Braised venison leg Fletcher's style

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 ½ kg venison leg(s), ready to cook, boned
• 40 g clarified butter
• 2 onions
• 2 carrots
• 2 sour apples (e.g. Boskoop)
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp Herbs de Provence, approx.
• 1 jar vegetable stock
• 6 juniper berries
• Salt and pepper, from the mill
• 200 g mushrooms
• 50 ml sweet cream
• 50 ml red wine, dry
• 1 tbsp cranberries
• 1 pinch of cayenne pepper or Tabasco
• lemon juice
• cornstarch

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 15 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours; Total time approx. 2 hours 45 minutes

wonderful autumn/winter dish

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Tie the leg with kitchen string and season the outside with pepper and salt. Let it rest for 15 minutes. Crush the juniper berries. Peel the onions and carrots, peel, quarter, and core the apples. Dice everything and set aside. Clean the mushrooms, cut off a piece of the rind, and slice or quarter it, also setting aside. Heat the clarified butter in a roasting pan and brown the leg well on all sides. Add the onions, carrots, apples, and juniper berries and braise. Stir in the tomato paste. Add the Herbes de Provence and the bay leaf. Pour in the vegetable stock. Add the mushrooms. Place the lid on the lowest rack in the oven. Braise for approx. 90–120 minutes, depending on the oven. If you’re working with the core temperature, the roast should be between 75–80°C. Remove the leg and half of the mushrooms from the roasting pan. Wrap the leg in aluminum foil and keep warm, along with the mushrooms. Sauce: Purée the meat juices. Heat the cream in a small saucepan (e.g., a saucepan), but do not boil. Strain the meat juices through a fine sieve and add to the cream. Add the red wine and cranberries, and bring everything to a boil. Lightly thicken with cornstarch. Add the mushrooms and season with lemon juice, cayenne pepper, and salt. Serve with boiled potatoes or dumplings made with raw potatoes and apple and red cabbage.