Venison

Historically, venison was the meat of kings – think “royal game”. As far as I’m concerned, it should be more readily available to “everydayJoe’s”, people like you and me. Game meat is sorely neglected in both butcheries and restaurants, and of all the meats in this book, I want to make a case for eating more of it. In the same way city slickers have forgotten about offal, we’ve forgotten venison (despite the fact that South Africa has top-quality examples). It’s high time we catch a wake up.

To me, it’s somewhat hypocritical: people are prepared to eat factory-farmed chickens, but they turn up their noses at “game” meat. It’s a great pity, since venison is from animals that have lived a brilliant life in their natural habitat. It’s the “freest” of free range. I won’t get deep into the messy hunting debate, except to say that I do support highly-skilled shots who are part of programmes that cull overpopulated antelope herds before overgrazing occurs. Add that venison is low in fat, high in iron, rich in protein, a good source of vitamin B and immune-boosting selenium – and it’s ticking a lot of boxes. Sadly, farming venison is difficult and worse, much of our best produce is exported. There’s an easy way to rectify this: eat more of the stuff.