Easy venison pie
Serves 6
Easy
Prep:
Cook:
Make a venison pie packed with pancetta, mushrooms and red wine, topped with golden puff pastry. It's cooked low and slow for beautifully tender meat
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- 2½ tbsp sunflower oil
- 1kg diced venison
- 100g smoked bacon lardonspancetta or chopped smoked streaky bacon
- 2 onionsroughly chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 200g chestnut mushroomsquartered, or baby chestnut mushrooms, halved
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 1 tbsp ketchup
- 150ml red wineor dark ale (optional)
- 2 beef stock cubesmixed with 600ml boiling water
- 1 egg yolkbeaten (freeze the white for another recipe)
- 375g sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry
Nutrition: Per serving
- kcal569
- fat28g
- saturates11g
- carbs32g
- sugars4g
- fibre4g
- protein47g
- salt2.1g
Method
step 1
Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Heat half the oil in a large flameproof casserole, brown the venison well in batches for 10 mins over a high heat, then set aside. Scatter the bacon into the pan with another ½ tbsp oil and sizzle for 8-10 mins until golden. Stir through the onions and bay leaves, drizzling with the remaining oil, and cook over a low heat for 5 mins until browned. Lower the heat to medium, then add the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes more until softened.
step 2
Scatter over the flour, stirring until the flour turns brown. Tip the meat and any juices back into the pan along with the ketchup and give it all a good stir. Pour over the wine or ale, if using, and bring to the boil. Bubble for a few minutes, then pour over the stock. Season and bring to a simmer. Cover with a lid and put in the oven for about 2 hrs until the meat is tender. Will keep chilled for three days or frozen for up to three months. Leave to cool completely first. Defrost in a fridge overnight before reheating thoroughly in a microwave or pan until the meat is piping hot.
step 3
To make the pie, heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Tip the filling into a 24-26cm rimmed pie dish and brush the rim of the dish with some of the egg yolk. Unravel the pastry, drape it over the dish and use a knife to trim and press against the rim. Re-roll the trimmings to make a decoration, if you like. Will keep covered and frozen for up to three months. Defrost fully before continuing with step three.
step 4
Brush the pie with the remaining egg yolk and season with sea salt flakes, if you like. Make a few little slits in the centre of the pie to allow the steam to escape, and bake for 30-35 mins until deep golden.
