Recipes: Venison braised with beetroot and ginger | Venison goulash | Venison braised with prunes and pickled walnuts

It’s a superb meat, providing that it is hung – as with all meat, and game birds too, hanging is vital to both the flavour and the texture of the meat. Venison is my meat of choice during the coming months for braising, stewing or casseroling. Venison, unlike beef, isn’t marbled with fat, and the driest form of meat-eating that springs to my mind is a roast haunch of venison when sliced close to the bone. Whilst one can thread small lardons of fat near the surface of the venison haunch, it is impossible to penetrate down the depth of meat, and the inevitable result is dry slices of meat which tend to have the texture of cardboard. No amount of marinating, either, can make a difference to any part of the meat not near to the surface. So, for me, venison is perfect for stewing with such a variety of flavours and foods that extreme changes can be wrought in what is basically the same recipe. And all of the following recipes freeze very well, too. Venison fillet is one of my choices for a special occasion, with a simple but delicious sauce –which will appear in this column nearer to Christmas.

Venison braised with beetroot and ginger

Serves 6

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon salt, about 20 grinds of black pepper

2¼ lb/1kg venison, any gristle trimmed off and the meat cut into even sized chunks approximately 1in/2.5cm in size

3-4 tablespoons olive or rapeseed oil

2 onions, each skinned, halved and thinly sliced

1-2 fat cloves of garlic, skinned and diced finely

2in/5cm root ginger, skin sliced off and the ginger diced finely

1½ pint/850ml stock

4 beetroot, each peeled and sliced into little-finger thick strips – don’t be tempted to use the vacuum-packed peeled and cooked beetroot for this (or any) recipe, you lose so much of the flavour

Mix the flour, salt and black pepper thoroughly through the venison, so that each piece is coated in seasoned flour.

Heat the olive oil in a large casserole or stewpan, and brown the floured meat, a small amount at a time, over a high heat, turning the pieces of venison over to brown on all sides. As one batch is browned, scoop it into a warm bowl. When all the venison is browned, lower the heat a bit beneath the casserole and add the thinly sliced onions, diced garlic and ginger to the casserole. Stir from time to time to make sure that the onions soften and slightly caramelise, and let them cook for 5-7 minutes before adding the strips of peeled beetroot. Stir these thoroughly through the softened onions, and then replace the browned venison in the casserole, and pour in the stock. Stir until the liquid reaches simmering point, cover the casserole with its lid, and cook in a moderate heat, 175C/350F/Gas Mark 4, for 1 hour from simmering. Take the casserole out of the oven and cool the contents completely. Store in the fridge for up to two days.

To reheat, take the casserole into room temperature for half an hour before reheating on top of the cooker until the contents simmer, then cover once again, and cook in the same moderate heat as for the initial cooking, for 20-25 minutes. Taste, and if you think more salt or pepper is needed, add at this point, before serving.

Venison goulash

Serves 6

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 onions, skinned, halved and thinly sliced

4 red peppers, each halved, seeds scooped away and the peppers sliced finely

1-2 fat cloves of garlic, skinned and finely diced

2¼ lb/1kg venison, trimmed of any gristle and cut into even sized chunks approximately 1in/2.5cm in size

1 level tablespoon paprika

1 teaspoon salt, about 20 grinds of black pepper

1 pint/570ml of stock

Heat the olive oil in a large casserole or stewpan, and, over moderately high heat, cook the finely sliced onions for 5-7 minutes, stirring to be sure that they cook evenly. Then scoop the onions into a warm dish, leaving behind as much of the oil as you can. Add the sliced red peppers to the casserole and stir them occasionally, as they cook for about 5 minutes. Add the diced garlic to the peppers during their softening time. Scoop them into the bowl with the onions, again, leaving behind as much oil as you can. Then raise the heat and brown the pieces of venison, a few at a time so as not to reduce the heat in the casserole by the volume of meat. Brown the meat on all sides, removing the browned meat to the bowl as you brown in stages. When all the venison is browned, replace the contents of the bowl – the onions, red peppers, garlic and venison – in the casserole and add the paprika, salt and pepper. Stir thoroughly into the meat, onions and peppers and then add the stock, and stir until the liquid reaches simmering point. Then cover the casserole with its lid and cook in a moderate heat, 175C/350F/Gas Mark 4, for 1 hour. Take the casserole out of the oven, cool the contents and store in the fridge for up to two days. Before reheating, take the casserole into room temperature for half an hour, then reheat on top of the cooker till simmering point is reached, then put it into the same moderate temperature as for the initial cooking, and cook for 25-30 minutes before serving.

Venison braised with prunes and pickled walnuts

Serves 6

1 rounded tablespoon flour, mixed with 1 teaspoon salt and about 20 grinds of black pepper

2¼ lb/1kg venison, cut into chunks about 1in/2.5cm in size

3-4 tablespoons olive or rapeseed oil

2 onions, skinned, halved and diced

6 pickled walnuts, cut into quarters

12 no soak prunes, snipped (with scissors) in half

1½ pint/850ml stock

Mix the flour, salt and black pepper together, then coat each bit of meat in seasoned flour – you can do this in a large polythene bag, shaking it vigorously.

Heat the oil in a casserole and brown the diced onions, stirring, for about 5 minutes. Then scoop them into a warm dish, leaving behind as much oil as you can. Raise the heat, and brown the floured venison, a small amount at a time, scooping the browned venison into the warm dish before adding the next batch of meat.

When all the venison is browned, replace the onions and meat in the casserole, add the chopped pickled walnuts and halved prunes, and stir in the stock. Stir until the liquid simmers, then cover the casserole with its lid and cook in a moderate heat, 175C/350F/Gas Mark 4, for 1 hour. Then take the casserole from the oven and cool the contents. When cold, store in the fridge for up to two days. Before reheating, take the casserole into room temperature for half an hour, then reheat on the top of the cooker, till the mixture simmers gently, then put it into the same moderate heat and cook for 25-30 minutes before serving.

Claire Macdonald’s Kinloch Lodge Hotel winter offer: dinner, bed and breakfast from £99pp, from 1 November, midweek only, www.kinloch-lodge.co.uk