Save time and money – Part 4

… or you could try a posh Shepherd's Pie Upside Down.

SPUD

(Shepherd's Pie Upside Down)

Serves 4-6

940g braising steak – 1kg will do it doesn't

have to be precise

980g beef stock - ditto

Glug of rapeseed oil

salt and pepper

2 x beef stock pots

salt and black pepper

I zoomed to the butchers and bought 3 x trays of cubed braising steak for £10. A good start! A little patience is required here – using a large frying pan heat the rapeseed oil, place braising steak in the pan – it should sizzle – season with salt and pepper. Don't overload the pan, brown the meat and then set aside in your slow cooker making way for the next batch and repeat until you've browned all the meat. If you insist in ramming it all into the pan it will turn grey and stew – it's not a good look.

Add a litre of water to the juices left in the frying pan, bring to the boil then add the stock pots – stir until melted – pour carefully into the slow cooker with the meat. Pop the lid on and slow cook for four hours.

Switch off and cool – if you want to freeze all or part then divide the stock between two “pour and store” freezer bags and divide the meat between two in strong freezer bags.

Other than the slow cooking of the braising steak there's no work involved - the mash and turning the stock into a gravy beyond all gravies is easy, peasy, just thicken the stock as required with 1-2 teaspoons of slaked cornflour.

All that remains is the mashed potatoes – a large pan! Leftover mash is perfect for bubble & squeak or corned beef hash.

Was it worth the fifteen minutes I spent prepping the braising steak for the slow cooker … you betcha!

P.s. You might want to offer your guests a spoon too, to scoop up the leftover gravy. In the North we have a less refined custom but much more satisfying – use small pieces of crusty bread to dip and mop up the remains.

Yum!

The Get Well gift

I've decided to make a chicken and mushroom pie – the filling immersed in anise flavoured chicken stock and a drop of double cream – the “pie” is not pastry but – remember the baked jacket potatoes – a sliced potato top.

Slice the chestnut mushrooms and sauté

in a drop of rapeseed oil until they have lost all

the liquid and have some colour

Make the sauce – make a velouté sauce and

add diced chicken and the mushrooms

Decant into individual foil containers, add a

layer of baked jacket potatoes

Extra pots of sauce – everyone likes gravy!

I haven't finished yet – there are hints and tips and more to come.

The main … posh lamb!

This is a dish I first mentioned way back in 2016 under the label on the blog “Posh lamb”. At that time I used lamb shanks – this time around I'm using shoulder of lamb and there's a step by step photo guide too. The dish also uses the dariole moulds for a savoury dish.

As a guide – a shoulder weighing 1.8kg. I asked my butcher to cut the shoulder into four pieces – it's much easier to brown and then fit into the slow cooker. Seal and season (with salt and black pepper) the pieces of shoulder on all sides and then place into your slow cooker with lamb stock and garlic paste if you wish and cook for six hours.

Whilst your lamb is cooking prepare the dariole moulds. Using a pastry brush grease the inside of the moulds. How many dariole moulds you want to use depends on how many you're serving. Two timbales per person is filling but you may want three if you've large appetites to satisfy. To be safe I prepared nine – any leftovers can be frozen for another time. Line each greased mould with cling film ensuring you've an overlap.

Take the lamb out of the slow cooker and set aside in a large dish – I used a foil version – to cool. Using a knife and fork, strip the shoulder and place on a sheet of foil. Discard the remaining bones and bits.

At this point wrap the stripped lamb in foil and fridge it. When time permits chop your lamb finely. Next up is a very useful piece of kit – a wooden pastry tamper, aka a pastry pusher – its actual use is to form tart shells with the large end and for mini baking tins for canapés or bite sized pies with the small end. In this instance it's the perfect tool to press the lamb tightly into the mould, you'll probably need to fill and press twice, so that each mould is two thirds full. When the moulds are full cover with the overlapped cling film. Return the moulds to the fridge and stack in twos.

Now for the Redcurrant and Port jus :

227g jar of redcurrant jelly

200ml of Port

Melt the jelly in a pan over a gentle heat, add the port and bring to the boil, uncovered for 10-12 minutes until syrupy. Leave to cool then cover and fridge until ready for use. You can freeze the jus ahead if you prefer, it will keep for a month. Defrost it at room temperature and re-heat to serve.

All prepped ahead and ready when I am!

The jus and a pie too

You can be posher still if you'd prefer – save your delicious gravy and serve your venison with a redcurrant and port jus. I don't think I could be accused of being “cheffy” but there are some occasions when you have to push the boat out. Oh and by the way this is the quickest and most delicious jus you'll ever make. The other major bonus here is that if you have a pesky vegetarian to cater for – in this case me – then the jus is suitable for said person!

Redcurrant and Port jus

227g jar Redcurrant jelly

200ml Port

Melt the redcurrant jelly in a pan over a gentle heat, add the port and boil, uncovered for 10-12 minutes until syrupy. If you are freezing the jus let it cool - it will freeze for a month. Defrost the sauce at room temperature and reheat to serve.

Can I just clear up this jus and gravy thing – they are both French in origin – a jus is made from the meat juices and not thickened - gravy is made from meat juices and is thickened.

and

You could have eaten it with a spoon!

It's true to say that I have a reputation for always overdoing it and producing too much food. However there is an upside – especially when you've more friends arriving for supper the following day – yippee!

I had enough venison left – with the saved gravy this time to make a venison version of a shepherds pie – here's the base :

It turned out to be a very popular choice for supper!

Gallimaufry – Hints and Tips

First up, the potatoes. You'll notice that the recipe calls for red new potatoes. Have a look for “Albert Bartlett Apache potatoes – great for roasting or mashing in their skins”. I've found them in 600g bags. The majority of the larger supermarkets carry more varieties these days - another example is Ruby Gem, found at Waitrose.

Next the tapenade. You can do whatever is more practical – I always have a jar of black olive tapenade in my store cupboard and my favourite is M&S Black Olive Tapenade – it also has an excellent best before date. If you're feeling adventurous have a go at making your own. It's easy.

Coarse Tapenade

1 tbsp drained capers

85g pitted olives

1 tbsp olive oil

Two anchovies, chopped finely

1 roasted garlic clove

1 dessert spoon of lemon juice

Blitz all the ingredients. The trick is to stop pulverising whilst the mixture is coarse – it gives texture to the dish and not mush.

Then there's the stock. You can thicken it if you wish – as it is it's more of a broth. If you are a “gravy” person and prefer a little more substance then mix 1 tsp of cornflour with a drop or two of water and add gradually to the stock as you're warming it through. Note to self – don't be tempted to add anything else – whether to the stock or to the gravy – your stock is already infused with garlic and oregano, not for nothing do I call it liquid gold.

Here's another idea. This recipe makes me think of the perfect supper for a duvet/box set day. How romantic to make one huge plate to share … I'll leave that with you.

Finally – you still have two chicken legs, wings etc., leftover from the slow cooking. Strip the legs and wings of meat, bag and freeze – don't forget to mark the bag. Use the chicken in cooked pasta with Alfredo Sauce or as part of a mid week frittata or last but by no means least you have your protein element for your chicken salad wrap – with mango or raita dressing for lunch the next day – there will probably be enough chicken for two wraps – just in case you're feeling generous. If you have time then tip the remaining chicken bits into a large saucepan, cover with water – bring to the boil and simmer for 20-30 minutes strain and boom – chicken stock. Freeze it in small amounts – you'll be pleased you did. If you are short of time then bag the remains and freeze it for making stock for soup whenever the mood takes.

Food for thought – I hope!