Venison Bourguignon with Dark Chocolate & Star Anise

Name: Venison Bourguignon with Dark Chocolate & Star Anise
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 2 h 25 min
Total time: 5 h 45 min
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 1 l/35 fl oz/4 cups red wine, such as French Southern Rhône; 3 garlic cloves, crushed with the blade of a knife; 1 star anise; 2 thyme sprigs; 100 ml/3½ fl oz/scant ½ cup olive oil; 3 tbsp Cognac; 2 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour; 600 ml/21 fl oz/scant 2½ cups Beef Stock; 1 bouquet garni, made with 1 thyme sprig, 1 parsley sprig and 1 bay leaf, tied with kitchen string; 2 handfuls of mixed seasonal wild mushrooms, such as girolles, horn of plenty and chanterelles; 100 g/3½ oz thick pancetta, diced; 30 g/1 oz dark organic chocolate, 70% cocoa solids, grated; 12 silverskin onions; 2 carrots, peeled, halved lengthways and cut into chunks; sea salt and freshly ground black pepper; 1 handful of flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped; 800 g/1 lb 12 oz venison haunch, cut into large cubes

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Medium
Ready in
6 hr

Appears in

French Countryside Cooking

By Daniel Galmiche

Published 2021

About

Venison is a great alternative to beef and, during hunting season, which lasts from autumn to the end of winter, this is a perfect dish to make. Venison is also a very lean meat and full of goodness, as deer eat only the best there is available. Their diet is superb and you can almost say they are difficult when it comes to choosing what’s on offer! This version of the French classic is finished with dark chocolate, providing a hint of tobacco and bark which combines beautifully with the ea