batter into each one.

Turn the oven down to gas 7. Leave your puddings for 40 minutes - they should puff up and be quite light. Keep an eye on them as they will do their best to burn just at the last minute.

When we eat roast beef we often have cauliflower cheese, roast potatoes and green beans. Sometimes other veg but we always, always have the Yorkshire puddings!

Next is the gravy.

When you are making the gravy, keep some potato water and add it to the base of the roasting tin and mix it thru your red wine and onion mix that’s already there. Same with any of the veg cooking water - add it as well.

I do all this during the cooking process of the meat - it just brings the gravy on nicely. I have learnt over the years you can never make enough gravy so don’t be shy. The beef steams nicely in its gravy base. I give it a stir with the fork when I add the water to the gravy base. I also add a veg stock cube at this stage.

Then I take the beef out to rest for 30 minutes - put the beef on a warm dish or tray in a warm place.  Deglaze your pan on a low heat, give it a taste, does it need salt pepper, red wine or just thickening up…sometimes a good dollop of dijon mustard adds nicely. Let it cook for another 10 minutes while it's rolling and bubbly.  I strain it thru into a nice big warm jug and watch them drink it.

There’s never enough!

Beef Wellington

Beef brine

A brine is salty water in which food is soaked to improve the flavour and the texture of the meat. Brining is mostly done white meats, but beef can benefit from a soak in a brine. Other flavours (spices to your taste, honey, sugar) can be added to a brine, but it must have salt to work.

Method:

A common brine ratio is half a cup of salt for 2 litres of water, leaving it soaking submerged for between 1 hour to 24 hours at most, depending on the cut. It works well on a tougher cut of beef like brisket.