Beef and sheep’s kidneys are often recommended for food on account of their cheapness. Although there are many ways to cook them, they are an acquired taste.

INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS

BROILED KIDNEYS
Mix together in a deep plate the following ingredients: one ounce butter, one-half teaspoon pepper, one teaspoon each of mustard and any table sauce or vinegar, and as much cayenne as you can take up on the point of a small penknife blade.

Toast half a loaf of stale bread, cut in slices one inch thick. Wash, split, and broil one pound of kidneys.

While the kidneys are broiling, dip the toast in the dish of seasonings, lay on a hot dish, and lay the kidneys on it as soon as they are broiled. Season them with salt and pepper, and serve them hot with one quart of plain boiled potatoes.

BROILED KIDNEYS No. 2
Plunge some kidneys in boiling water, then open them down the center but do not separate them. Peel and pass a skewer across them to keep them open, then pepper, salt, and dip them in melted butter.

Broil them over a clear fire on both sides, doing the cut side first. Remove the skewer, have ready some butter beaten up with chopped parsley, salt and pepper, and a little lemon juice. Put a small piece in the hollow of each kidney and serve hot.

KIDNEY SAUTE
Chop an onion fine and fry brown in butter. Add a kidney which has been soaked for five minutes in boiling salted water and cut into squares. Cook for five minutes, sprinkle with flour, and add a little stock. Cook until the sauce is thick, sprinkle with minced parsley, and serve immediately.

STEWED KIDNEYS
Having soaked a fresh kidney in cold water and dried it in a cloth, cut it into mouthfuls, mince it fine and dust with flour.

Put some butter into a stewpan over a moderate fire and when it boils, put in the minced kidney. When you have browned it in the butter, sprinkle on a little salt and cayenne pepper, and pour in a very little boiling water.

Add a glass of wine and a large teaspoon of mushroom catsup or walnut pickle. Cover the pan close and let it stew till the kidney is tender. Serve on slices of toast, pouring the gravy over and around them. It is eaten generally at breakfast.

KIDNEYS IN CASSEROLE
Brown the kidneys in butter and put into the casserole. Add a sliced onion fried, a slice of bacon, two potatoes, sliced, and two carrots finely minced. Add enough stock or water to cover, put on the lid, and bake slowly for three hours. Serve in the casserole.

KIDNEY BACON ROLLS
Peel and chop fine a small onion. Mix it with one cup of bread crumbs, a tablespoon of chopped parsley, the grated rind of one-half lemon, and black pepper, paprika, and grated nutmeg to season.

Make to a smooth paste with beaten egg, spread the mixture on thin slices of bacon, and place a small kidney on each. Roll up and fasten with toothpicks or skewers. Put the rolls in a hot oven and bake for twenty minutes. Garnish with parsley and sliced lemon.

KIDNEY PUDDING
Cut up an ox kidney in thin slices and use this to fill a good sized pudding basin, which you shall have previously lined with a dripping or suet crust. Some persons add a little beef-steak cut into small pieces, in order that the flavor and gravy may be improved. Cover the meat by placing a rolled-out piece of the paste on the top.

Fasten it by pressing the two edges of the paste together, then tie the pudding up in a cloth, and take care to place the bottom of the pudding basin downward in the pot in which it is to be boiled. It will take about two hours to boil a good sized pudding of this kind.

When you take it out of the pot, be very careful not to run the fork through the crust, and pay great attention how you handle the pudding while removing the cloth, so as not to spill or waste the gravy it contains.

KIDNEYS FRIED
Trim and cut the kidney in slices. Season them with salt and pepper, and dredge well with flour. Fry on both sides and when done, lift them out, empty the pan and make a gravy for them with a small piece of butter, one dessertspoon* of flour, pepper, salt, and a cup of boiling water. Shake these around and give them a minute’s simmering. Add a little tomato or mushroom catsup, lemon juice, vinegar, or any good sauce to give it a flavor. Minced herbs are to many tastes an improvement to this dish, to which a small quantity of onion may be added when it is liked.

*dessertspoon – two teaspoons.

Image from Deposit Photos

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Have You Ever Eaten Beef Kidneys? Please Leave a Comment Below.

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ODD BITS: How to Cook the Rest of the Animal

We’re all familiar with the prime cuts—the beef tenderloin, rack of lamb, and pork chops. But what about kidneys, tripe, liver, belly, cheek, and shank? Odd Bits will not only restore our taste for these cuts, but will also remove the mystery of cooking with offal, so food lovers can approach them as confidently as they would a steak. From the familiar (pork belly), to the novel (cockscomb), to the downright challenging (lamb testicles), Jennifer McLagan provides expert advice and delicious recipes to make these odd bits part of every enthusiastic cook’s repertoire.
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