Slow roasted wild venison shoulder with chorizo and pancetta

Serves 8 to 10

1 x wild venison shoulder (with shank)
Sea salt and roughly ground white pepper
2 tablespoons goose fat
2 Salumi Australia smoked chorizo, sliced into 1cm thick slices
200g Salumi Australia pancetta stesa pepata, cut into 1cm dice
1 leek, trimmed, well washed and cut into 2cm thick rounds
2 carrots, scrubbed and cut into 2cm thick rounds
3 stalks celery, cut into 2cm thick pieces
4 dried bay leaves
Splash of sherry vinegar
750ml sherry
1 litre beef or chicken stock

Preheat your oven to 180C.

Place a large heavy-based saucepan over a medium high heat. To properly sear this shoulder, the pan needs to be a decent size so if you don’t have one, feel free to use the flat top of your bbq.

Season the venison shoulder lightly with salt. Add the goose fat to the pan and, when glistening, place the venison shoulder in carefully. Brown the meat off well on both sides then remove it and set aside in a deep roasting dish.

Reduce the heat to medium and toss the chorizo and pancetta into the saucepan. Cook for a few minutes, stirring to colour the meats well then add the leek, carrots, celery and bay leaves. Stir well to coat then add a good splash of sherry vinegar to deglaze the pan and a good pinch of white pepper. Tip the chorizo, pancetta vegetables and all the cooking juices into the roasting dish with the venison and add the sherry and stock (it should half cover the meat). Cover the tray tightly in 2 pieces of foil and place in the oven for 3 hours.

When cooked, the venison will be soft and falling off the bone and the stock perfectly reduced - a great natural stickiness from the venison yet still saucy.

Remove the shoulder from the pan and set aside in a warm place to rest.

Place your venison shoulder on a large platter. I like to serve the vegetables as a side dish but they can also be spooned over the venison.

Best served with a great mash or sweet potato puree and a bowl of simple garlic parsley oil or salsa verde. Great with a glass or 2 of tempranillo.