Delia’s steak and kidney pudding

Method

1. To make the pastry, first sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add some freshly milled black pepper, then add the suet and mix it into the flour using the blade of a knife. When it’s evenly blended, add a few drops of cold water and start to mix with the knife, using curving movements and turning the mixture around. The aim is to bring it together as a dough, so keep adding drops of water until it begins to get really claggy and sticky.
2. Now abandon the knife, go in with your hands and bring it all together until you have a nice smooth elastic dough which leaves the bowl clean. It’s worth noting that suet pastry always needs more water than other types, so if it’s still a bit dry go on adding a few drops at a time.
3. After that, take a quarter of the dough for the lid, then roll the rest out fairly thickly. What you need is a round approximately 32.5cm in diameter. Now line the bowl with the pastry, pressing it well all around.
4. Next chop the steak and kidney into fairly small cubes, toss them in seasoned flour, then add them to the pastry-lined basin with the slices of onion. Add enough cold water* to reach almost the top of the meat and sprinkle in a few drops of Worcestershire sauce and another seasoning of salt and pepper.
5. Roll out the pastry lid, dampen its edges and put it in position on the pudding. Seal well and cover with a double sheet of foil, pleated in the centre to allow  room for expansion while cooking.
6. Now secure it with string, making a little handle so that you can lift it out of the hot steamer. Then place it in a steamer over boiling water. Steam for 5 hours, topping up the boiling water halfway through. You can either serve the pudding by spooning portions straight out of the bowl, or slide a palette knife round the edge and turn the whole thing out onto a serving plate (which is more fun!)

Recipe © Delia Smith 2008, Delia’s Frugal Food, published by Hodder and Stoughton. Click here for more Delia recipes, cookery school videos, information on bakeware and ingredients.