Kidneys, What to do with them??

[pcallison]

Cleaning out the freezer to defrost before hog gets here & found a pack of two kidneys still in cryovac, 3.8 lbs. Don't have a clue what to do with them. Dog food?, sneak them in with something else like chili or what?

 

[snorkelinggirl]

What animal did they come from?  Are they pig, lamb, or beef kidneys?  

I'm not a huge fan of kidneys, but I've made deviled pig or lamb kidneys on toast a few times. I can't find my recipe, but I've attached a couple of links to deviled pig kidney recipes to give you an idea.  The recipe I made was pretty similar.

http://butchersapprentice.wordpress.com/2011/02/02/devilled-pig-kidneys/

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2009/09/nasty-bits-offal-deviled-kidneys-recipe.html

I bet Moikel has cooked kidneys, and probably has other ideas on what to do with them. 

Let us know how you end up cooking them, and how they come out!

Clarissa

 

[pcallison]

I'm pretty sure they're beef, package isn't marked, May be a while till Moikel checks in, pretty sure times are a little different there. Thanks for the link though, I'll see if I have enough nerve to try it. Catch you later, Phillip

 

[Bearcarver]

All we ever did with our Deer Kidneys was soak them in salt water over night, squeezing the Pee out of them ever hour or so.

Then slice them in 1/4" slices, season, and saute in butter.

Awesome!!!

I used to take leftover sauteed kidneys and heart in a plastic container, and nuke it up in the lunch room at Beth Steel.  Drove them guys nuts!!!!

Bear

 

[pcallison]

Thanks Bear, I'd origionally thought of something along those lines, but wasn't sure, can't go too far wrong with anything fried in butter, right? 

Glad to see you're back amongst us, I've learned a lot from your posts since I've been here. Don't post much, but read everything. We'll see how it goes, worst case scenario will be tasty dog treats. will let you know howw it comes out. See ya, Phillip

 

[old bones]

Years ago we picked up several boxes of beef tallow to render our own lard and while cutting up the tallow, I found two beef kidneys within the tallow; at the time, I thought I struck gold… The wife wouldn’t touch them but that night, I ate like a king.

I grew up on kidneys and to this day I would rather eat a big plate of beef kidneys than your best rib eye. When I was a kid, my mother would cut up the kidneys in to small or ½ inch pieces. Take time to remove unwanted white gristly white center. Put the kidneys in to a cast iron frying pan with a little salt, pepper, a little chopped onion and about a cup of water. Let them cook or sauté slowly on low heat until soft or tender. When you see they are tender, add a can of peas (with some of the water from the can) and let that mixture cook down a little to form gravy. If it looked to thin and watery, she would make a mixture of flour and water to thicken it. To us, this was like a kidney stew. Served over a big plate of mashed potatoes, this was a treat that we all looked forward to eating.  They have a taste that needs to be......   Like I said, we eat things that most would never try today.   

John

 

[pcallison]

Thanks John,

May have to try that. Haven't made a final decision yet. 

About all the recipes Iv'e found have been

for pot pie, or something along those lines

Thanks, Phillip

 

[moikel]

Sorry I am late . Pity I dont have much to say from first hand experience

.I ate one in Paris after ordering it by mistake ,pretty good.But its mostly lamb kidneys here & I just dont dig them.Had to many that had the daylights cooked out of them in steak & kidney pie.

We ship a lot of these to France .I can find a recipe but dont post things I havent cooked myself as a rule. Let me rummage around my French cookbooks. 

Elbow deep in fish roe at the moment.

 

[old bones]

Better yet,  toss it in a box with a little ice on the side and I'll show you what to do with it... 

 

[jeff iskierka]

Old bones, your making me hungry.  I still have two kidneys in the freezer, I may need to take them out when I get home from the station.   

 

[isucyclone]

Pcallison - are the kidneys Kidney Bean shaped or lobulated kind of like a bunch of grapes? Kidney bean shaped = pig, lobulated = cattle

I've never eaten them but enjoy if you cook 'em!

 

[pcallison]

Sorry for the lack of response,but it's been a busy and stressful couple of weeks, my mom passed away the day before Mothers Day. We all knew it was coming, but that doesn't make it any easier. She was 89, raised six kids on practially nothing, wish I could be so resourceful. Not looking for pity, just an explanation. I've looked at all suggestions., and I think I'll go simple, with the first one. Brine in salt water,saute in butter with onion, and riff off of that. I,m pretty sure it's pork, kidney shaped. Thanks for all the responces,

Phillip

 

[snorkelinggirl]

My sincere condolences. My thoughts and prayers are with you.  She sounds like she was an amazing woman.

Clarissa

 

[pcallison]

Thanks Clarissa, she was an amazing woman, She's the one that  got me into nose to tail eating,during the depression,you ate what you had,period. Her brothers ran a trap line,and ate everything but the fur,so I'm not too squimish  about anything, plus I butchered for a while,and that will give you a different perspective on how things come to the table.I'll get to the kidneys after the hollidays, and report back,see ya, 

Phillip

 

[old bones]

Sorry to hear about your mother.   Letting our loved ones go to our father is always hard.  She must have been a fine person and a great mother.  Her actions reflect in your writting.  I'm sure she is in a better place.  

Thoughts and Prayers to You and Your Loved Ones. 

 

[shoneyboy]

 Alright, I’m not trying to be sarcastic or ugly/nasty about this, but my grandmother use to eat kidneys…… I remember when I was young, my grandfather saying, “Do you know how you cook kidneys?” and I would always fall for it and say “No how?” he would reply “You gotta boil the piss out of them” then he would laugh “Ha! Ha! Ha!” ………Ewwwwww, I just triggered a smell memory of them things boiling on the stove.....YUCK !!!!………Once she boiled them, she would chop them up and fry them in a black iron skillet till they looked worse……Then she would add salt, pepper, vinegar and oil to the mix before eating them………I don’t think I’ll be much help with a recipe and they probably taste pretty good, but I don’t think I will be try any, any time soon………But it does bring back fond memories of my grandmother, not the kidneys........ShoneyBoy

 

[moikel]

I hear you Shoneyboy,I saw to many badly cooked lamb kidneys,just cant get the taste .No other reason,lets face it I eat a whole bunch other stuff that gets me a few funny looks.

Veal kidney was a better deal but still find a whole bunch of other offal more attractive .
 

 

[pcallison]

Old Bones, Shoney boy & Moikel, Thanks for the replies.

I'll probably cook them outside when better half is out, she's not as open minded about this stuff as I am.

Mom has probably cooked and eaten kidneys in the past, but never mentioned it to me. She did say that she has eaten bobcat

several times and wasn't bad. I draw the line at predators though, not for me.

Thanks again for condolances, See ya, Phillip

P.S. Clarrissa, I did try your balsamic, butter reduction , was very good, Thanks for sharing. 

 

[snorkelinggirl]

Old Bones, Shoney boy & Moikel, Thanks for the replies.

I'll probably cook them outside when better half is out, she's not as open minded about this stuff as I am.

Mom has probably cooked and eaten kidneys in the past, but never mentioned it to me. She did say that she has eaten bobcat

several times and wasn't bad. I draw the line at predators though, not for me.

Thanks again for condolances, See ya, Phillip

P.S. Clarrissa, I did try your balsamic, butter reduction , was very good, Thanks for sharing. 

Hi Phillip,

Glad that you liked the balsamic reduction!  Thanks for letting me know. It might even go well with bobcat

So sorry again for the loss of your mother.

Clarissa

 

[Bearcarver]

 Alright, I’m not trying to be sarcastic or ugly/nasty about this, but my grandmother use to eat kidneys…… I remember when I was young, my grandfather saying, “Do you know how you cook kidneys?” and I would always fall for it and say “No how?” he would reply “You gotta boil the piss out of them” then he would laugh “Ha! Ha! Ha!” ………Ewwwwww, I just triggered a smell memory of them things boiling on the stove.....YUCK !!!!………Once she boiled them, she would chop them up and fry them in a black iron skillet till they looked worse……Then she would add salt, pepper, vinegar and oil to the mix before eating them………I don’t think I’ll be much help with a recipe and they probably taste pretty good, but I don’t think I will be try any, any time soon………But it does bring back fond memories of my grandmother, not the kidneys........ShoneyBoy

LOL----Similar to my post above (post #4), except my Dad squeezed it out of them, instead of boiling it out.

Bear