It’s peak game season – and, not being a sporty sort, I’m talking pheasants rather than football, grouse not golf, teal not tennis … you get the idea. Though the shooting industry isn’t without its problems, if animals are going to be killed, then I feel strongly it shouldn’t be for nothing, and this richly flavoured stew is definitely something on a chilly, late autumn day.
Prep 35 min
Cook 90 min (or, if making a pie, 2 hr + cooling)
Serves 6
For the stew
100g smoked streaky bacon rashers
8 very small onions, or shallots
6 juniper berries
25g butter, or 2 tbsp olive oil
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1kg boned game, ideally a mix of dark and light meat, cut into 4cm chunks
Salt and black pepper
2 tbsp flour
200ml full-bodied red wine
400ml good chicken or game stock
75g redcurrant jelly (see step 5)
2 carrots
150g small mushrooms
To make it into a pie (optional)
500g puff or rough puff pastry, bought or homemade
1 egg
1 A note on the meat
Game is, for obvious reasons, an uncertain supply chain – your local dealer may have partridge one week, snipe the next – so this recipe can be adapted to suit whatever you can get your hands on.
A mixture of dark (eg, venison) and white meat (eg, pheasant breasts) is ideal, but all game tends to be lean, so can be treated in the same way as here.
2 Prep the bacon and onions
Heat the oven to 170C (150C fan)/340F/gas 3½. Meanwhile, roll the bacon rashers (the thicker they are, the better) into cylinders, as if around an imaginary cocktail sausage. Trim and peel the onions – those sold for pickling are ideal – and roughly crush the juniper berries with the back of the knife.
3 Brown the bacon and onions
Melt the butter in a large casserole dish on a medium-high flame, then fry the bacon, turning regularly, until golden on all sides and the fat has begun to render. Lift out and set aside on a plate or bowl. Put the onions, thyme, bay and juniper berries in the hot pot, fry until golden, then lift out and set aside in a separate dish.
4 Sear the meat
Dust the cubed meat lightly with seasoned flour, then fry it in batches, being careful not to overcrowd the pan and adding more butter (or oil) if necessary, until it is well browned on all sides. As each batch is ready, lift it out and set aside with the onions.
5 Deglaze, then add the stock and jelly
Pour the wine into the pan (port would also work here) and scrape the bottom to dislodge any stuck bits of flour and meat.
Add the stock and stir in the redcurrant jelly (or any other fruity preserve that might work in this context; personally, I think plum chutney yes, strawberry jam no, but each to their own).
6 Add the game and onions
Bring the liquid to a simmer, then return the game, onions and herbs to the pot. Cover and transfer to the oven for 45 minutes. Meanwhile, peel the carrots, if necessary, and cut into roughly 1cm chunks, and clean and trim the mushrooms (if you have larger fungi, cut them in half or quarters).
7 Add the carrots, mushrooms and bacon
Stir the carrots and mushrooms into the stew, cover again and return to the oven for 15 minutes. Take out, arrange the bacon on top, cover again, this time with the lid a little ajar, and put back in the oven for a further 30 minutes. Test the meat for tenderness – if tender and done, season to taste and serve with root veg or mash and greens.
8 To turn it into game pie …
To turn your stew into a pie, leave it to cool completely, then tip into a suitable pie dish.On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry into a roughly 5mm-thick rectangle (let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before rolling, to reduce the risk of cracking), then fold up and lift on top of the pie.
9 … and bake
Press the pastry down on to the rim of the dish, then go around the edge with the back of a fork to seal and crimp.
Snip a few small holes in the top of the pastry, so any steam can escape, then brush all over with the egg, beaten with a little water or milk. Bake at 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6 for 30-40 minutes, until golden.
