BEST COOKING RECIPES

When cooking meats of any kind
there is no sauce like a sauce made from the meat trimmings and bones of the animal itself. Here’s one suggestion for a great venison sauce; use it with any roast or pan-roasted venison
such as leg
rack or loin - the black pepper and juniper lends itself well to the caramelized flavor of the roasted meat.

Yield: 1 cup

ฝ cup canola oil
2 ผ lbs. venison bones
chopped into 1” pieces (or
2
lbs bones
ผ pound meat trimmings)
1 quarts water
1 quarts light chicken stock
2 quarts veal demi-glace (best: make it yourself; more than gourmet’s ready made is not bad)
ฝ lbs. carrots
cut into ฝ” pieces
ฝ lbs. onions
ฝ”
5 ounces celery
cut into ฝ”
3 peppercorns
crushed
2 juniper berries
crushed

Heat canola oil over high heat in a heavy pan large enough to hold bones in one layer
until just before smoking. Add bones and cook until well-browned and caramelized – do not turn before a good crust develops
and once turning
do not stir bones. You want a good
deep
rich caramelizing layer. The last few minutes
add the meat trimming
if you are using it. You want a good russet color to the bones
not black – watch for this and discard any blackened bones. Pour off fat from pan.

Add a little of your water
enough to deglaze the pan
reserving the rest for later. Using a wooden (ideally
flat) spoon
scrape the bones free and scrape up and loosen any browned bits. In my kitchen
I use to tell my chefs the pan should look
on the bottom
as if it had been washed. Add a little more water and allow to work – listen for the crackle to die down to a gentle bubbling
then
as the water evaporates
the gelatin will extract from the bones and it will begin to crackle again. Add พ cups of the light chicken stock and deglaze/reglaze as before. Add vegetables and stir to deglaze/reglaze. Add remaining water
chicken stock
and veal stock. Deglaze fully and transfer to stock pot.

Bring to a simmer over medium heat
with pot offset to one side to set up a convection for skimming – throughout the process
you don’t want to allow accumulated scum and impurities to be reincorporated into the sauce
so skim the surface regularly. Skim and simmer for 30-45 minutes or until stock is at level of bones. If you have a fine mesh sieve
first strain the sauce through a coarse strainer then through the fine mesh sieve. If not
a coarse sieve with a layer of cheesecloth will do. The important thing is to strain with the coarse strainer first
then pass through the fine strainer. Pour strained stock into pot. Simmer until reduced to sauce consistency. Last ten minutes of reduction
add your crushed peppercorns and juniper berries
and reduce to 1 cups. Double strain again and serve.

Hunting can bring good food to the table. As a chef
I always sought to marry what I knew with what hunters and farmers always knew - the best food comes from the season and the land one knows. I hope you enjoy this recipe. Visit me anytime for more tips and thoughts on the outdoor life - a1-outdoors.com.