Josh Griggs
Orphans Kitchen
118 Ponsonby Road, Auckland
(09) 378 7979
Ingredients
Method
1.Preheat your oven and a roasting dish to 180°C. Rub the freshly ground coffee, star anise and pepper thoroughly into the venison. Set aside at room temperature.
2.Place shallots and carrots in the preheated dish and roast until golden brown (about 15 minutes). While these are roasting, simmer and reduce the red wine by three-quarters in a saucepan.
3.Place rubbed venison in a deep, heavy-based pot or crockpot. Place roasted shallots and carrots on top with the rosemary and bayleaves. Pour over the reduced wine and beef stock.
4.Place pot on medium heat and very slowly bring to a simmer; at no point do you want the stock to boil as this will dry out the venison. When it reaches a simmer, turn heat to lowest setting, place pot lid on top, slightly ajar, and cook for 1 hour.
5.While meat is cooking, boil the whole, unpeeled kumara in a large pot of salted water until soft and tender (check by pressing it with a small knife). Drain and set kumara aside for 15 minutes to cool.
6.Cut kumara in half, scoop out all the soft, golden flesh from the peel and place in a bowl. Season with salt, add the olive oil and then mash vigorously using the back of a large wooden spoon. Set aside in a warm place.
7.For the sauce, place the tamarillos flat-side down in a small oven tray. In a small pan, boil off the pinot gris until it reduces and goes golden brown. Pour this over tamarillo halves, cover with foil and roast at 180°C for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
8.Peel skin from tamarillos and discard. Place the flesh in a bowl then add remaining liquid from the oven tray and roughly mash together.
9.Blanch chard in boiling salted water with an extra dash of olive oil, and drain.
10.Place a generous scoop of kumara mash in four warmed bowls. Lift meat from cooking liquid and divide between bowls, placing meat on top of mash. (The strained cooking liquid can be frozen for another use; it makes the perfect base for a venison stew or mince.) Place a few shallot halves on venison followed by the rainbow chard. Spoon tamarillo sauce on top and finish with a grind of fresh black pepper and a sprinkle of edible petals (if using).
Note
- When slow-cooking venison, take care that it’s always fully submerged in liquid and doesn’t boil, or else it will dry out and become tough. – The beauty of this dish is that it can be prepared in advance then heated through to serve if you’re short on time.
