There are no short-cuts with this tasty dish – the long, slow cooking process ensures you are met with truly succulent venison.
Serves 2-3

Ingredients:
2 carrots
140g swede
2 onions
3 sticks of celery
1 tbsp olive oil
20g butter
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1kg boned leg or shoulder of venison, cut into large chunks (or buy ready-cut venison for stewing)
5 tbsp plain flour, seasoned with salt and pepper
2 tbsp redcurrant jelly
450ml dry red wine
450ml beef stock
2 sprigs of thyme
1 bay leaf

Method:
1. Heat your oven to 180°C (fan 160°C/gas mark 4). Roughly chop the carrots, swede, onions and celery, then fry the vegetables in half the oil and butter in a heavy-based casserole dish for 4-5 minutes until golden. Add the garlic and fry for a further minute, then put aside.

2. Put the venison into a sealable plastic bag with the seasoned flour and shake to coat. Add the remaining oil and butter to the casserole dish, then fry the venison on a high heat, stirring periodically until well browned. Don’t put too much meat in the dish at once – cook in batches if you don’t have a big casserole dish. Set aside with the vegetables.

3. Add the redcurrant jelly and wine to the dish and bring to the boil, making sure you scrape up all the bits from the meat and vegetables that have stuck to the bottom. Pour in the stock, then add the thyme, bay leaf, venison and vegetables. Season to your taste and bring to the boil. Put the lid on the dish and move it to the oven for about 2 hours or until tender. Remove from the oven and check the seasoning.

4. Serve with a generous helping of fresh, crusty bread.