But last week, I was really, really tired and really, really, really sore from being out of town last weekend. I wanted a quick and easy, no fuss, no work meal.
Hmmm, ground. That's almost the same as pre-chopped, right? Got it!
Venison Hash
2 lbs or so ground venison (or ground beef)
1 lb southern-style frozen hash browns
1/2 chopped large onion (3-4 inches in diameter)
1/2 pound or so sliced crimini mushrooms
1 tablespoon or so garlic powder
1 teaspoon or so cinnamon
1 teaspoon or so powdered ginger
1 pound frozen peas
salt and pepper to taste
Brown the venison, onion, and mushrooms in large skillet. Drain excess grease (if you are using venison, there won't be any).
Set heat to medium. Add potatoes and cover. Stir every 10 minutes or so until potatoes are done.
Add peas. Cook until peas are heated through and just past crunchy (they should still be firm).
Enjoy with a lovely microbrew.
My inspiration for this dish was a shepherd's pie. I used venison instead of mutton because that was what I had on hand and because I knew it would work well. I used frozen hash browns because all they really ever need is a heat-through and crisp. I did chop the onion and slice the mushrooms, but if you are really pinched for time or energy, you can use pre-sliced. I don't recommend it as doing it yourself isn't that much work, but you could if you needed to.
The result was a wonderfully warm and filling dinner that was definitely homey, very close to what I would call comfort food. And it only took about a half hour or so to make, great when you're on the go.
My only complaint was that it was a little on the dry side. I added a little water when I reheated it for lunch the next day and was very pleased with what I got. The water helped convey the spices much more effectively.
3 comments:
I've never had venison before, so I'm not sure what flavors it goes best with -- would blue cheese be a good compliment? If so, we've got a recipe for the most divine hamburgers that could probably be done with ground venison instead of ground beef.
I made a batch of the fine bread last week; it didn't turn out how I expected, but it was still tasty, and also filled the primary requirements I had for the day (something quick, and sweet).
I don't know about bleu cheese as I don't care for it myself, but if it goes well with beef, it's like to go well with venison. It's not a one-to-one match (venison is better with ginger), but it's a pretty good one. Venison tends to be a bit stronger in flavor and beef tends to be a bit more tender as it has more fat.
Re: fine bread -- It's not really a bread. It tends to be sort of dense like a brownie instead of light like bread or cake.
Susan,
In just doing a random search on your name on LinkedIn and found your blog site. In seeing your blog here and your talk about Venison makes me think you might have grown up in PA and maybe graduated from Maplewood H.S. Seeing you attended College in PA (according to your profile). If all this is true, I may have stumbled across an old friend. My name is Rick Bartels. If any of this sounds familiar you can email me at rick@papa-ricks.com. If not, wrong identity and I apologize.
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