Grilled leg of roe deer venison with risotto and pesto

GRILLED LEG OF ROE DEER VENISON

WITH ASPARAGUS RISOTTO AND WILD GARLIC PESTO

(for 4 people) 

Leg of roe deer venison

• 1 leg of roe deer venison without bone (ca. 1-1.5 kg)

• 2 tablespoons wild rub (mortar juniper berries, pimento, coriander seeds, mustard seeds and peppercorns)

• 2 tablespoons BBQ sauce

• salt, pepper

Preparation:

Remove the leg of venison from the cooler a few hours before grilling, if necessary cut it up roughly. Rub with the wild rub and brush with BBQ sauce. Sear with a lot of heat and then grill it gently on the side of the fire or grill over very mild heat until it is cooked to perfection.

To serve, cut into slices and sprinkle with fleur de sel or other sea salt.

Asparagus risotto

• 1/2 medium onion or 1 shallot

• 1 clove of garlic

• 1 cup risotto rice

• 1 bunch of asparagus

• 1 organic lemon

• 600-800ml broth, depending on the type of rice

• 1 glass of white wine (optional) to deglaze, the other half to drink :-)

• salt, pepper

• olive oil

• butter flakes

• grated parmesan (or other hard cheese)

Preparation:

Put some olive oil in a deep frying pan and briefly sauté the onions, garlic and asparagus. Add the rice and sweat briefly.

Deglaze with white wine and season a little bit, pour broth little by little and boil down again and again for 15-20min. Stir or swivel occasionally. Wash the lemon under hot water, grate the peel into the risotto.

Now fold in some butter flakes and the grated parmesan, possibly add herbs like parsley and season again with salt and pepper.

Tip: The perfect risotto

Even today, the best Italian chefs argue about whether a good risotto should be stirred or tossed until it is ready.

For the perfect risotto, you need a suitable round grain rice. You can choose from varieties like Arborio, Vialone, and Caranoli. The varieties differ slightly in the cooking time. My favourite for a really perfect and creamy risotto is Caranoli rice.

Wild garlic pesto

• 1 bunch of fresh wild garlic

• 1 piece of parmesan

• 4 tablespoons nuts (cashew, almonds or pine nuts), roasted in a dry pan

• some grated lemon peel

• salt, pepper

• olive oil

Preparation:

Wash wild garlic with cold water and drain well. Chop all ingredients in a blender and let olive oil run in until achieving the desired consistency. Covering the pesto with a thin layer of olive oil keeps it fresh for several months in the refrigerator. 

Note: You could use basil instead of wild garlic. However, you might want to add some chopped garlic for flavor.