Venison with cider and black pudding
Stirling’s once-a-month Farmer’s Market has gone to crap. Once you could buy Gloucester Old Spot pork and propper game there. It was a bijou version of a proper market like the ones I remember from my childhood, an embryonic promise of what might once again become a town institution — but no more. Nowadays it is overpriced and overhyped. Can I afford to pay for a wild boar roast? Or fork out a premium for “organic” veg more expensive than the plastic-wrapped crap in the supermarket? — Not while on benefits. And whatever happened to the pheasants? Luckily I had some venison from the Aberfoyle Butcher in the freezer, so I can save the day with a Sunday meal fit to see in the autum:
Venison with cider & black pudding
500g venison; cooking oil; 75g black pudding; 1 stick celery; 1 small onion; 1 parsip; 1 leek; 50g panacetta or smoked bacon; 2 tsp fresh thyme; 1-2 bay leaves; 250ml cider; 6 juniper berries; cornflour to thicken; salt & pepper; parsley to garnish
Fry the onion until soft, then add the celery, leek, bacon and parsip and fry another 5 min. Add the black pudding, bay leaves and thyme and stir until the black pudding is soft.
Fry the venison separately, set aside and de-glaze the pan with cider.
Add the venison and crushed juniper to the vegetables, stir in the cider, season, cover tightly and cook in the oven at 175° C for 1h. Check and adjust seasoning and liquid and stir in a few tablespoons of cornflour dissolved in cold water if a thick gravy is desired. Return to the oven for 15-30 min until the meat is tender.
Rosemary roast potatoes
1kg potatoes; beef dripping or vegetable oil; few sprigs fresh rosemary; freshly ground black pepper; Maldon salt flakes
Peel and boil the potatoes until they just start to soften. Rub them up slightly with a fork or by swirling them round a metal sieve then toss in the dripping and seasoning. Arrange in a baking tray and sprinkle over the rosemary. Roast 1h with the venison, turning once or twice.
Mother’s red cabbage
1 medium red cabbage; oil; 1 bramley cooking apple; 1 rasher smoked bacon; 4 cloves; dash balsamic or red wine vinegar; salt & pepper
Finely shred the cabbage and chop the bacon. Fry the bacon in the oil until it just loses colour then toss in the cabbage and stir 5 min, thoroughly coating in oil. Stir in the vinegar, cloves, seasoning and a little sugar if desired. Add a splash of water, keeping the level of fluid as low as possible and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Meanwhile pare and chop the apples and place on top of the cabbage. Simmer 45min-1h, stirring occasionally.
Denni