mixed game casserole
rating:
The Nailsea farmers' market was selling small packs of mixed game yesterday for £5.90. Here's what I did with it.
500g mixed game (venison and pheasant in our case)
some seasoned flour - I used sea salt, black pepper and rosemary
1 glass port
olive oil
12 shallots
about 100g dried lima beans (not essential), soaked overnight. Or open a tin!
2 carrots, cut into batons
a splash of maple syrup
6 juniper berries
12 black peppercorns
juice of one orange
1 tsp redcurrant jelly
1 tsp wholegrain mustard
1 bouquet garni
Toss the game in the seasoned flour, and then brown in batches in an ovenproof dish (I use an ancient and well loved Le Creuset non-non-stick non-enamelled cast iron thing - it's not unlike a witch's cauldron). Set aside. Deglaze the pan with a glassful of port, then pour that in with the game while you do the rest.
Peel the shallots (much much easier if you set them in boiling water for five minutes or so first, and then you have nice shallot-y water to add to the casserole and/or the soup pot!). Wipe out the pan (careful, as it will be hot), then add more olive oil, and heat it. Then add the carrots and shallots, and a splash of maple syrup. Turn them around in the oil until they start to caramelise a little.
Add the redcurrant jelly and the mustard and stir around, then add the orange juice. Return the meat and port to the pan, and add some of the shallot water if you need more liquor. Throw in the bouquet garni. And the lima beans.
Cook slowly in the oven for 2-3 hours. We're going to have dumplings with ours!
