Venison Stew with Morels & Foie Gras

Before starting this Venison Stew with Morels and Foie Gras recipe, make sure you have organised all the necessary ingredients for the marinade.

For the marinade: Peel the carrots, onion and garlic cloves.

Cut the carrots in big chunks.

Cut the onion into big chunks.

Gather the vegetables for the marinade.

In a sauté pan, heat 5 cl of olive oil.

Add the vegetables in the pan, then sweat for 5 to 10 minutes over medium heat. The vegetables should not brown.

In the meantime, cut the venison loin into big chunks.

When the vegetables are ready...

... transfer into a mixing bowl and leave to cool.

Add the red wine.

Add the venison pieces...

... and immerse with the marinade.

Cover with cling film and refrigerate between 24 and 48 hours (maximum).

48 hours later: strain the venison until there is no more juice. Keep the marinade juice!

Separate the meat pieces from the vegetables.

In a cast iron casserole, heat 5 cl of olive oil.

Add the meat...

... and sear.

Sprinkle with 30 to 50 grams of flour. The quantity depends on how thick you want to make the sauce. The more flour you add, the thicker the sauce will be.

Place the pot in the oven at 180°C (gas 4) for 5 minutes, for the starch cells to burst.

Remove from the oven and stir to incorporate the flour.

Moisten with the marinade juice.

Add the bouquet garni.

Season with salt and Espelette pepper.

Cover with a lid and bring to a simmering boil. Cook for about 2 hours.
Cooking should be slow and regular to ensure the meat is soft and tender, otherwise the meat will be tough and dry.

In the meantime, place the morels in warm water to rehydrate them.

Using a utility knife, peel the sweet potatoes. Make sure you remove the peel as well as the pale yellow flesh.

Cut into large cubes.

In a saucepan, cover the potatoes with cold water and bring to a boil. Cook until tender (insert the blade of a knife to check whether they are cooked).

Strain the potatoes. To balance the sweetness of sweet potatoes, you may add a couple of normal potatoes.

Process the strained potatoes through a food mill.

... to obtain a purée.

Transfer into a saucepan and place over low heat. Add the butter. Adjust the seasoning if needed. Keep warm.

Peel the parsnips...

... and cut into cubes.

Place the parsnip chunks into a saucepan and add the milk. Season with salt and Espelette pepper.

Cook over very low heat until tender.

When ready (insert the blade of a knife to check whether they are cooked), strain the parsnip and process through a food mill.

Add some milk (the milk used to cook the parsnip) to obtain a smooth purée.

Add a knob of butter. Adjust the seasoning if needed. Keep warm.

Peel the pumpkin and cut into chunks.

Place the parsnip chunks into a saucepan, with a little water and a knob of butter. Cover with a lid and cook until mashed, stirring regularly.

When cooked, pumpkin naturally turns into mash. Add the butter and adjust the seasoning. Keep warm.

Strain the morels and squeeze to extract as much water as possible.

When the venison is cooked, decant the meat...

... and transfer into a mixing bowl. Set aside.

Heat up the sauce.

Using a hand blender (such as Bamix), process the sauce to give it a smoother consistency.

Add the foie gras, cut into slices.

Mix until it is completely incorporated...

... and there are no more bits of foie gras.

Pass the sauce through a fine sieve.

Return the sauce to the heat and bring to a gentle simmering boil. Add the butter and tilt the pan to incorporate it. This will give a creamier consistency to the sauce.

Pour the sauce over the meat. Keep warm. Make sure the preparation does not boil to maintain the right consistency.

In a non-stick frying pan, melt 30 grams of butter...

... and add the morels. Sauté for 2 or 3 minutes. Season with salt and ground pepper.

In each plate, arrange a few pieces of venison and morels, pour some sauce over. Scoop each purée in a piping bag and arrange on the plate, in the pattern of your choice.
Sprinkle some chopped parsley on top.
Bon appétit!