Savoury Meat Roll

When I was making this recipe, I realised how often we write down a recipe and because you are the one that uses the recipe, (you’ve seen the end product) you leave out details that others would deem important (especially 20 years later) because, after all you make it all the time and you don’t need the details.  I really wish this recipe had a picture with it so that I could see what it should look like.    So I have decided to add this week, “What I would have done differently” and what I substituted according to today’s ingredients and what’s available.  Note:  Picture available below ;)

 Recipe – Savoury Meat Roll - Original recipe

 Potato pastry:

 4 oz Potatoes mashed (I would have cooked the potatoes the night before to cool before I add it to my flour)

4 oz Flour (I used a gluten free version, unbleached)

3 oz cooking fat (I used salted butter)

Seasoning ( I used Himalayan salt and a mixed savoury spice)

Very little water

Add seasoning to flour.  Rub in cooking fat then add the potatoes.  Knead firmly and add the water to give firm dough.  This is an excellent pastry for savoury dishes.  (On advice from Deidre, I wrapped the dough in cling wrap and let it cool in the fridge before rolling it out.)

The recipe also gives two options – you can use meat, or corned beef.  I chose the corned beef option, without heart, lungs and pork.

Savoury Meat Roll:

1 Large Onion

1 oz cooking fat (I used butter)

2 large tomatoes

Seasoning (black pepper with salt)

8 oz minced cooked meat or corned beef

1 oz cooking fat (butter)

Pinch of herbs -mixed (I added 1 tspoon of coriander)

Potato Pastry

Chop onions and tomatoes.  Fry in hot fat until soft.  Add the meat etc.  Roll potato pastry into two oblong shapes.  Spread filling over one and cover with the other.  Seal the edges, score top and bake for approx 35-40 mins in the centre of a hot oven at 425 – 450 ® F.  Brush with egg and milk before cooking to give a glaze if wished.

I picked up a few challenges with the pastry but the end result as I placed it in the oven to bake made me picture my mom.  I am sure she may have added her own twist to this recipe too.  I cannot remember her making it too often while we were all in the house but for it to be starred in the cook book, it must have been a favourite.

 I couldn’t remember this recipe either when I read through it.  It was only when I saw Mandi’s photograph that I had a faint recollection of it.  I’m wondering whether this was made mostly after my siblings and I had left the house.  That it was a favourite is certain due to the markings on the page….

During the making of my pimped version, I encountered many technical challenges.  Methods I had only seen on cooking shows I now had to achieve for my own recipe (Not that I had planned it that way, believe me!).  Let’s call this episode a ‘learning experience’.  I have also incorporated a ‘What I would have done differently’ piece after the recipe….  I will definitely make this again, it was delicious the first time, can be even better next time!

Savoury Meat Roll – Pimped version

Pastry:

110 g cold mashed potato

110 g self raising flour

80 g butter

Pinch of salt

Mix the flour and the salt.  Rub in the butter.

Add the mashed potato and mix together until it forms a stiff dough.

(I had to add additional flour to make it a stiff dough – definitely did not need any water)

Wrap dough in clingwrap and place in fridge to cool for at least 1 hour.

Meat Roll:

1 kg lean beef mince

½ tsp salt

Pepper

1 tsp sweet basil

1 large onion chopped

250 g fresh sliced mushrooms

500 g fresh spinach

Place the mince in a bowl

Add the salt, pepper and sweet basil – mix

Add the chopped onion – mix

Place clingwrap on a large cutting board (my cutting board is about 30 cm x 50 cm) leaving about 10 cm of clingwrap free on each side

Put the mince mixture on the clingwrap and spread out to form a rectangle +/- 1 cm thick

Fry the mushrooms in butter until soft

Fry the spinach in butter until wilted (separately)

Spread the spinach over the mince mixture and place mushrooms on top

Pull the right hand side of the clingwrap up and fold the mince mixture to start a roll (like a swiss roll).

Roll the mince into a tight roll.  At the end, fold the clingwrap tightly around the mince to make a sausage.

Place the mince roll in the fridge to chill for about 1 hour.

Roll the dough out on a floured cutting board into a rectangle the same size as the mince roll

Remove the clingwrap from the mince roll and place it on the right hand edge of the pastry

Roll the pastry and the dough together towards the left hand side

Fold the edges of the dough over so that the mince roll is completely enclosed in pastry.

Place in a preheated 180 °C oven for +/- 45 minutes.

What I would have done differently:

·        I would have added an egg to the mince mixture to bind it;

·        The mince mixture had a lot of moisture which caused my savoury meat roll to have a ‘soggy bottom’.  I think it might have been better with the corned meat or I need to find a way to pre- cook the mince and still have it bind in the roll…..  The moisture wasn’t a total train wreck – the pastry which was soaked with the meat juices tasted like dumplings J

·        It needs more filling without the roll getting out of proportion – will have to work on this too

·        I will double the pastry recipe.  My pastry was a very thin layer around the roll.