Venison And Wild Mushroom Pie Recipes

WILD MUSHROOM AND VENISON STROGANOFF FOR TWO LUCKY PEOPLE

Steps:

• Cook the rice according to the package instructions until it's just undercooked and drain in a colander. Put the rice back in the pan, cover with aluminum foil and set aside to steam - this will give you incredibly light and fluffy rice.
• Heat a large frying pan on a medium heat and pour in a glug of extra-virgin olive oil. Add the onions and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes until softened and golden. Remove from the heat and spoon the onions and garlic out of the pan onto a plate. Set aside.
• Season the meat well with salt, pepper and the paprika. Rub and massage these flavorings into the meat. Place the frying pan back on a high heat and pour in some more olive oil. Add the mushrooms and fry for a few minutes until they start to brown. Then add the meat and fry for a minute or 2 before adding the parsley stalks (you can do this in 2 pans or in batches if your pan is not big enough) and the cooked onion and garlic. Toss and add the butter and brandy.
• You don't have to light the hot brandy, but flaming does give an interesting flavor so I always like to do this. Once the flames die down, or after a couple of minutes of simmering, stir in the lemon zest and all but 1 tablespoon of the creme fraiche and season, to taste. Continue simmering for a few minutes. Any longer than this and the meat will toughen up - it doesn't need long, as it's been cut up so small.
• Serve your fluffy rice on 1 big plate and your stroganoff on another. Simply spoon the remaining creme fraiche over the stroganoff, then sprinkle over the sliced gherkins and the parsley leaves. Eat at once!
• "Our agreement with the producers of "Jamie at Home" only permit us to make 2 recipes per episode available online. Food Network regrets the inconvenience to our viewers and foodnetwork.com users"

VENISON AND WILD MUSHROOM PIE

Steps:

• Marinate the venison in the wine, carrots, onion, bay leaf and juniper for 24 hours.
• Preheat oven to 180C/gas mark 4 Remove the meat from the marinade (reserve the marinade). Melt the butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, add the drained venison and gently brown. Add the sliced onion, thyme and sugar, reduce the heat and continue to cook slowly until the onion pieces are soft.
• Add the flour and tomato paste and cook for a couple of minutes. Next add the reserved marinade and stir while slowly adding the stock. Bring to the boil and simmer until the venison is cooked and falling apart, and the sauce is well reduced - 20-25 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms and check the seasoning.
• Place the venison mixture in the bottom of the pie dish and allow it to cool. Then top it with the puff pastry, cutting off the excess to leave a 1cm overhang. (A pair of skewers inserted crossways into the pastry will keep it from sagging.) Brush with the egg yolk and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the pastry is crisp and golden and the filling is hot. Serve with braised red cabbage and winter salad leaves.

VENISON & WILD MUSHROOM WELLINGTON

Steps:

• Heat half the oil in a frying pan and quickly seal the venison for about 2 mins on each side until browned. Remove the meat from the pan, brush all over with the mustard and leave to cool.
• Mince the mushrooms in a food processor. Place the pan back on the heat with the rest of the oil and add the mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper and fry over a high heat for 5 mins until the excess moisture has evaporated and you have a thick paste. Season, transfer the mushrooms to a bowl and leave to cool.
• Lay 2-3 large sheets of cling film overlapping each other on a clean surface. Lay the slices of prosciutto overlapping lengthways in 2 rows of 3. Sit one of the pieces of venison in the middle of the prosciutto. Press the mushrooms over the venison and sandwich with the other piece of venison. Roll into a tight package (see step-by-step images above) and leave to chill in the fridge.
• Lay out another couple of pieces of cling film. Trim the pancakes into squares and lay them overlapping on the cling film. Remove the cling film from the prosciuttowrapped meat and place the meat on top of the pancakes. Roll up tightly again in cling film, then place in the fridge to hold its shape.
• Roll the pastry out to a large rectangle big enough to easily wrap the meat in, then brush all over with egg yolk. Unwrap the cling film from the pancake-wrapped venison and roll to completely encase in the pastry. Tuck the ends in and trim any excess. Lay out more cling film and finally roll into a tight package to get an evenly thick log. Tie the ends of cling film to keep the package tight and leave in the fridge overnight or in the freezer for an hour. Can be made to this point up to a day in advance.
• When ready to cook, heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Remove the cling film and brush the Wellington all over with egg yolk. Sit it on a baking tray lined with baking paper and lightly score in a feathered fashion. Bake for 50 mins for medium rare, dropping to 200C/180C fan/ gas 7 if the pastry becomes too brown. Remove from the oven to rest for 20 mins. If you prefer the meat well done, turn oven off after 40 mins and leave to rest inside. Trim the end of the pastry, carefully carve in slices about 3-4cm thick and serve.
• To make the pancakes for the wellingtons, tip 100g plain flour into a bowl. Beat 1 egg with 250ml milk and gradually whisk into the flour until smooth. Stir in some snipped chives and a handful of chopped flat-leaf parsley just before cooking, then heat a drop of oil in a large non-stick frying pan and swirl around some of the batter to make a thin pancake. When the pancake is done, make another 3 and set aside. The pancakes can be made two days in advance.
• For a creamy mash, chunk 1kg floury potatoes. Place in a pan of cold salted water and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 15 mins until completely tender, then drain and return to the pan over a low heat for a few mins to dry out. Press the potatoes through a ricer and gradually add 150ml warm double cream and 50g butter. Season to taste and serve, or leave to cool and reheat in a pan or microwave with a touch more cream and butter. The mash can be made a day in advance.
• For the carrots, peel and trim 24 baby carrots (a mix of white and orange if you can find them) but keep them whole. Boil for 2-3 mins in salted water until just tender, then drain. Heat a large knob of butter in a frying pan and sizzle the carrots for 8-10 mins until golden. Serve the carrots or cool and reheat in a pan with a touch more butter or in the microwave. The carrots can be made a day in advance.
• To make a delicious port sauce, sweat 1 finely chopped shallot in a little butter with a thyme sprig. Pour in 300ml port and reduce by two-thirds, then add 600ml fresh chicken stock and reduce again by two-thirds until syrupy. Strain into another saucepan ready to be reheated. The sauce can be made two days in advance and reheated in the saucepan, adding a splash more stock if too thick.

WILD VENISON, FIELD MUSHROOM & ALE PUDDING

Steps:

• First make the pastry. Sift 1 tsp salt and flour together and stir in the suet. Add 300ml cold water and work until it all comes together into a dough. Wrap in cling film and chill for 1 hr.
• Heat the butter and oil in a large frying pan. Gently fry the onions and garlic for 10 mins until soft. Tip out of the pan, then add a little more oil. Now fry the mushrooms until golden, then tip out. Toss the venison in the flour and fry in batches, adding more oil as you go, until really golden brown. Mix the purée, ale, sugar and thyme into the pan, then cool.
• Now butter a 2½ pt/1.4-litre basin. Roll the suet pastry out to about 1cm thick and use to line the sides of the basin. Trim so that there's a little overhang. Re-roll what's left and cut out a lid that's about 1cm wider than the top of the basin. Put the mushrooms around the sides of the basin, stalks facing in, then fill the basin with meat and juices. You might not need all the juices.
• Place the lid on top and crimp the edges together to seal. Make a double layer of buttered foil and baking paper, and pleat it in the centre. Scrunch this over the pudding, foil-side up, then tie with string under the rim of the basin. Trim to about 2cm under the string, then put into a steamer or sit on a saucer in a large pan containing enough gently simmering water to come halfway up the sides of the bowl. Steam the pudding for 4 hrs. Unwrap and turn out onto a big plate. I like to serve this with broccoli or cauliflower cheese.