Kidneys and Spätzle

 

Attention, the kidneys must first be soaked for 2 hours before cooking!

I've only done this once so far, and will certainly change a few things, also the photos don't quite fit.

Preparation You'll need: A large pan A medium or large pot with lid
Ingredients kidneys (for 2 people) approx. 500-600 g pork kidneys - it is best to have them prepared by the butcher, as the skins have to be removed and especially the tubes. Then he can also cut them into small pieces. If you can't have them cleaned (or not properly cleaned) then have a look at this page. 4 shallots 1 large carot 1 large leek 1 large piece of celery and/or (if you happen to have it and want to get rid of it) parsnip / parsley root 1 Tbsp tomato puree 1 Tbsp flour 150 mL red wine 150 mL cream 1-2 Tbsp red wine vinegar 3 French cornichons or 1 large gherkin
Ingredients Spätzle (for 2 people) (Complete recipe) 3 eggs (L or M) Approx. 180 g flour (also depends on the eggs) just under 1 tsp salt
First of all 2 hours before you want to start cooking, you need to soak the kidneys. You will need a large bowl and a large sieve (so that the kidneys fit comfortably and the sieve fits into the bowl). Place the kidneys in the sieve and rinse briefly. Place in the bowl with the sieve and fill up with cold water. Put to one side. 1/2 hour later: briefly remove the sieve from the bowl and stir the kidneys briefly by hand so that there is no more water in the sieve. Tip out the water in the bowl. -> Now repeat everything three more times, then you can start cooking; the typical unpleasant odour of fresh kidneys should have disappeared. In the meantime, you can continue with the other preparations, see below.
Further steps Bring a pot of water to the boil, add 2 tsp salt, switch off again, this is for the spaetzle. If you have a good cooker, you can save yourself the trouble. Roughly chop 4 shallots, 2 large carrots, 1 large leek and a suitable amount of celery/parsnip/parsley root. Prepare 150 ml red wine. Cut 3 cornichons into slices and set aside separately.
Preparation Heat a little olive oil in a pan. Add the kidneys and fry over a slightly higher heat until they are no longer raw. As the kidneys release a lot of water, tip them into the sieve used and then put them to one side in a bowl. Season generously with pepper, lightly salt and stir briefly. Now bring the pot of water for the spaetzle to the boil (again). Roast the vegetables in the pan over a high heat until the first dark spots appear. Sprinkle over 1 Tbsp of flour and stir. Deglaze with red wine, add 1-2 Tbsp red wine vinegar. Boil down the sauce considerably, it reduces relatively quickly. In the meantime, prepare the spaetzle. As soon as the sauce has reduced considerably, pass through the sieve (press the vegetables against the sieve with a spoon, get all the flavour out of the sauce ツ). Park the spaetzle in a bowl in the oven at 50°C together with the plates. Briefly fry 1 Tbsp of tomato purée in the pan, then add the gravy, gherkins and 150 ml of cream and bring to the boil. Pour in the kidneys and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Then place the spaetzle in the bowl on the table for self-service, divide the kidneys between the plates and serve. A red wine or non-alcoholic beer goes well with this.