Recipe of the week: Sautéed veal kidneys, parsley snails, creamed baby onion, buttered spinach, red wine sauce

Serves 2

 

Red wine sauce 1 banana shallot, sliced
½ stick of celery, sliced
20g tomato purée
100ml red wine vinegar
500ml brown veal stock
250ml brown chicken stock
2 sprigs of parsley, thyme and tarragon
2 black peppercorns
2 cloves of garlic
2 plum tomatoes
500ml red wine and 250ml ruby port

 

Kidney 2 veal kidneys
100ml Chartreuse
10ml whipping cream
Salt and lemon juice

 

Space potato 1 large potato, peeled

 

Spinach 500 large spinach leaves
30g butter
1 clove of garlic

 

Creamed baby onions 10 baby onions, peeled
300ml double cream
1 sprig of thyme
1 clove of garlic

 

Parsley sauce 1 shallot
2 cloves of garlic
1 sprig of thyme
500ml chicken stock
100ml double cream
100g picked flat leaf parsley

 

Snails 10 large snails
1 litre chicken stock
1 carrot and onion, sliced
1 bulb of fennel and 1 stick of celery, sliced
50g button mushrooms, sliced
1 clove of garlic
1 sprig of thyme

 

Red wine sauce Caramelise the shallot and celery separately until golden brown. Strain off the fat, put both the vegetables back into the same pan, add the tomato purée and cook out for 30 seconds, stirring continuously. Add the red wine vinegar and reduce by half.

 

Pour in both stocks and bring to the boil. Skim off any impurities. Add the herbs, spices, garlic and tomatoes and cook for 20 minutes.

 

In a separate pan, reduce the red wine and port by two-thirds.

 

Pass the sauce through a fine sieve into a fine muslin cloth. Wash the muslin and pass through a double layer of the muslin six times, to get a clean glossy sauce.

 

Pass the red wine reduction through double muslin into the sauce. Mix together and chill.

 

Kidney Remove the outer layer of fat from the kidney. With a sharp knife, slowly cut down the centre and remove all of the membrane inside. Then roll in cling film and refrigerate to set.

 

Heat a large copper frying pan until it's smoking. Cut the kidney into small pieces and add to the pan. Keep the pan very hot. Turn the pieces over and deglaze with Chartreuse. Reduce, add the red wine sauce and put to one side. Drain and let the kidney rest. Bring the sauce back to the boil and add whipping cream, salt and lemon juice to taste.

 

Space potato Place a 4cm round cutter in the middle of a cold non-stick pan, and add a little oil. Put the potato onto a Japanese turning slicer with the fine blade and turn, holding it tight until all the potato is done.

 

Take a strand of potato and create a border around the inside of the pan, and then wind another strand around the cutter. Lay more potato strands in-between to fill the gaps with a pattern of connecting strands. Turn up the heat to fry the potato until golden brown. Season with salt and lay on kitchen paper to drain.

 

Spinach Add the spinach to a large pan with a knob of butter. Wilt on a moderate heat using a fork with the clove of garlic on the end to stir. Drain, season with salt and place into the same ring cutter used for the space potato.

 

Creamed baby onions Season the onions with salt and leave for an hour. Bring the cream to the boil and add the thyme and garlic. Add the onions, cover with buttered paper and leave to cook very slowly on the stove top. The cream is one of the sauces so don't season until ready to serve.

 

Parsley sauce Sweat the shallot, garlic and thyme in wide-based pan without colouring. Cover with chicken stock, bring to the boil and simmer for five minutes, then add the cream and boil for two minutes. Add the parsley and blend in a blender until smooth. Pass through a fine sieve.

 

Snails Place all the ingredients in a large pan, bring to a light simmer and cook for three hours. Allow the snails to cool in the liquid and then remove them from the shells.

 

Dressing Place the spinach ring in the middle of the plate. Arrange the kidney around the spinach with the creamed onions and parsley snails. Pour on the sauce and top with a space potato.

 

Book review: Out of my Tree by Daniel Clifford >>

 

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