Venison and Bacon Casserole

For months now I have been fancying venison. I have grown up eating different foods and one I always remember and looked forward to was venison especially a roast. My mam used to marinate her venison piece overnight, wrap it in bacon and roast it until tender but not overcooked. I also enjoyed eating vension while traveling overseas in both Sweden and Canada. Needless to say it would rank high on the list of my favourite meats.

I was very excited when I finally managed to get my hands on some venison, buying it in Springvale but have to be honest and say was dissapointed when I defrosted it to find it was diced. My longing for a venison roast went out the window and now I needed to come up with a recipe that used diced venison. Basing my thoughts along what I had eaten in the past, especially with it being marinaded in blackcurrant syrup we came up with the following.

Once marinaded I put everything in the slow cooker and let it work it's magic. And it did. To my surprise it was delicious and the kids thought it was brilliant also. The richness of the venison coupled with the slight sweetness from the berries and the bacon infusion made this dish rustic and a "comfort food" dish especially as we served it with creamy mashed potato.

The children had no problems with the fact that they were eating deer meat (secretly I knew they wouldn't as they eat nearly everything we give them anyway) in fact Alex did most of the preparation cooking. Both have said that they would like to try venison roasted - so the search for a roasting joint continues!!

Venison and Bacon Casserole

Serves: 8
Points per serve: 7

1 cup hearty red wine
1/2 cup blackcurrant syrup (I used Ribena)
2 fresh bay leaves
2 tablespoons lingonberry jam
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 pieces orange peel
1 kilogram venison shoulder, diced
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon olive oil
175 grams 97% fat free short cut bacon, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
4 carrots, thickly sliced
1 stick celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, sliced
1 cup water
salt
freshly ground black pepper

In a large dish mix together the red wine, blackcurrant syrup, lingonberry jam, bay leaves, pepper and orange peel. Add the venison and allow to marinade overnight.

Drain the venison and reserve the marinade. Pat the pieces of venison dry and dust lightly in flour.

Heat a frying pan, add half the olive oil and brown the meat all over in batches. Place in slow cooker bowl. Spray the same frying pan with cooking spray add the the bacon and onion. Cook until golden brown and the onions have softened. Add to the cooked venison in the slow cooker. Once again spray the frying pan and add the carrots, celery and garlic and cook a few more minutes before adding the to venison and bacon mixtures. Add the reserved marinade. Season with salt and pepper, add water and cover with a lid.

Cook on low heat setting for 8 hours, stirring occasionally.

(click here for a printable version of this recipe)