Chef's thanks for hunting season

This week I have a guest post from my other half, Chef Martin Laprise. Since we are in the season of harvest and hunting, I thought it offered an interesting perspective...since this past week we had World Food Day in recognition of family farmers and the need for sustainable agriculture I wanted to look at the big picture in this column.

 

I own the best kind of dog breed around for hunting, Until this year, I didn't actually own a weapon; my dog Simon was only used for mushroom hunting. I relied on friends to share their meat once they have managed to drag it out of the forest!  Now that I do have a rifle I plan to harvest small game like rabbit and grouse. I don't have any burly friends or a quad to get a deer out of the forest, but I am always willing to go cook a meal with elk, deer, bear or moose, especially if I get to stay for dinner.

I could never become a full vegetarian; I would so miserable! I enjoy the taste of meat so much, but then I also enjoy the taste of fresh vegetables too.

When was the last time you actually seriously looked at your dinner, thankful that someone has grown and harvested your vegetables or killed your chicken and sent it to your butcher for you to simply buy it? I am all for progress and technology, but I am extremely appreciative for all the hard working farmers out there who provide us with extremely good produce and meats. More and more it gets harder and harder to convince young adults that farming is a noble profession. For example, the world sees doctors as a much more noble profession than farmers, but when you stop to think about it, without food the doctor would die and so would all of the patients.

Educate your kids as to where dinner comes from, and maybe one or two will choose to become part of the food industry, ensuring that someone is there to feed us in 100 years.

Hunting for food is great way to get in touch with nature and also a great way to be more appreciative of how easy it is to go to the store and buy food for a meal.

I hope no doctors were offended by this article!

Below is my recipe for venison stew. You can substitute beef if you prefer. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

 

Venison Guinness Beer Stew

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 1/4 pounds of venison meat, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 10 whole garlic cloves
• 2 cans of Guinness beer
• Water or beef stock
• 1 teaspoon fresh or 1 tablespoon dried thyme
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 7 cups)
• 2 cups 1/2-inch pieces peeled carrots
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• salt & pepper, to taste

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté until brown on all sides, then add the garlic & the venison and brown the meat for about 5 more minutes. (Don’t stir too often while browning - leave it alone).  Add the beer, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and bay leaves. Top off with water or beef stock to cover the meat as necessary.

Bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, then cover and simmer for approximately 50 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add potatoes and carrots. Simmer uncovered until vegetables and beef are very tender, about 40 minutes. Discard bay leaves. Tilt pan and spoon off fat. Season with salt & pepper and parsley before serving.

The stew is done once the meat turns soft again. Do not over cook it though, as it will turn into mush! If the broth is not thick enough for your taste, you can thicken it with a roux (a small amount of flour mixed with water to make a paste). Even if you end up with a few lumps, it will add to the rustic flavour of the dish.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.