Crockpot Venison Bourguignon

We had a NICE hunting season this year. Our freezer is stuffed will all manner of cuts of venison, and I am so excited! I love the idea that we butchered this meat ourselves, I know the source, and I can pair it with either our homegrown veggies, or locally grown produce.

I have to admit, I am a Food Network addict, so I was watching a show last week about Beef Bourguignon, which is what inspires this dish. There is a bit of prep on the front end, but SO worth the really complex flavor this dish develops while it cooks. We served this over goat cheese potato puree...really awesome !

Crockpot Venison Bourguignon
For the meat:
3 pounds venison cut into bite sized chunks
1 bottle burgundy (minus one glass for tasting :)
1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup black pepper (depending on your tastes, I like it peppery, but you can always add more pepper later if needed)
3 tablespoons salt
1/4 pound bacon, diced
1/2 cup sherry
Place venison and wine in a one gallon freezer storage bag, and place in the refrigerator.Marinate the meat in the wine overnight. Drain wine from the meat, saving the remaining wine for later.

Brown bacon in a large dutch oven. Remove bacon with slotted spoon, set aside. Combine flour, pepper and salt together in a large bowl. Toss venison chunks in flour mixture, and add to saute pan with bacon fat. Brown 3-4 minutes on each side, then remove cooked pieces to the crock pot. Add sherry to the pan, and deglaze, then pour over meat in crock pot.

For the stew:
2 large carrots, sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium onions, finely diced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 sprigs fresh thyme
4 sprigs fresh parsley
1 stalk celery, cut in half
3 dried bay leaves
1 large sprig fresh rosemary
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 14 ounce package frozen pearl onions
In same pan just deglazed, add butter and olive oil and melt together until bubbly. Add carrots, cook for 4 minutes, then add garlic and onions. Cook 4-5 minutes until all ingredients are tender. Add tomato paste, and saute until dark red, 3-4 minutes. Add to meat mixture. Pour remaining wine marinade over. Tie together the thyme, parsley, celery, bay leaves and rosemary, and push down into the crockpot. Cook on low for 7-8 hours. At the 7 hour mark, add mushrooms and pearl onions, and cook one more hour. Serve over noodles or mashed potatoes.


Just to make it more decadent, I made goat cheese mashed potatoes to go with this:

2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and dices
6 cups water
1 tablespoon salt
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
In a dutch oven, combine potatoes, water and tablespoon of salt. Bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer. Simmer until potatoes are soft, approximately 30 minutes. Drain water from potatoes, return to pan, and add remaining ingredients. Blend together until smooth.