In Wolphaartsdijk you can find one of the few red deer farms in the Netherlands. The farm in located in ‘Zeeland’, an area in the South-West of the Netherlands. The province is among other things known for its fresh seafood & beaches. So I was very excited when I was driving to ‘Zeeland’ to see the more hidden gem of Zeeland.
When I arrived on the yard of the farm from ‘Het Zeeuwse Hert’, the red deers were walking outside. Boris, the farmer, explained that they keep around 75 red deers. In this way, the animals have plenty of space to live in. Moreover the farmers can keep a good eye on the animals.
Nice side note: The farm is completely energy-neutral, thanks to solar panels and a wood stove (that smelled delicious!). For the wood stove the company uses local prunings. It was very nice to see the farm and to get more information about the local Red Deers! 🙂
Since it is already getting cold outside, I was craving for a nice hot stew. The ultimate comfort food for the autumn days, I think so!
Venison Stew & Celeriac Fries
Equipment
- Oven
- Baking Tray
- Baking Paper
- Bowl
- Peeler
- Cooking Pot
- Wooden Spatula
Ingredients
Red Deer Stew
- 400 gram Red Deer Steak like Flat Iron, Chuck Roast or Blade Steak
- 80 gram Carrots
- 80 gram Celery
- 80 gram Shallots
- 1 clove Garlic
- 50 gram Butter
- 3 tbsp Flour
- 200 ml Red Wine
- 300 ml Game Stock
- 1 Clove
- 2 Juniper Berries
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 200 gram Beets
- 1 tbsp Blackberry Jelly optional
Celeriac Fries
- 600 gram Celeriac
- 4 tbsp Olive Oil
- Some Parsley
Instructions
Preparations
- Cut the carrots, celery sticks and onions in even pieces. Then take the outer layer of the clove of garlic and cut the garlic in slices. Use a paper towel to dry the meat and then you can also chop this in even cubes.
Cooking the Stew
- Melt the butter in the cooking pot and add the chopped vegetables. Fry the vegetables until the onions are glossy. Then use a spoon to transfer the cooked vegetables to a bowl.
- Sprinkle the flour on the meat and mix around until all the cubes are covered with a thin layer of flour.
- Add the meat to the pan and fry it until brown. Then add the cooked vegetables and red wine. Use wooden spatula to scrape up the baked bits from the bottom of the pan. This to make sure that it won't burn later 😉
- Then pour in the stock, clove, juniper berries and bay leaves. Bring it to a boil and let it simmer for about 2 hours. In the meantime you can peel the beets and cut these in even parts. After 1,5 hours, you can add the beets to the stew. The cooking time (2 – 2,5 hours) depends a bit on the size of the meat cubes. Therefore, make sure you stir and check the meat constantly.
Celeriac Fries
- Preheat the oven on 180 degrees Celsius or 356 degrees Fahrenheit. Peel the outer layer of the celeriac and cut it in slices of about 1 cm thickness. Make sure to wash the celeriac so all sand is removed. Cut the slices of celeriac into fries.
- Place the baking paper on top of the baking tray. Add the fries, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss the fries around to cover all of them with some olive oil. Roast for about 45 minutes in the preheated oven (or until cooked and golden brown)
Cooking the Stew
- When the meat and beets are cooked through, you can take off the lid. Add a good tablespoon of blackberry jelly and optional a pinch of salt. Let the stew cook on a low-medium heat until it has the right 'thickness'.
Serve with..
- Serve the stew with the celeriac fries and freshly chopped parsley.