It's not Bambi: Venison stew

Way back when we purchased are gigantic duck to roast we also picked up some venison stew meat. I could not remember if I had ever had venison before. I was a bit leery since my most recent recollection of stew game meat was some caribou Jordan's grandfather hunted. I won't go into details but to me the apartment smelled like animal for about 3 days so you can only imagine what I thought it tasted like.

Thankfully I really enjoyed the venison. After some diligent Internet searching I ended up using the Emeril Lagasse recipe below.

VENISON STEW

Recipe from "New New Orleans Cooking", by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch, published by William Morrow, 1993.

Ingredients


3 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds venison stew meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
Essence, recipe follows
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 cup chopped tomatoes, peeled and seeded
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 bay leaves
1 cup red wine
4 cups brown stock
Salt and black pepper
Crusty bread




Directions
In a large pot, over high heat, add the olive oil. In a mixing bowl, toss the venison with flour and Essence. When the oil is hot, sear the meat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the onions and saute for 2 minutes. Add the celery and carrots. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for 2 minutes. Add the garlic, tomatoes, basil, thyme, and bay leaves to the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Deglaze the pan with the red wine. Add the brown stock. Bring the liquid up to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer. Simmer the stew for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until the meat is very tender. If the liquid evaporates too much add a little more stock.
Remove the stew from the oven and serve in shallow bowls with crusty bread.


Emeril's ESSENCE Creole Seasoning (also referred to as Bayou Blast):
2 1/2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried thyme
Combine all ingredients thoroughly.
Yield: 2/3 cup

Let me tell you the Essence is something to talk about. Very good but very spicy. We cut back on the Paprika and Cayenne. I was still sniffling away as I ate. I would recommend separating the mixture a bit and then adding more to fully coat the meat if needed. I ended up throwing a lot of it away after the raw meat had been toss.

Yummy yummy stew!