• Game is becoming increasingly easier to find and is such an appealing alternative to mass-farmed domestic animals. I used impala, but springbok or kudu also work well.

    Cook’s tips:
    • Potato gnocchi lightly tossed in sage butter, sprinkled with Parmesan and flat-leafed parsley gives the casserole a delicious Italian twist.
    • Instead of gnocchi, top the casserole with a puff pastry lattice blanket. Cut puff pastry into 3cm strips and weave a blanket to fit your pot. Paint with lightly beaten egg and bake separately until golden and crispy on an oiled baking tray at 200°C. Slide it onto the casserole and serve with rice.

    Recipe by Jenny Crwys-Williams

    Venison casserole

    Serves: 12
    Cooking Time: 3 hrs

    Ingredients

    • 125ml cake flour
    • salt, freshly ground black pepper and paprika, to taste
    • 1,8kg venison, off the bone and cut into 1½cm cubes
    • olive and sunflower oil, for frying
    • 4 large onions, roughly chopped
    • ground nutmeg, to taste
    • ground cloves, to taste
    • 2 cubes chicken stock, crumbled
    • 60ml fresh parsley, finely chopped
    • 500g streaky bacon, diced
    • 125ml chutney
    • 15ml Worcestershire sauce
    • 15ml balsamic vinegar
    • 15ml soy sauce
    • chilli jam or sauce, to taste, optional
    • 750ml water
    • butter, for frying
    • 200g button mushrooms

    Instructions

    1

    Preheat the oven to 160°C.

    2

    Combine the flour, salt, pepper and paprika in a bowl. Dust the meat in the flour and shake off any excess.

    3

    Heat the oil in a cast-iron pot and fry the meat in batches until nicely browned. Set aside.

    4

    Using the same pot, add a little more oil if necessary and fry the onion. Return the meat to the pot.

    5

    Add the nutmeg, cloves, chicken stock, parsley, bacon, chutney, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce and chilli jam or sauce, if using.

    6

    Mix well and add the water to make a slushy mixture. Cover the pot and bake in the oven for 1 hour 30 minutes. Remove the lid and bake until brown and tender, about 1 hour.

    7

    Heat the butter in a frying pan and lightly sear the mushrooms. Sprinkle on top of the casserole and serve with gnocchi and sage butter.

    Notes

    To drink: Venison is so South African, let’s pair it with a good pinotage from Allée Bleue 2006.

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