Venison Shepard's Pie
Venison shepherd's pie with braised, pulled venison in a balanced vegetable gravy, topped with seasoned mashed potatoes and baked until golden - clean flavor, tender texture, simple make-ahead.
Ingredients
For the Venison
- 2 pounds boneless venison, cut into 2-3 inch pieces (shoulder, shank or neck meat)
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 large carrots, chopped
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons fresh thyme
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1.5 Cups tomato Paste
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 2 cups venison or beef stock
- 2 cups frozen green peas
- salt and black pepper to taste
For the Mashed Potato Topping
- 1.5 lbs Yukon Gold Potatoes, Quartered
- 1/4 cup Whole Milk
- 3 Tbsp Melted Butter
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 Teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 330 degrees F.
- Season the deer meat with salt and pepper. Coat a large pan with the olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Once the oil starts to lightly smoke, add the venison and cook on all sides until golden brown. Set the pan and meat aside.
- In a blender or food processor, puree all of the vegetables (except the green peas), herbs, and garlic until it looks like a thick paste.
- Remove the meat from the pan and heat the pan to medium heat. Add the tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and the vegetable puree to the pan and cook for 7-8 minutes while stirring frequently.
- Add the red wine and scrape all of the bits off the bottom of the pan. Reduce the mixture by half.
- Place the venison in a baking dish or a Dutch oven. Pour the vegetable and wine mixture over the meat. Add about 2 cups of stock or enough to cover the meat about 3/4 of the way. Cover and cook for 3-4 hours or until the meat is fork-tender.
- While the venison is cooking, place the potatoes in a pot and cover them with water. Bring to a simmer and cook until fork tender (about 15 minutes)
- Strain the potatoes and whip them with an electric mixer along with the melted butter, milk, Parmesan, and salt. If the potatoes are too thick adjust with more milk. Alternatively, you can use a potato masher or potato ricer to process the potatoes and then fold in the remaining ingredients.
- When the venison is tender, remove it from the oven and increase the temperature to 400 degrees F.
- Remove the venison from the cooking liquid and place it into a large bowl. Shred the meat very finely, adding a little of the cooking liquid to ensure that the meat mixture is moist. Season to taste with salt and ground black pepper.
- Add the venison filling and green peas to a casserole dish or individual ramekins. Carefully spread the potatoes on top of the meat, making sure that it is fully covered.
- Sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top and bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. For a little extra color, dust with a little sweet paprika.
NOTES
Ground venison substitutionÂ
- Use 1.5 to 2 pounds of ground venison. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter to offset the leanness.
- Brown in a wide skillet over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and break into small crumbles.
- Stir in your vegetable paste, tomato paste, Worcestershire, and herbs. Cook 2 to 3 minutes until fragrant.
- Optional binder: sprinkle 1 tablespoon flour, stir 30 seconds.
- Add red wine, reduce by half. Add stock to loosen to a saucy consistency. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes until glossy and spoon-coating.
- Fold in peas off heat. Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Transfer to the casserole, top with mashed potatoes, and bake as directed in the recipe.
- Brown the venison well first. Season the meat with salt and pepper, then sear it on all sides until golden, before adding it to the braise. That browning step is what builds the base flavor for the filling.
- Puree the vegetables smoothly. Blend the carrots, onion, herbs, and garlic into a thick paste, then cook them with the tomato paste and Worcestershire. That is what gives the filling its body without leaving chunky vegetables in the gravy.
- Reduce the wine by half. After adding the red wine, scrape up the browned bits and reduce them before adding stock. This is one of the key flavor-building steps on the page.
- Keep the filling slightly loose. Add enough stock to cover the meat about three-quarters of the way, then braise until fork-tender. When you shred the venison, mix in a little cooking liquid so the filling stays moist, because it will tighten more in the oven.
- Do not let the potatoes dry. Whip the potatoes with the milk, butter, Parmesan, and salt, and add more milk if needed so they spread easily. The post specifically warns that dry mashed potatoes will get even drier after baking.
- Seal the potatoes edge-to-edge. Spread the mashed potatoes to the edges of the dish, then rough the top with a fork so it browns better in the oven.
- Use ground venison if needed. The post offers a quick method using 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of ground venison, browned first, then simmered briefly in the same base until glossy and spoon-coating, before baking as directed.
- Make ahead if needed. You can assemble it up to 3 days ahead, refrigerate it tightly covered, then bake it uncovered at 400 F until heated through and golden. Leftovers keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated.
Nutrition
Calories: 892kcal | Carbohydrates: 73g | Protein: 72g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 226mg | Sodium: 1841mg | Potassium: 3112mg | Fiber: 14g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 7725IU | Vitamin C: 96mg | Calcium: 311mg | Iron: 15mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation. Nutrition is per serving.
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