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I am a great believer in sourcing local sustainable produce where ever I can. The charcoal used was from Courage Copes (a company based in my home town of Umberleigh, North Devon). All the veggies are grown from our allotment in the garden and the venison is from a local butcher in South Molton.
Ingredients:
1x Small butternut squash
1x Small celeriac
½ Lemon
1x Dessert spoon Dijon mustard
1tsp Mustard seeds
Medium venison fillet 8-10 oz
Salt & Pepper to season
3 x Garlic cloves (preferably smoked)
5-6 juniper berries
Glug olive oil
½ Apple
2 tbsp Mayonnaise
2 Sprigs of rosemary
(Serves 2)
For the BBQ
Lump wood charcoal
500g Smoking wood chips of your choice (I used chestnut).
Method:
First stage is the messy bit of lighting the BBQ (or smoker if you have one). I use charcoal with the addition of the flavoured wood chips but you can use wood if you prefer, just ensure that it’s dry. You’ll want to reach a temperature of around 130-150c. Whilst this is heating up you can soak your wood chips in a bowl of water for adding in later.
1. Preheat your oven to 200.c and cut the squash into wedges. Place them on a non-stick tray and season with oil, salt, pepper, garlic and juniper then place in the oven for around 40-45 minutes turning every 15 minutes.
2. Peel and chop the celeriac into matchstick size pieces. Place them in a bowl and add the Dijon mustard, ½ lemon, salt, pepper, 2 tbl spoons of mayonnaise, mustard seeds and half an apple finely grated. Mix well and place in the fridge for around 30 minutes this will allow the flavours to penetrate the celeriac and soften it up.
3. Once the BBQ is at the correct temperature take the wood chips out of the water and scatter on the hot coals. Leave for a couple of minutes to create the smoke.
4. Make sure the venison is clean of all sinew or fat and season with salt and pepper. Place the fillet on the smoker (to one side so it is not in direct contact with the heat).
At this stage, you won’t need to add more fuel to the fire as the aim is to let it die out and allow the meat to capture the smoky flavours. Leave the venison in the BBQ for around 15 - 18 minutes turning regularly.
5. Remove the fillet from the smoker, place into a hot frying pan with a knob of butter and some rosemary. Cook for a couple minutes on each side. I like my venison medium but of course you can cook it longer if you wish to. Remove from the pan and leave to rest for 5 minutes. (This allows the juices to be absorbed back into the meat).
6. Serve up in thin slices with the squash wedges and a spoon full of remoulade…
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Smoked venison, remoulade & rustic butternut squash chips
Tom Allbrook is chef at The Hornbrook Kitchen in Devon, a street food and private dining startup based in North Devon. Passionate about eating the seasons and cooking with smoke, he came up with this wonderful recipe for UK BBQ Mag.