Description
A delicious, sophisticed stew. One that’s sure to please everyone!
Ingredients
Scale
- 6 cups dry red wine (1.4 litres)
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar (120 ml)
- 1 cup sweet port or Madeira (240 ml)
- 6 juniper berries, lightly crushed
- 3 whole cloves
- 3 allspice berries, lightly crushed
- l large head, garlic, cloves peeled and crushed
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 3 pounds vnison shoulder, trimmed of fat and cut in to 1 inch cubes (1.4 kg/2.5 cm cubes)
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 strips of bacon, chopped into 1 inch pieces (or a small package of lardon)
- 2 large fennel bulbs, trimmed and thickly sliced
- 1 cup chopped dates (150 g)
- 2 large onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons Wondra flour
Instructions
- Add the red wine, vinegar, port or Madeira, juniper berries, cloves, allspice, garlic, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper to a large bowl
- Add the meat and marinade over night or for up to three days
- Remove the meat from the marinade (save the marinade, you’ll cook the meat in it)
- Pat the meat dry (it will be very purple now)
- Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat
- Fry the bacon until just crisp
- Remove the bacon, drain on paper towels
- In the bacon grease, brown the meat over high heat in small batches (5-6) to avoid overcrowding the pan
- Pour the marinade to the pan, deglazing by scrappin up the browned bits stuck the the bottom of the pan
- Add the bacon and venison to the pan, making sure the meat is covered by the marinade
- Cover and simmer over low heat for two hours
- Add fennel, dates, onions, and sugar, add more salt and pepper if needed, simmer one hour
- Sprinkle Wondra flour over the top of the stew and whisk in to thicken the broth, simmer for just a few more minutes