Ingredients

olive oil
2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped
2 tbsp plain flour
500g chuck steak, diced
2 tbsp tomato purée
4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 fresh bay leaves
1 sprig thyme
750ml Goldenfry Original Gravy Granules Beef, made as per pack instructions
a little butter for greasing the pudding bowl
250g ox kidney, halved, cleaned and cut to size
2 packs Goldenfry Farmhouse Style Dumpling Mix, made as per pack instructions
sea salt
freshly ground pepper

Method

  1. Put a large casserole pan on a high heat and add a lug of olive oil. Add the diced onions and a pinch of salt and fry until golden and soft.
  2. Coat the meat and kidney in seasoned flour, add to the onion and fry together until the meat is golden brown. Add the tomato purée and stir together and cook for a minute or two, now add the Worcestershire Sauce, bay leaves and the thyme.
  3. Make the gravy as per pack instructions, add to the meat and other ingredients and simmer gently with a lid on for ½ hour.
  4. In the meantime, mix together the 2 x packs of dumpling mix as per pack instructions until it forms a dough. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for ½ hour.
  5. Grease a 1.5 litre pudding bowl with the butter.
  6. Dust a clean surface with flour and roll out 80% of your dough so it is about 0.5cm thick. Loosely drape it over a rolling pin, then unroll over the pudding basin. Push and pat it in letting a couple of cms hang over the edge. Now add the meat and gravy into the bowl lined with dough. Roll out the remaining dough to make the lid. Put it on top of the filling and fold over the overhanging pastry to seal and pack it down, then put a buttered piece of greaseproof paper face down on top, followed by a clean tea towel. Get 2 metres of untied string, wrap it around the pudding going twice around the rim. Tie it in a double knot, then attach the other end to the opposite side with a double knot to make a handle – this will make pulling the pudding out at the end of cooking easier.
  7. Place a small plate in the bottom of a large saucepan and place the pudding on top. Now fill the saucepan to half way up the pudding bowl with boiling water. Put on the lid and simmer on the heat for 3 hours. Top up the water every now and then and do not allow it to boil dry.
  8. When ready, carefully pull out the basin, cut away and discard the string, greaseproof paper and tea towel and place a serving platter on top. Carefully and confidently turn over and leave upturned. Carefully ease the basin off and serve with your choice of vegetables.