Pulled venison and blue cheese recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients

The rub

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp brown sugar – dried out on a plate for 5 minutes to make it easy to mix

1 tsp ground black pepper

½ tsp salt

2 wild venison shanks

1 x 440ml can of cider

To assemble

4 brioche buns

Salad leaves

75 – 100g soft blue cheese – Saint Ager or Dolcelatte

Method

1. Mix the rub ingredients in a bowl until well combined.

2. Stand the shanks in the bowl and rub with the dry mix, pressing well into the meat. Leave for 2 minutes, then repeat the process to ensure the meat is very well covered. Leave for 15-20 minutes for the flavours to enter the venison.

3. Pour the cider into a flameproof casserole and add the shanks.

4. Place on the heat, bring to the boil and reduce to a gentle simmer. Take a piece of greaseproof paper the size of the casserole and scrunch it up, then open it out and place on top of the meat to keep the moisture in whilst it is cooking.

5. Cover with a lid making sure the paper is not hanging over the edge of the casserole and cook for between 3½ - 4 hours, or until the meat is falling off the bone. Check regularly and add more cider if it starts to dry out.

6. Remove from the oven and using 2 forks, pull the meat away from the bones. Cover the meat and keep warm.

7. Halve the brioche buns and grill both sides of the bottom halves and upper side of the bun tops. Put some salad leaves on the bottom halves and top with the pulled venison. Crumble the cheese over the underside of the top halves, press down lightly and grill until the cheese starts to melt.

8. Place the bun tops, cheesy side down on top of the venison and serve straightaway.

Cook’s Tip

When wild venison is not available, farmed is a good alternative.

This recipe is cooked on the hob, but if you prefer you can cook the venison shanks in the oven at 160°C/Gas 3 for a similar cooking time.

Recipe from HFV Parkland & Wild (hfv.co.uk) who, based in North Yorkshire, produce award winning, prime quality, sustainable venison from animals reared naturally, grazing on grass pastures from their own farm between Harrogate and York and from local, traditional estates and parks nearby such as the Harewood Estate