Recipe: Venison Bolognese
I started monitoring my calorie intake because I’m 43, and 23 year-old me no longer looks back in the mirror. I think this Bolognese amounts to 3 zillion calories, but I don’t care. 23 year-old me was a drag, and a foot of snow just landed outside my house in Upstate New York. The comforts of Bolognese with a hint of a gamey venison are too right for the moment.
This is an otherwise straightforward Bolognese sauce with the addition of ground venison and venison-friendly spices like juniper and a subtle kick of cinnamon stick. I grind the meat myself as well as make the pasta because I like to take my time with things, but feel free to buy some fresh pasta and pre-ground meats from the store if you’re like, “hell no.”
I also don’t brown the meat, like many recipes call for. A few years ago I was lucky enough to go to Bologna where a local chef prepares large quantities of the ragù according to an 18th century record. In that recipe the ground meats are added fresh and not browned. It was a revelation for me. I found the sauce to be so much more tender, and its flavor much subtler. Make this insanely comforting venison Bolognese and pour yourself a goblet of Barbera.
Ingredients: (Serves 4-6)
Pasta Dough:
- 2 Cups of All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Eggs
- 3 Egg Yolks
Venison Bolognese:
- 1 lb. of beef chuck (pre-ground okay)
- 1 lb. of pork belly (or fresh ground pork)
- 1 lb. of venison (pre-ground okay)
- 1 yellow onion, finely minced
- 2 carrots, finely diced
- 2 stalks of celery, finely diced
- 2 28oz. cans of whole peeled tomatoes
- 6 cloves of garlic, very finely minced
- 4 juniper berries finely ground
- 2 bay leaves finely ground
- 1 cup of red wine
- 2 cups of whole milk
- Salt and pepper to taste
Steps:
- Sauté the onions, carrots and celery in a 2-3 tbs of oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat.
- After about 4-5 minutes, when the onions have started to turn translucent, add the garlic.
- When the garlic becomes fragrant after about a minute or so, add the ground juniper, bay leaf, and cinnamon stick.
- Stir for a minute or so until the cinnamon stick starts to give off its aroma.
- Add the ground meat and stir to combine.
- Continue stirring for several minutes until the all of the meat loses its pink color.
- Add the wine and milk and allow to reduce by 1/2 ~ 15-20 mins.
- Empty the cans of whole peeled tomatoes into a large bowl.
- Using your hands, squeeze the tomatoes to break them up fairly well.
- Add the tomatoes to the pot and stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil then lower the heat to a simmer. At this point you can simmer the ragù on the stovetop for 2 hours, or place, uncovered, in a 325ºF oven for the same amount of time to free up some space.
Meanwhile make the pasta:
- Put the flour in a large mixing bowl.
- Add the eggs and egg yolks to the center of the flour.
- Using a wooden spoon or your hands, start stirring the eggs while gradually adding the flour from the perimeter until it’s all combined.
- At this point turn the flour onto a work surface and knead for about 5 minutes, until no dry bits remain.
- Shape the dough into a disc and wrap in plastic. Let rest for at least 30 minutes, and up to one day in the fridge.
- When ready to roll out the pasta, set up your machine to its thickest setting.
- Divide the dough in half and lightly dust it with flour.
- Start with one portion rolling out on the thickest setting and gradually decreasing the thickness to the 3rd thinnest setting.
- Once the first portion as been fully rolled out, dust it with flour and roll it up.
- Repeat the steps with the second portion.
- Cut the rolled up portions of dough crosswise into approximately 1/2” wide strips.
- Unroll the strips and mound into portions for cooking. Set aside until just ready to cook.
To Cook and Serve:
- When the sauce is done, season with salt and pepper to taste, then lower the heat.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Cook the pasta for 3-4 minutes, drain and add to a large serving bowl.
- Add a few ladlefuls of sauce to the serving bowl, and toss the pasta with the sauce until evenly coated.
- Grate plenty of fresh parmigiano-reggiano over the top.
- Serve and enjoy.
Drink Suggestions:
A good, dry, light to medium-bodied red wine. I love a Barbera D’Asti along side this slight game flavor from the venison.
Note: There will be plenty of leftover sauce. It’ll keep for several days in the fridge, but I also recommend dividing it up into small containers and freezing. When reheating it’s good to add a few tablespoons of the pasta water to the sauce to loosen it up a little.










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