Venison Soup

Ingredients

• 3 lb venison
• 1 lb corned ham or salt pork
• 1 onion
• 1 head celery
• 2 quart water
• a few mace blades
• 12 whole peppers
• cayenne
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp browned flour
• cold water
• 1 tbsp walnut or mushroom catsup
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce or other pungent sauce
• 1 glass Madeira or brown sherry

Method

Venison soup is a braising-based stock-making exercise. The meat — both the game and the salt pork — needs extended time in liquid to break down connective tissue into gelatin and to extract flavour into the broth itself. Cut the venison into 5cm chunks; leave some surface area exposed but don't mince it. The corned ham, already cured and dense, should be cut smaller, to 3cm pieces, since it won't need as long to soften.

Sweat the onion and celery roughly chopped in a heavy pot over medium heat with the butter for three minutes — this isn't a fond-building stage, just softening the aromatics so they release into the liquid. Add the venison and ham, then pour in enough cold water to cover by 2cm. Bring to a simmer, skim the grey scum that rises for the first minute (this is denatured protein and blood — leaving it clouds the final broth), then reduce to the barest simmer. Cover and braise for one hour. The meat will be tough still; this is correct.

Now add the full two quarts of boiling water along with the mace blades and whole peppercorns. The shift from small volume to large volume, plus the heat shock, restarts extraction. Simmer uncovered for two hours more. You're looking for the meat to be completely tender — a fork should pull it apart without resistance — and the broth should smell rich and sweet, not sharp. Taste it. If it's thin and weak, continue simmering; if it's already concentrated and savoury, stop. Strain through a fine sieve, discarding solids, and return the liquor to the pot.

Make a beurre manié: knead the browned flour and 1 tablespoon of cold butter together into a paste, then whisk it into the simmering broth in small pieces. This thickening method — fat and flour emulsified into hot liquid — avoids the grainy texture you get from a slurry. Stir constantly for two minutes until the flour is fully cooked and the broth coats the back of a spoon lightly.

Off heat, add the walnut or mushroom catsup, the Worcestershire sauce, and a generous 150ml glass of Madeira or brown sherry. These fermented and aged condiments add umami depth and acid that brightens the heavy game flavour. Simmer for one minute to combine, taste, adjust salt if needed, and serve hot in deep bowls.