3 game meat dishes that will let autumn in perfectly

Game meat is taken from any animal that is hunted, rather than farmed. Game is used in many hearty autumnal dishes for the rich flavour profile and rustic edge it brings to the table. So, as the nights draw in and you find yourself craving something a little more warming, seasonally hunted meat may be just the ingredient you need. Here are three of our favourite game dishes to help bring in the autumn.

1. Wild boar ragù

Wild boar is used in many traditional recipes the world over, but few are as well paired as Tuscan wild boar ragù. The intense meat sauce is best combined with a broad pasta such as pappardelle. As explained by the experts at Pasta Evangelists, “the wide, flat shape and rough, porous surface of pappardelle makes them the perfect companion to a hearty meat sauce. The most traditional Tuscan dish is pappardelle with wild boar ragù”.

Ingredients

Serves 4

750g wild boar shoulder meat
400g pappardelle pasta
400g chopped tomatoes
400ml red wine, ideally Tuscan Chianti
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped into chunks
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs of thyme
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp caster sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Heat a splash of extra virgin olive oil in a large pan and fry the carrot, onion, and garlic.

When the veg has softened, chop the wild boar meat into chunks about 3cm wide and add to the pan to brown. Once browned, add bay leaves, thyme and red wine. Cook on a low heat for 10 minutes.

Stir in the tomatoes, puree and sugar with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cover the pan and cook on the lowest heat for 1 ½ to 2 ½ hours, stirring regularly, until the meat is tender.

When the ragù is almost ready, bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil and simmer the pappardelle until al dente.

Once cooked, drain the pasta and reserve a little pasta water to combine with the sauce if it’s too thick. Serve the pasta topped with piping hot ragù.

2. Venison pie

This tasty bake takes the blueprint for a classic beef pie and replaces its meat with rich and tender venison. Wild venison is a healthy, tasty alternative to beef, as the British Deer Society tells us — it’s “a great source of protein, incredibly low in fat, and its levels of saturated fat are much lower than in other red meats”. This warming dish is stuffed full of autumnal veggies and topped with a no-fuss puff pastry. If you’re feeling ambitious, you can of course make your own pastry, but we’ve opted to use store-bought.

Ingredients

Serves 4-5

1kg venison shoulder meat
400g ready-made puff pastry
200g button mushrooms, halved
300ml red wine
400ml beef stock
2 large red onions, diced
2 carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
4 bay leaves
2 sprigs of thyme
2 sprigs of rosemary
1 egg, beaten
1 star anise
1 tsp juniper berries, slightly crushed
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).

Heat a splash of olive oil in a large casserole dish. Chop the venison shoulder into large cubes and cook for a few minutes until each side is browned. Season generously with salt and pepper.

Add the onions, carrots, garlic and juniper berries and heat until fragrant. Stir in the mushrooms.

Pour in the wine and beef stock, then add rosemary, thyme and star anise. Bring the mixture to a boil.

Cover the dish with a lid and transfer to the oven to cook for 2 to 2 ½ hours, until the meat is tender and the filling is rich. Then, tip into a pie dish.

Roll out the pastry on a floured surface until it’s the thickness of a pound coin and cover the dish with pastry. Press the edges of the lid, crisscross the top with a knife, and brush with beaten egg.

Bake the pie for 30 to 40 minutes, until the pastry is puffed and golden.

3. Duck confit

This classic French dish, also known as confit de canard, is prepared using salt-cured duck meat. Traditional to the Gascony region, the rustic delicacy takes its name from the French word “confit”, referring to the process of cooking and preserving meat in fat. Duck confit can be used as a starter or as an ingredient in a host of other dishes. According to French cuisine connoisseurs Monpanier Latin: “French chefs often use confit de canard to make cassoulet, a hearty casserole with white beans and sausage”.

Ingredients

Serves 2

2 large duck legs (approx 500g total)
350-500g duck fat
4 garlic cloves, skin on and crushed
3 sprigs of thyme
4 sprigs of rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 tsp black peppercorns
½ tbsp sea salt

Method

The day before serving or storing, begin the dry curing process. Lay your duck legs in a bowl and scatter with salt, rosemary, thyme, garlic, peppercorns and bay leaves.

Toss the legs in the mix until evenly distributed, then cover the dish and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.

When you’re ready to start cooking, preheat the oven to 100°C (210°F) and remove the duck legs from the dry cure. Scrape and rinse off any pieces of the mix and pat the legs dry with a paper towel.

Simmer duck fat on low heat until melted, then pour over the duck legs in the tray. You’ll need as much melted fat as it takes to submerge and cover the legs, but this will depend on the size and depth of tray you’re using. If you don’t have the coverage, add more fat or swap to a smaller tray.

Cover your tray with foil and transfer to the oven. Cook for 2 ½ to 3 ½ hours, regularly checking the duck’s tenderness. Once the meat is starting to pull away from the bone, remove it from the oven.

Allow the pan to cool, and remove the legs from the fat. You can now store them in a container with a little of the duck fat and refrigerate for up to a month, or finish cooking the legs.

To serve, scrape off a little excess fat and place the legs on a tray skin-side up. Roast legs for 25-35 minutes at 180°C (350°F) until the skin is crispy and golden.