Lamb pudding

Serves 4-6

Hearty dish: Mark's lamb pudding (Jason Lowe)

Vegetable oil, to fry
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2tbsp plain flour
600g neck of lamb fillet, cut into 3cm cubes
2 lamb's tongues
6 lamb's kidneys
25g butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1tsp tomato paste
Glass of good red wine
150ml stout
1.5 litres lamb or beef stock (or good-quality stock cubes will do)
A sprig of thyme
Half a bay leaf
About 1 teaspoon cornflour (optional)

For the suet pastry

250g self-raising flour
125g shredded beef suet
150ml milk

Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan. Season and lightly flour the neck of lamb with half a tablespoon of the flour, then fry it in 2 or 3 batches until browned. Do the same with the kidneys; put to one side. Heat the butter in the base of the pressure cooker; fry the onion for a few minutes until soft. Add the remaining flour and the tomato paste; stir over a low heat for a minute.

Slowly add the wine and stout, stirring to avoid lumps. Bring to a simmer, add the thyme and bay leaf; simmer until it has reduced by half. Add the beef stock and the pieces of lamb and the whole tongues, bring back to the boil, close the lid and cook for about 40 minutes or until the meat is tender.

When the meat is cooked, remove the pieces of neck and the tongues; put to one side to cool a little. The sauce should have thickened to a thick consistency. If not, mix a little cornflour to a paste with water, stir into the sauce and simmer for a few minutes until it thickens. Leave to cool. Remove the skin from the tongue and cut into chunks the same size as the lamb neck. Add the neck, tongue and kidneys back to the sauce once cool.

Meanwhile, make the pastry: mix the flour and suet together in a bowl, then gradually mix in the milk to form a dough. The dough should be soft but firm enough to roll out into a circle large enough to line a 1.5 litre pudding basin, or individual ones. Cut a quarter out of the circle for the lid and to ease the lining of the bowl.

Butter the pudding basin well, drop the pastry into it; join up the edges where the quarter was removed. Remould the pastry for the top and roll it out to the correct size. Spoon the filling into the pudding mould, leaving any excess sauce to serve once cooked. Lay the pastry lid on top and press the edges together so that the filling is sealed in.

Cut a piece of foil big enough to fit over the top of the basin and come halfway down the sides, making a pleat down the middle to allow for expansion. Tie it in place with some string, making a string handle so it can be lifted when topping up with water. Clean your pressure cooker, pour in about 3-4cm hot water and lower the pudding or puddings into it. Close the lid and cook for 45 minutes. Serve immediately with extra sauce.