Cooking venison is more exciting than cooking beef or lamb because it can be more of a challenge.
Venison, especially the wild venison we sell at Ruxstons, is a very lean meat and thus there is not much fat to aid the cooking process and retain moisture, get it wrong and it will be tough and dry. Don’t let that put you off though, it has an amazing gamey flavour that is not worth missing out on.
How to cook Venison mince?
Venison mince is a lot leaner than lamb, pork or beef mince so you have to be a lot more careful. Whilst our 100% grass fed beef mince has on average 20% fat content, the wild venison mince will have as little as 5% fat content, so a drizzle of oil may be required to stop it becoming a little chewy, and it is crucial not to leave it cooking too long.
As you will be cooking it for slightly less time, ensure any vegetables you place into the mix are cut smaller than you would in a beef or lamb Bolognese sauce to ensure they cook all the way through. In this case I have cut the carrots in to small chunks, alternatively you could par boil them, but I generally avoid this method as I don’t like vegetables too soft.
Ingredients:
Chopped Carrots (small chunks)
Sliced Onion
Oregano
Chopped Tomatoes
Mr Organic Tomato Puree
Dash of Olive Oil
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Method:
Add the Venison Mince, carrots and onion into a large frying pan, drizzle a little olive oil and heat on a low light. Try to stir a little to ensure it is a cooked evenly.
After approximately 10 minutes, the venison should be almost cooked, at this point add some chopped tomatoes and tomato puree into the pan along with a sprinkling of oregano.
When there is no red/raw parts left within the venison it is fully cooked and you can at this point, boil some pasta to make a spaghetti bolognese.
Is Venison better than Beef for the Planet?
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A lot of people come into our high street shop in Wellington and buy venison whilst claiming it is better for the planet due to the lower levels of CO2 and Methane emitted. We have analysed this in great detail in a separate article but very interestingly it is not that clear cut. Deer may only produce a quarter of the methane a cow does but then you get a lot less meat. However, compared to regular farming methods there is no doubt that there remains a lot of environmental benefits to eating wild venison over intensively farmed beef.