Tony Singh’s Cabbage and Ribs Pudding
This Cabbage and Ribs suet pudding is one of Tony Singh's favourites. The humble dish is a recipe from his Granny and it has a spicy kick. Serve with a brilliant cumin gravy!
Ingredients
For the filling:
- 1lb white cabbage
- 2lb mutton or lamb ribs
- 2 x small Spanish onions chopped
- 1 x tablespoons of crushed garlic
- 3-inch piece of fresh ginger peeled chopped
- 1 x 300g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 3 x tablespoons of cooking oil
- ½ tablespoon of turmeric
- 1 tablespoon of garam masala
- ½ tablespoon crushed green chillies
- ½ x teaspoon red chilli powder
- 100mls water
- Salt to taste
For the suet pastry:
- 350g self-raising flour
- 175g suet
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
For the roast cumin gravy:
- 1 tablespoons rapeseed oil
- 100g shallots, sliced thinly
- 100g Spanish onion, diced
- 100g carrot, cut into ½-inch dice
- 50g celery, cut into ½-inch dice
- 150g button mushrooms, sliced
- 4 clove garlic, sliced
- 200 ml red wine
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 4 turns of black peppercorn
- 250 ml lamb stock
- 250 ml chicken stock
- 50 g red currant jelly
- Salt
- 5 grams roasted cumin seeds
Method
Chop the cabbage into thick slices, wash, then drain. Chop the ribs and wash.
Place oil in a pan over a medium heat, fry the onions until golden brown then add garlic, ginger and green chillies.
Add water, all dry spices and stir.
Next add the tomatoes and the ribs and coat in the sauce. Add the cabbage and cover with tight fitting lid.
Slowly cook until the meat falls off the bone and the cabbage is cooked in its own juices.Remove from the heat and place on a tray to cool.
Once you are able to handle the mixture, pick off all the meat from the bones and discard, then go through the mixture and discard any more bones you find. Leave to go totally cold.
Meanwhile make the suet pastry. Mix the flour and the suet together then add 100 mls of water to start with and mix with knife.
The aim is to bring it together as a dough, so keep adding drops of water until it begins to get really claggy and sticky. Now abandon the knife, go in with your hands and bring it all together until you have a nice smooth elastic dough, which leaves the bowl clean.
It’s worth noting that suet pastry always needs more water than other types, so if it is still a bit dry just go on adding a few drops at a time.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and cut away a quarter of it and put it to one side for the lid.
Lightly dust a rolling pin with flour and place it in the centre of the dough. Place the flat of your hands lightly on each end of the pin and begin to roll, re-dusting the pin and the surface lightly with flour if you need to stop the pastry sticking. What you need is a fairly thick circle about 40 cm in diameter, so give it quarter-turns as it expands and, provided you roll backwards and forwards, not side to side, it will roll out into a round shape.
If you are making smaller puddings adapt the size of the pastry and line the individual pudding basins.
If you find you have some thinner areas around the edges, then just patch them with spare pastry.
Add the filling, then roll out the pastry lids from the scraps of pastry into one piece (or into the sizes of the individual pies if making).
Dampen the edges and put it in position on the pudding. Seal well and cover with a double sheet of foil, pleated in the centre to allow room for expansion while cooking. Then place it in a steamer over boiling water for 1½ hours.
Meanwhile make the roast cumin gravy.
Place a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add rapeseed oil, shallots, onions, carrots, celery; caramelize vegetables, about 8 minutes. Add mushrooms and garlic, then cook for 3 minutes. Deglaze with wine and reduce by 80 percent.
Add thyme, peppercorns, both stocks and jelly. Simmer until reduced by 70 percent.
Season with salt, pass through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth, then add the cumin.
When ready turn the puddings out on serving plates with veggies of your choice and serve with the roast cumin gravy.
Ingredients
For the filling:
- 1lb white cabbage
- 2lb mutton or lamb ribs
- 2 x small Spanish onions chopped
- 1 x tablespoons of crushed garlic
- 3-inch piece of fresh ginger peeled chopped
- 1 x 300g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 3 x tablespoons of cooking oil
- ½ tablespoon of turmeric
- 1 tablespoon of garam masala
- ½ tablespoon crushed green chillies
- ½ x teaspoon red chilli powder
- 100mls water
- Salt to taste
For the suet pastry:
- 350g self-raising flour
- 175g suet
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper
For the roast cumin gravy:
- 1 tablespoons rapeseed oil
- 100g shallots, sliced thinly
- 100g Spanish onion, diced
- 100g carrot, cut into ½-inch dice
- 50g celery, cut into ½-inch dice
- 150g button mushrooms, sliced
- 4 clove garlic, sliced
- 200 ml red wine
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 4 turns of black peppercorn
- 250 ml lamb stock
- 250 ml chicken stock
- 50 g red currant jelly
- Salt
- 5 grams roasted cumin seeds
Method
Chop the cabbage into thick slices, wash, then drain. Chop the ribs and wash.
Place oil in a pan over a medium heat, fry the onions until golden brown then add garlic, ginger and green chillies.
Add water, all dry spices and stir.
Next add the tomatoes and the ribs and coat in the sauce. Add the cabbage and cover with tight fitting lid.
Slowly cook until the meat falls off the bone and the cabbage is cooked in its own juices.Remove from the heat and place on a tray to cool.
Once you are able to handle the mixture, pick off all the meat from the bones and discard, then go through the mixture and discard any more bones you find. Leave to go totally cold.
Meanwhile make the suet pastry. Mix the flour and the suet together then add 100 mls of water to start with and mix with knife.
The aim is to bring it together as a dough, so keep adding drops of water until it begins to get really claggy and sticky. Now abandon the knife, go in with your hands and bring it all together until you have a nice smooth elastic dough, which leaves the bowl clean.
It’s worth noting that suet pastry always needs more water than other types, so if it is still a bit dry just go on adding a few drops at a time.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and cut away a quarter of it and put it to one side for the lid.
Lightly dust a rolling pin with flour and place it in the centre of the dough. Place the flat of your hands lightly on each end of the pin and begin to roll, re-dusting the pin and the surface lightly with flour if you need to stop the pastry sticking. What you need is a fairly thick circle about 40 cm in diameter, so give it quarter-turns as it expands and, provided you roll backwards and forwards, not side to side, it will roll out into a round shape.
If you are making smaller puddings adapt the size of the pastry and line the individual pudding basins.
If you find you have some thinner areas around the edges, then just patch them with spare pastry.
Add the filling, then roll out the pastry lids from the scraps of pastry into one piece (or into the sizes of the individual pies if making).
Dampen the edges and put it in position on the pudding. Seal well and cover with a double sheet of foil, pleated in the centre to allow room for expansion while cooking. Then place it in a steamer over boiling water for 1½ hours.
Meanwhile make the roast cumin gravy.
Place a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add rapeseed oil, shallots, onions, carrots, celery; caramelize vegetables, about 8 minutes. Add mushrooms and garlic, then cook for 3 minutes. Deglaze with wine and reduce by 80 percent.
Add thyme, peppercorns, both stocks and jelly. Simmer until reduced by 70 percent.
Season with salt, pass through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth, then add the cumin.
When ready turn the puddings out on serving plates with veggies of your choice and serve with the roast cumin gravy.
