Sherry stewed kidneys

How to make stewed kidneys .

The Arab period of the Iberian Peninsula left, among many other traditions, culinary customs that have been maintained and perfected to this day.

Among them would be the lamb kidneys , which was the meat they used the most. Thus, cities like Jerez de la Frontera, with a great winemaking tradition, knew how to combine and make their own certain recipes.

Dishes that today are part of our wonderful gastronomy. A recipe with history, kidneys in Jerez.

I know that many of you don’t like casquería, but I just love it. It is a very special flavor and it may be that, if you have never tried it, it is because it is not visually attractive to you, a cover that you love or detest.

However, it is a delicious snack and I am sure that if you try it you will love it. It is one of my favorite appetizers, one of those traditional dishes that are part of the national tapas, and where it is very common to find them on the menus of many bars and restaurants in Madrid.

Recipes made with shells have that love-hate attraction. Kidneys are lamb, pork or veal, such as pig’s tail, snout, Galician ear, brains, blood, tripe in Madrid or  Galician tripe , liver with onions , sweetbreads or criadillas are lifelong.

Casquería products that I will be publishing soon and that will delight fans of this type of Spanish recipe dishes.

Preparation of the kidneys. Before starting the recipe

1. Preparing kidneys in Sherry is very easy, but you should not forget to clean them well.
2. It is very important to remove any debris or dirt that the kidney may have. The butcher can prepare them for you, cutting them in half, so you will not have to manipulate them much.
3. Just wash and cook them, but if you don’t cut them, it’s not that much work either.
4. A cut to the center and you have it ready. To thicken the sauce a little, this time, I used ground almonds. A tablespoon will suffice and will give it a very special touch.
5. Before cooking the kidneys, as I mentioned, we put them to soak with water (until covered), a generous stream of vinegar and a handful of salt.
6. We leave them to soak for 30 minutes. When we go to cook them, we pass them a couple of times in water and drain them in a strainer.

Preparation of the kidneys to Jerez

1. Chop the onion and put it to sauté in a low saucepan, with a stream of olive oil, over medium heat and stirring often.
2. When the onion has taken on a transparent shade, chop the garlic and add it to the saucepan. We continue stirring to avoid burning.
3. When the onion and garlic have poached (without burning), add the bay leaf, thyme, rosemary and kidneys.
4. We braise 1 minute. Add salt to taste. Pour in the wine and let it reduce to medium heat for 2 or 3 minutes.
5. Next we incorporate the meat broth and a tablespoon of ground almond and let it cook for about 20 minutes over medium heat.
6. When the sauce has reduced, remove them from the heat and serve them hot.

A typical Andalusian recipe, tasty and traditional that we can serve in a clay pot decorated with some fried bread and even decorated with a little chopped parsley.

You can see all the photos of the step by step in the next album.  

Your tips for yummy kidneys

Yesterday I received an email from Juan, an emancipated and very nice student, his email is one of those that encourage you to cook more and more. Send me a suggestion (at your command Juan)

“ You see, I am in love with shellfish dishes, but I have never dared to prepare them myself. I imagine that you will not like them too much or that they will not seem very healthy … or simply you have never given up for publishing them on the blog, what do I know. But I would love for you to hang some of those recipes for tripe, ear, liver or kidney so typical of grandmother and traditional tapas bars. So, if you have one (of course, of course) stored out there, you already know that you have at least one follower waiting to read it ”