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Post by sistereurope on Nov 24, 2007 11:56:41 GMT -5
Calling all Our Paris Chefs...
OK, my left-wing ex-hippie husband has one non-hippie trait - he's a hunter. And since it's the start of firearm season 'round here today, he's off in the woods trying to catch a deer (I can't bring myself to say shoot a deer - my stepsons find this funny, but so be it)...
ANYWAY, I'm going to be optimistic and think that he will catch one...so, can anyone tell me if you can find venison on French menus, and if so, how is it usually prepared? Anyone have any special French-style venison recipes? Even though I don't eat beef I have eaten venison when he's "gotten lucky" before. It is really lean meat, but it can be tough if you don't prepare it properly.
Thanks!
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Post by Anne on Nov 24, 2007 13:26:37 GMT -5
After two unhappy experiences with venison (which ended up being very hard, as you mention it), I have given up cooking any . However, I've had a look at my receipe books . There is no receipe for deer, but there are some for roe deer : one is a whole haunch, one is a whole saddle and one is a stew . Interested ? (if you want the three of them, you'll have to allow me some time for the translation  ...) |
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Post by Shoesy on Nov 24, 2007 13:49:13 GMT -5
Sis - Hasn't your darling hubby ever seen "Bambi" ?  |
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Post by GitteK on Nov 24, 2007 14:37:40 GMT -5
choochoo - that remark is the ultimate sentimental hypocrasy if you are not strictly vegan.  The same goes for people who can eat chicken soup but screams murder if somebody wears a mink coat.  I still love you, though - I love you so much I might even consider marinating you in brandy and roasting you gently with cream, redcurrant jelly, juniper and smoked bacon.......  Which treatment I would suggest for sistereurope's bambi also..... |
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Post by sistereurope on Nov 24, 2007 15:03:07 GMT -5
Well, I just got a call from the Deer Hunter - none so far. And yes, Shoesy, he's seen Bambi and would never kill (oops, catch) a deer out of season, or in an illegal way. I have come to accept the argument that hunting culls the crop of deer - they starve to death if there are too many, so in a way hunting them is more humane than letting them starve...there are so many here, and as winter progresses they seem so skinny! That's what is sad...
Anne, I would appreciate whatever recipe looks best - I know it's work to translate! But even if he comes up empty handed today, I'm sure he'll try again, and I really do like venison...
And Gitte - whoa, that recipe sounds absolutely wonderful!!! We can call it Bambi a la ChooChoo!!! UMMMMM (Sorry Shoesy!!!)
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Post by andi on Nov 24, 2007 15:18:03 GMT -5
"Hides in a corner covering eyes, screaming " NO NO NO Not the Bambi, PLEASE!!!!" Someone give me a nudge when this one's over...........  |
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Post by sistereurope on Nov 24, 2007 16:33:38 GMT -5
Andi - I'm truly sorry - it wasn't my intent to upset anyone. I just wanted some recipes...  |
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Post by GitteK on Nov 24, 2007 17:26:43 GMT -5
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Post by Becky (Berkeleytravelers) on Nov 24, 2007 17:55:37 GMT -5
Maybe the venison stew would be your best bet since you won't know what quality the meat will be? (My father used to hunt when I was young and we did sometimes have venison, but usually a professional butcher cut it into steaks/chops and roasts, with perhaps some sausage - not too sure any longer, as that was quite some time ago).
I wouldn't/couldn't do it myself (if I had to do my own hunting etc. I would be a vegetarian, LOL!), but I do tend to agree with the idea that if it's not allowed to get totally out of hand (e.g., if the season is short, the number of licenses granted is controlled, and the limit is low), hunting probably does have a beneficial effect when it thins the herds. Where my parents live (and where my father therefore hunted, decades ago) there are lots of wild deer in the woods/mountains, and generally lots of vegetation to sustain them, but that can change when there are drought years, etc.
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Post by geordy on Nov 24, 2007 18:06:42 GMT -5
Sorry..don't eat Bambi if I can help it...and I can...plenty of other meat around that has been raised for that reason, not hunted by people who put themselves and others at risk with hunting. Dogs and other domestic pets, as well as humans are hurt during hunting season.
Hypocritical as it may seem...to see a creature as beautiful as a deer, stag in the woods and kill it...when surely your local supermarket is full of affordable meat...if you can afford the gun, ammo, and ridiculous clothing.... Yes I know the animals "raised for food" are an issue too...but this is a separate issue.
As for over population and starving to death...can't they put some birth control in those salt blocks?? Seriously I think they are working on the problem...and could do more if people cared more. Rather than just killing them and encouraging young boys to get their first kill....does that sound remotely right in a civilized society where most of us are not dependent on hunting and foraging for our food?
Sorry for the soap box..but..ours is a society with gun problems...and if you encourage people to kill beautiful animals....if your family does not have to to survive....I don't know , seems way wrong to me. again sorry Sis, you just wanted recipies..but I guess I needed to vent!
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Post by Shoesy on Nov 24, 2007 22:57:41 GMT -5
Please permit me to clarify my previous post. I think it's a matter of what you're used to. For example, I've been eating chicken and beef ever since I was a baby.......way before I ever learned the concept of meat coming from animals. As for venison, I had already seen "Bambi" a number of times before being introduced to the fact that people kill and eat deer. Therefore, I don't think it's hypocritical if one eats certain meat without batting an eye and shudders at the thought of eating other kinds of meat. Gitte - Would you ever eat kitty meat  if you went to a country where that's common practice?  |
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Post by iank9 on Nov 25, 2007 3:09:47 GMT -5
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Post by GitteK on Nov 25, 2007 3:31:30 GMT -5
iank - you presented the only valid argument in this discussion.  geordy - how about fish then ? They live happily and innocently in the ocean ? And not all hunters are triggerhappy psychos. The hunters I know have very high moral standards and take correct and responsible shooting very seriously. shoesy - we all have our culinaric preferences, I agree to that. But the "Bambi" aspect of eating game is too much of a pastel-pink Disneyfication of nature for my taste. And kitties would taste like shi*t, because they are carnivores themselves.  |
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Post by Shoesy on Nov 25, 2007 3:41:52 GMT -5
It's funny you should mention that, Gitte, because our stupid Muffy does not understand that he's supposed to be a carnivore. If I offer him a piece of meat, he looks at me as if I'm nuts. Aside from his regular cat food (the dry kind) the only thing he seems interested in is MY yogurt, which he doesn't crave half as much as he does my morning coffee !!! |
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Post by andi on Nov 25, 2007 8:32:57 GMT -5
Sis, no offence or upset taken on this one........I was joking around. ;D
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Post by geordy on Nov 25, 2007 9:11:11 GMT -5
My understanding of fish life is that the bigger fish eat the smaller fish..rather regularly!! It is what you are used to..growing up in the suburbs and living in the city....there is no "heritage" of hunting or need for it. And since people seem to have problems with making it appetizing... ? Point please??? I hear some people like venison chili.  And to the point of the post....is venison eaten/hunted much in France?? |
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Post by Anne on Nov 25, 2007 9:31:18 GMT -5
Chouchou - Yogurt is my cat's favourite food too . Just after that come the local mice and birds . Sister - You forgot to tell me what you thought about the Beaume de Venise that you had for Thanksgiving . Here is the roe deer stew receipe from my Alsacian receipes cookbook . I think that the whole haunch and saddle receipes may raise some cooking time + temp problemes since it will not be the same meat as in the receipes, plus your hubby may have problems to follow your precise instructions as to the exact weight of the saddle and haunch of the deer that you expect him to catch ;D ... ROE DEER RAGOUT WITH FRIED CROUTONS For 8-9 people (this is the kind of food that gets better the more it gets reheated anyway) : - 1,8 kg cubed venison - 70 g butter - 2 tablespoons oil - 100 g smoked lardons (it is like bacon, only it is cut like small thick sticks, with both lean and fat on them) - 8 slices of dried rye bread - 2 onions - 1 leek (the white part) - 1 or 2 cloves - 1 bay leaf - 3 tablespoon wine vinegar - 2 glasses strong red wine - salt, pepper - for the croutons : 125 g cubed white bread (with much crust), 50 g butter Heat 50 g butter + the oil in a casserole . Brown the meat, sliced leek and thinly sliced onions in it . Add salt and pepper . Fry the bacon + roughly grated rye bread with 20 g butter in a frying pan, then add the content of the pan in the casserole . Then add 1/2 liter water, the vinegar, 1 glass red wine, cloves, bay leaf . Cover the casserole and leave it to cook gently for about one hour (well, this depends actually from the quality of your meat . I guess that it may take much longer if for example hubby has picked an old deer . Anyway, the idea is : cook until the meat is tender) . Then take the meat and most of the bacon bits out of the casserole and keep them warm . Throw away the cloves and bay leaves . Skim the fat out of the sauce, then blend it (the sauce, not the fat ), add the second glass of wine in it and let it cook without cover for 15 mins before pouring it over the meat and bacon . In the meantime, fry the white bread croutons in 50 g butter and then scatter them on top of the dish . I have never done this receipe (which is a good omen since I am lousy with venison), but it looks good enough . The only possible trap would be the cooking time for the meat, so cook it well ahead . Just tell me if there is anything that you don't understand . Bon appétit ! |
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Post by GitteK on Nov 25, 2007 9:43:11 GMT -5
>>>And since people seem to have problems with making it appetizing... ? <<<< Sorry, this is simply not true. Your remark, which I find surprisingly prejudiced, reveals that you cannot have tried handling and cooking this very tender and lean meat, true ? So how can you possibly know ? The meat of a deer is a hundred times more pure and wholesome and good for you, than the industrially and chemically grown chickens or pork roasts, you pick up in the supermarket. Trust me, I live next to a pig farm. If you have ever looked into one of those stables - THEN you could really talk about "unappetizing" and I swear, you would prefer the open-air deer or other game meat any day. As to the French game menu, I think you know that the French kings were passionate hunters and quite a few of the chateaux we love today were built and used for stays during hunting season. If you google for the words "gibier","biche", "cerf" or "chevreuil" and combine it with "recette" you will have as many links as you like. www.linternaute.com/femmes/cuisine/categorie/265/1/gibier.shtml www.gibierdefrance.com/Also you can google for "gibier"+"restaurants"+"Paris" and you will have a number of suggestions. So, yes, game is considered a delicacy, also in France. E.g. the highly reputed bistro "Au Petit Marguery" on Blvd. Port Royal is famous for its game dishes. www.frommers.com/destinations/paris/D51458.htmlwww.whitings-writings.com/bistro_reviews/marguery.htmwww.eng.cityvox.fr/restaurants_paris/au-petit-marguery_2380/opinions-PlaceHere are some photos of the prepared meat of a deer (saddle, leg):    |
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Post by Anne on Nov 25, 2007 9:48:04 GMT -5
Geordy - Sure, venison is hunted in France, but I think that most of the venison eaten actually comes from farming today due to the very strict sanitary regulations .
Venison or other game (wild boar, hare) is typically a Xmas time meat when eated at home . It is rarely eaten at people's home at other times of the year, but then this also depends whether they live in an area with a strong hunting tradition - like for example Sologne, South of Paris . Then quite a few traditional restaurants have game on their menus during the winter .
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Post by geordy on Nov 25, 2007 10:08:21 GMT -5
Excuse me Gitte but....Anne said she has given up cooking it, and Sis said it is often tough if not cooked perfectly..thus my "prejudicial" comment. And I've known women whose men folk hunted and they were always trying to give away the meat because they didn't know what to do with it all! (being city or suburb raised gals..I won't even go into the issue of bear meat! ) And yes they hunted it in the old days ....because they didn't have supermarkets!!!!!! (thus my"heritage" comment.) And quite right I haven't tried cooking it because I prefer NOT TO EAT BAMBI!! I have eaten some game dishes in restaurants but those would have been farmed or whatever...not hunted. Again the farming conditions are a whole other issue. Which is not to say I would not try venison someday ...it is not on too many menus here..but under the right circumstances..like in Scandanavia....  And hopefully(oops, sorry meant maybe  ) Sis's husband won't catch one and this will all be moot! ;D |
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if you went to a country where that's common practice? 
) Sis's husband won't catch one and this will all be moot! ;D
Let the riot begin! LOL - 
hahahha