Iam standing in my kitchen preparing kidneys for devilling. Snipping their white cores away piece by piece until they come free and I’m left with just the wibbly, burgundy kidney, ready for their spiced flour, I pause. There is no denying that even fresh raw kidneys can smell a little… challenging. And for one moment I consider skipping the whole thing and just having an unchallenging slice of toast instead. I’m so glad I didn’t.
Because once cooked, kidneys are not challenging at all: they’re luscious and tender, with an earthy, gamey flavour which is almost compulsive. That robustness is actually their strength: kidneys can take bold flavours – feisty seasonings and rich sauces – which is why they are so suited to devilling.
Devilling is a culinary treatment that dates back to the 18th century, but became particularly popular during the Victorian and Edwardian period. Mrs Beeton gives a recipe for devilled sauce in her Book of Household Management and, according to Theodora Fitzgibbon, an Irish cookery writer, James Boswell regularly dined on ‘devilled bones’.
Used particularly for eggs, smoked fish, crab and offal, devilling meant highly seasoning a dish, usually involving mustard or curry powder, giving it the spice or heat that led to the devilish associations. A predecessor of Worcestershire sauce called Harvey’s sauce often featured, and ketchup too. The devilling sauce we make now doesn’t stray far from the original: cayenne is used more often than curry powder, but the Worcestershire sauce is still a must-have, and most sauces use mustard or mustard powder. Many (including mine) are thickened by cream. Here the sauce gets its savoury whoomph from deglazing the pan that the kidneys cooked in and it is devilishly delicious.
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