Venison Stew

“‘You can stand by the fire as long as you like. You’ll have food and drink, too. Hot mulled wine and a bowl of venison stewed with onions, and Hobb’s bread right out of the oven, so hot it will burn your fingers.’ Sam peeled off a glove to wriggle his own fingers near the flames…” -A Storm of Swords

After episode 3.6, where Sam longingly describes this stew, I decided to finally get the venison and have a go at it. Fortunately, it coincided with a bit of a cooler spell here in Boston, which suited the heartiness of this stew perfectly.

While this particular description of the stew is fairly limited, there are others throughout the books that contain other tidbits. In other passages, descriptions of Hobb’s venison stew includes carrots and barley, and in the south, it’s stewed with beer. So, everything went into the pot, along with a few more additions of my own.

I used spent grain from brewing (see link below) for the barley component, because I can’t imagine the Night’s Watch letting anything go to waste. It gave the stew a unique texture, and was the source of some of those black flecks you see in the photo. The bacon, I’ll admit, was also my addition, but I don’t think anyone who has read the books can fault me for that. Everything tastes better with bacon. :)

The resulting stew is thick, hearty, and filling- just the thing for a cool night in the North. It’s wonderful with a hunk of rustic bread and a sharp cheese, and a flagon of the same beer that went into the recipe.

Venison Stew Recipe

Ingredients:

3 strips bacon
1 lb. venison (I used ground, but use any small cut you like)
2 Tbs. butter, divided
2 cloves garlic, diced
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 cup peas
3 cups broth
1 bottle dark beer (12 oz/335 ml)
1 cup spent grain, or other barley of your choice, cooked according to its own directions
1 cup small boiler onions, peeled
1/2 tsp. smoked salt
1/2 tsp. savory, or thyme
1 Tbs. flour

Cook the bacon in a medium frying pan. Take out the cooked bacon, reserving the grease, and chop the bacon into small pieces. Brown the venison meat in the bacon grease, then pour it all into a medium pot, along with the bacon bits. In the same frying pan, melt 1 Tbs. butter. Add the garlic and cook for a couple of minutes, until it’s not quite browned. Add the carrots and peas, stir to coat with butter, then pour in 1 cup of broth. Cover, and simmer for a few minutes, until the carrots are tender. Add this mixture, along with the rest of the broth, the beer, barley, onions, and seasoning.

If you’d like the stew to be a little thicker, make a roux: melt the remaining 1 Tbs. butter and add to it the 1 Tbs. flour. Stir to combine over medium heat. When the butter-flour looks bubbly and golden (under a minute), begin to add ladlesful of broth, whisking to combine. This should create a thick mixture that can be poured back into your stew. Cook the stew for at least 1 1/2 hours on medium-low heat. Enjoy with some sharp cheese and rustic bread. If you’re using spent grains in the stew, consider also using them in the bread!

Boeuf en Daube – To The Lighthouse

“An exquisite scent of olives and oil and juice rose from the great brown dish as Marthe, with a little flourish took the cover off. The cook had spent three days over that dish and she must take great care, Mrs. Ramsay thought, diving into the soft mass to choose an especially tender piece for William Bankes.And she peered into the dish, with its shiny walls and its confusion of savory brown and yellow meats, and its bay leaves and its wine and thought, This will celebrate the occasion…”

–To the Lighthouse, by Virginia Woolf

That above quote, mouthwatering in the extreme, is like an appetizer unto itself. As soon as I read it, I knew I had another dish to make.

This recipe makes a wonderful, hearty beef stew that is just perfect for the coming chill of late fall and winter. The olives provide an unlooked for earthiness that is sometimes lacking in other stews, while the orange zest lightens the whole dish. The meat is meltingly tender, having been both marinated and slow cooked. The broth was not as thick as I would have liked, but a simple roux would fix that easily enough. I simmered mine most of the day in a crock pot, which gradually gave the whole house a rich, enticing aroma.

I recommend pairing the stew with a nice loaf of rustic bread, some cheese, and either a hefty salad or a couple of sides, like potatoes and green beans.

Recipe for Boeuf en Daube

Prep: marinate overnight Stewing: 6 hours

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

2 lbs stew beef, cubed
4 shallots, sliced thin
3-5 garlic cloves, minced
small bunch fresh thyme
1 -2 bay leaves
1 bottle inexpensive red wine
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 strips smoked bacon, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup dried mushrooms, chopped small
1/2 cup chopped carrots
1/2 tablespoon soft brown sugar
1/2 cup olives, pitted and cut into slices
zest of half an orange
1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes
Salt and Pepper to taste
splash of cognac (optional)

Marinade the beef with the herbs, shallots & garlic overnight in half of the red wine.

The next day, drain the meat, pouring the wine into your stewpot or crockpot.

In a large skillet, cook the bacon until it is somewhat crispy, and the fat has run from it. Remove the bacon and add to your main pot. Working in batches, add the seasoned beef to the bacon fat and cook until just browned on each side. Remove the meat to the pot, but keep the garlic and shallots cooking in the frying pan until they are soft and fragrant. Pour this mixture into the main pot, adding also the thyme, bay leaves, tomatoes, carrots, sugar, olives, zest, and remaining wine.

Cook on low for at least six hours, at which point the meat should be very tender. If you like, add a splash of cognac near the end of cooking.

Tywin’s Rack of Venison

Tywin’s Rack of Venison

Our Thoughts:

Although rack of venison is not specifically mentioned in A Song of Ice and Fire, venison is mentioned often and would be an obvious food source through most of Westeros. In episode seven of the television series, viewers meet Tywin Lannister, and, in a slightly heavy-handed metaphor, he is skinning a deer carcass. We’d like to think a man of his refined tastes would enjoy his venison ribs prepared in a manner similar to that of our recipe.

When ordering venison ribs, be prepared for their ridiculous size. Usually frenched by the butcher, ribs acquired straight from the hunter, as these were, are undressed. The long cook time of this recipe tenderizes even the stringy bits between the ribs, creating a delicious, authentic eating experience. The loin meat was succulent and sweet, offset by a bit of gaminess. Overall, this is a wonderfully sweet seasonal dish.

This post is especially for the Gillespies, who insisted on venison. :)

Tag Archives: winter