Woburn Venison

I personally think it’s shameful when British supermarkets import ingredients that are perfectly available in the UK and then sell them for a high price. The ingredient, or rather the meat that’s got my blood boiling is the humble venison. Gaining popularity and growing in demand with the health conscious foodie: venison is lean, packed full of iron and an unconventional but safe meat to impress dinner guests. Supermarkets have obviously picked up on this, and for a few years now have been stocking a range of venison products… from New Zealand! Yes, even though we have an ample amount of deer running around the British countryside, we still import the meat from New Zealand. It boggles my mind as to how this could be a cheaper option, but also, why there is no Bristish Venison on sale in our four largest British supermarkets.  

So the following recipe has been inspired by the seasonal ingredients available to us at this time of the year (even though it’s been rather rainy) and have all been sourced locally, just to prove seasonality isn’t always just about fruit and veg:

Peppered venison steak, roasted parsnip mash and field mushrooms, with a blackcurrent sauce

Seasonal ingredients have a great way of complimenting each other. The recipe isn’t fancy, but just a basic, great tasting combination of flavours. Initially I couldn't decide between roasted or pureed parsnips, so I decided to puree roasted parsnips and have the best of both: the roasted flavour and the pureed texture.

I can guarantee that most butchers or local farm shops will stock local venison. I decided to go the source and drove thirty minutes to Woburn, where I bought my venison from Woburn Country Foods. The deers came from the 3000acre of woodlands on the local Woburn Abbey Estate. The venison steaks were also half the price of New Zealand Venison steaks available at the supermarket… Go figure!? I’m unclear of the breed, but I was assured only seasonal meat is sold in the Farm Shop. 

Ingredients

1 Venison Steak

3 Large Parsnips, peeled

½ Potato, skin on

100g Field Mushrooms

Glass of good quality Red Wine (I used a Malbec for it’s smoky/fruity flavour)

2 tbsp Black Current Jam

2 Gloves of Garlic

½ Cup of Full Fat Milk

Butter

Few sprigs of Parsley

Salt & Pepper to taste

Olive Oil

Method

Roasted parsnip mash:

Heat up a large pot of water.

Chop up the parsnips and potatoes into equal sizes, and once the water starts to boil, add the potatoes.  After five minuets, add the parsnips.

Meanwhile, turn the oven on to 200°c. Liberally oil a roasting tray, season, and add two whole roughly smashed garlic cloves still in their skins. Place in the hot oven.

Once the parsnips and potatoes begin to soften, drain and add to the hot oiled roasting tray and place back in the oven on the middle shelf.

After 40 minuets, the vegetables should be beautifully roasted.

Place the nips, tattys and the roasted garlic in a food processer, add some butter and milk then blitz till you reach your desired consistency. Be careful not to over work as this could result in a glutinous mash.

Add salt, pepper and parsley to taste

To cook the venison:

Turn the oven on to 180°c.

Heat up a frying pan, and add olive oil and some butter.

Once the pan starts to smoke, add the venison. It should only take a few minuets to brown on each side.

Once browned, place in the oven for about 15 minuets. This should give you a medium rare stake.

Leave for a further five minuets for a well-done steak. As venison is quite lean, it takes less time to cook compared to other red meats.

Leave the venison to rest under some foil before serving or slicing.

For the Sauce:

Add a glass of red wine to the pan the venison was cooked in whilst the pan is still hot. Reduce, then add the black current jam. Season and finally add a knob of butter if desired… I did.

Sautéed Field Mushrooms:

Add some butter to a hot pan. Add the mushrooms, careful not to crowd the pan. Season once the mushrooms turn brown.

It does require a bit of carful planning to get the timing right. I made the mash in advanced and heated it up just before serving. I had to add a little bit more milk, but the consistency was no different. The sauce and the mushrooms were made whilst the steak was resting. I slicing the steak as I thought it made the plate composition more appetising then plated up and served. I had a friend over for dinner, and as I always do after making something for the blog, I spend a good 10-15 minuets taking pictures form different angles, with different compositions, giving me about 40-50 images to look through. This time, because of my eagerness to tuck in, I only had five images…  I say no more. 

Mushroom and Chorizo Risotto

So, it’s been a while since I last cooked risotto. I remember cooking it whilst in halls in Hackney. It was the first proper meal I cooked for myself… and others, and probably the last as our kitchen just got messier and messier. The last time I ate risotto, it was almost bad enough experience to put me off for life. A trip to Jamie’s Italian left me with an overly salty taste in my mouth. The squid ink and crab risotto was so packed full of sodium chloride, either from the squid ink, or from over seasoning. It brought up mucus from the back of my throat, the same thing that happens after a dive in the sea. Even after being offered to have another dish cooked for me, I had to refuse. I put me off for a while….

…Until, by request from my brother who is about to leave for university, I was asked to make my mushroom and Parmesan risotto. When the “R” word was mentioned I shivered a little. I hadn’t cooked it for a while, and even though it may not be that hard, how can I cook something if I don’t have the passion or desire to eat it?

As I made a chorizo salad, it came to me: I needed to add something to the dish, something I find taste bud tantalising, and maybe it will lift and distract from the idea of cooking risotto. I have a pork obsession at the moment, and thought of all the different types of pork I could incorporate into the dish: bacon, pancetta, Parma ham, salami… then it hit me… chorizo, the very thing that gave me the inspiration! Not only does it have a beautiful colour, but it also goes well with mushroom and Parmesan. The flavour is strong enough to distract and not as salty compared to other types of ham.

So here’s a recipe for a beautifully colourful and tasty dish. A dish I enjoyed cooking and enjoyed eating even more. I am back on the risotto, and planning on cooking a bacon and stilton risotto next… watch this space.

Ingredients

2 Shallots thinly sliced
2 Gloves of garlic crushed
Half a dozen mini Portobello Mushrooms, roughly chopped
Half a dozen Porcini Mushrooms, roughly chopped
Glass of a good quality white wine
2 pints vegetable stock
As much chorizo as desired, skinned and roughly chopped
1 cup aborio rice
80 ml of full fat crème fresh
As much Grated Parmesan cheese as desired
Handful of chives
Unsalted butter
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper to season

Method

Heat up a large pan. Pour some oil on the base, and add a knob of butter. Before the butter has completely melted add the shallots and the garlic. Stir constantly till golden brown. Add the mushrooms and allow to realises water and reduces in size slightly.

Add the aborio rice and mix until the rice turns translucent. Add the wine and stir constantly until it is all absorbed. Ladle in the stock, which must be kept simmering at all times. This takes patience. Adding the stock bit by bit, making sure all the liquids have been absorbed before adding the next ladle full, is vitally essential. It is also important that the heat is kept on medium full, as this will ensure evenly cooked rice.

You will know when the rice is done when you push a single grain between your fingers and it gives with ease. Five minuets before you think the risotto is done, add the chorizo to a hot pan with only a tiny drizzle of olive oil. Over cooking the chorizo can make it chewy, we only want to make the outside slightly crispy and to release the oil. Once the rice is done, stir in a few knobs of butter and add the crème fresh, parmesan, chives, and season. Serve and lastly add the chorizo pieces and drizzle with the flavoured oil. The contrast is lovely and it also means there is still some texture to the chorizo. I served with the same white wine I cooked with and a fresh tomato salad.

I took my time over eating it, as I do with most things I enjoy. I even had the left overs for lunch the next day, and simply heated it up in a pan, added a dash of wine and cooked up some chorizo again. It tasted even better the next day ; )

Crispy Gnocchi With Mushroom Gravy and Cheddar

Gnocchi is a classic Italian staple made from potato. In England we are lucky to be abundant in many different varieties of spuds. Using standard British ingredients, I have given a twist to an Italian favourite. Meatless, but still rich in protein and carbohydrates, this dish is filling and warming and is perfectly satisfactory for winter blues. I used cold pressed rapeseed oil, a more sustainable British oil which is seeing a reappearance in British cooking. Subtler in taste then olive oil, which also doesn’t overpower the palate. Perfect for when you want the ingredients to speak for them selves.

Ingredients

2 cups mashed potatoes
1 cup plain flour
Salt to taste
One large red onion
Garlic
Chucky chopped chestnut mushrooms
One large red onion
½ pint of Vegetable stock
Salt
Pepper
Cold pressed Rape Seed Oil

Method

Boil skinned potatoes. Mash well whist hot to a smooth consistency, and sieve in the flour. Mix well, and then turn out to a wooden board, or surface. Kneed with hand until the gnocchi mixture is slightly glutinous. Divide the mixture into six, and roll each section into long cylinders then cut into walnut sized pieces. Put to one side to let dry out. Start boiling a saucepan full f water for the gnocchi, thill then, fry thinly sliced onions and crushed garlic to rapeseed oil in a pan. Fry till tinged, then add the roughly chopped mushroom. Add the vegetable stock to the mushrooms and season well, then allow to reduce. Whist the mushroom gravy reduces, add the gnocchi pieces to boiling water. Once they float to the surface, drain then fry in a hot pan of rapeseed oil. Stir regularly. Once the pieces have crisped and gardened, remove from pan, and serve with the mushroom sauce and a liberal grating of cheddar cheese. Enyjoy!