Rich venison casserole

This is an extremely rich venison casserole.  It takes quite a long time to marinate and cook venison but it only requires short bursts of activity and effort is well worth while.  It can use meat from any part of the deer and (from a meat point of view) can be economical.

Preparation Time: 20 Mins

Cooking Time: 3 Hrs

Total Time: 7 Days

Ingredients

For 6 servings…

1360 gms         Venison  - cut into mouth-sized cubes     

2 tbs               Butter       

2 tbs               Olive oil    

110 gms           Bacon  - smoked, streaky - cut into lardons

2                    Pickled walnuts  - chopped     

For the marinade

2 sprigs            Parsley      

1½                  Onions  - sliced        

3 cloves            Garlic       

3                    Carrots  - diced       

140 ml             Olive oil    

60 gms            Raisins      

  Bouquet garni  

3                    Bay leaves  

½ tbs               Thyme  - dried        

3                    Juniper berries  - crushed        

8                    Peppercorns  - black  

6                    Cloves      

1½ bottles         Wine  - red 

To sauté the mushrooms

12                   Mushrooms  - button 

50 gms            Butter       

For the sauce

                     Marinade  - sieved liquids       

1½ tbs             Butter       

1½ tbs             Flour        

3 tbs               Elderberry jelly        

170 ml             Port         

To serve

                     Fried bread  - triangles

                     Parsley  - chopped    

Method

To make the marinade…

Sweat the onion and carrots in a little oil till softened, add all the herbs and spices and mix together.  Transfer to a very large bowl (Not metal) and pour over the remaining oil and wine.  Mix well.

Add the venison and leave to marinate in a cool place for at least three days and, ideally a week

Remove the meat from the marinade leaving as much of the liquid as possible.  Also remove any cloves or other bits of the marinade that may be clinging to the meat and return them to the marinade.

In a heavy-bottomed pan, melt the butter and oil and then lightly sauté the bacon and venison — in batches but keep using the same fat in the pan for each batch.  Transfer the meat to a bowl.

Pour the marinade into the frying pan, place over a high heat and boil rapidly till the liquid is reduced by half.  Strain the liquid.

Place the meat in a casserole, pour in the strained liquid strained from the frying pan and add the pickled walnuts.  Cook for about 2 hours or until tender.  Remove the meat from the liquid and keep it to one side

To sauté the mushrooms…

Fry the mushrooms in the butter until softened.

To make the sauce…

Boil the liquid in the casserole very rapidly for about 10-15 minutes to reduce it by about a quarter.  Then add the beurre manié (the butter and flour blended together) bit by bit, stirring all the time to make sure it is well amalgamated and keeping the sauce simmering.  Next add the jelly and the port and keep stirring till the jelly is dissolved.  Boil all together for five minutes.  The sauce should be rich, thick and dark.  Pour it over the venison and add the sautéed whole mushrooms.

Serve with triangles of fried bread and sprinkled with chopped parsley.

Serve With

          Red cabbage

          Elderberry jelly

Wine recommendations

          A very robust red wine.

  Conventional

           Cairanne

           Gigondas

           Rasteau

           Vacqueyras

  Special

           Châteauneuf-du-Pape

           Côte Rôtie