INGREDIENTS
4 x 150g venison loin
For the spice mix:
10g Juniper berries
10g Black peppercorns
3 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
For the braised red cabbage:
50ml red wine vinegar
½ red cabbage finely shredded
2 red onions, peeled, halved and finely sliced
2 garlic cloves sliced
50ml olive oil
125ml red wine
125ml cassis (blackcurrant liqueur)
1 cinnamon stick
Sprig thyme
1 tbsp redcurrant jelly
2 pieces orange peel
For the butternut squash puree:
50g unsalted butter
300g peeled, deseeded and diced butternut squash
100ml chicken stock
50ml double cream
Recipe continues
METHOD
For the cabbage:
Pour the oil into an ovenproof dish, add the red onion and garlic, cover with a lid and cook on a gentle heat for 5 minutes.
Turn up the heat, add the cabbage, season and cook for 2 minutes. Add the vinegar, red wine, cassis, cinnamon, thyme and orange peel. Bring to the boil, cover with a disc of baking parchment, put a lid on top and bake in the oven for 2 hours at 180ºC or until the cabbage is soft.
Take out of the oven and stir in the redcurrant jelly. Check the seasoning.
For the puree:
Melt the butter in a pan and fry the squash very gently with a lid on for 5 minutes. Add the stock, bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes until soft. Add the double cream, bring to the boil and whizz in a blender until smooth. Season to taste.
For the venison:
Grind the spices together in a blender. Season the venison with salt, coat in the spices, pour a little sunflower oil in a pan, add the meat and cook in the oven at 200°C for about 5 minutes.
To serve:
Spoon the cabbage onto a plate, slice the venison and carefully arrange on top and finish with a spoon of butternut squash puree to the side.