Beer-Braised Venison Poutine Recipe

Directions

• Braised Venison
• Cut venison into medium-sized chunks. Season venison chunks with plenty of salt and pepper.
• Heat olive oil in Dutch oven or deep skillet, and sear all sides of meat chunks over medium-high heat for a couple minutes to form a nice crust.
• Remove meat from pot. Saute onion and garlic for 2 minutes in the same pot (add a little more olive oil if needed).
• Deglaze pot with 12oz beer. Cook over medium heat until beer reduces by about half. Stir in 1 cup of beef broth.
• Add meat back to the pot, atop the cooked onions. Add enough additional broth so the liquid comes halfway up the meat chunks. Add the carrots to the pot, placing them wherever they’ll fit in between the meat. Add thyme sprigs.
• Cover pot and bake at 325 Fahrenheit for 3 1/2 hours.
• Gravy
• Remove meat from the pot after braising is finished. Cover with foil and set aside.
• Remove carrots from pot. They are no longer needed for this recipe (but they are a delicious snack!)
• Using a mesh strainer or cheesecloth, strain the braising liquid from any solids still in the pan.
• Add additional beef broth to the braising liquid so you have at least 2 cups of liquid.
• Melt a stick of butter (8 Tablespoons) in a saucepan. Then sprinkle flour over top, and thoroughly whisk to create a roux. Let cook for a full minute on medium heat.
• Gradually whisk in the braising liquid/broth, adding a little at a time and whisking constantly. Repeat until the gravy is the right consistency. You may need to add up to an additional cup of broth (in addition to the 2 cups of liquid you started with).
• Season to taste with salt and pepper (I use about a teaspoon of each). Cover the pan and keep it warm on a burner over the lowest possible heat setting.
• Gruyere Cheese Sauce
• Melt 4 Tablespoons of butter in a saucepan. Then sprinkle flour over top, and thoroughly whisk to create a roux. Let cook for a full minute on medium heat.
• Whisk in all the milk.
• Stir in the salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
• Allow everything to come up to a very low boil, stirring very frequently. Then reduce heat to medium-low.
• Start stirring in the shredded Gruyere cheese, a handful at a time. Once a handful of cheese is fully melted and incorporated, add the next handful. Repeat until all 6 ounces of cheese is stirred in.
• Cover the pot and set aside. You may need to thin out the sauce with a little more milk when it comes time to drizzle it over top of the poutine.
• French Fries
• Peel each potato, and cut it into thick french fries. Immediately place the fries into a bowl of cold water.
• Soak all of the uncooked fries in cold water for 1 hour.
• Either in a large Dutch oven or with an electric fryer, heat the vegetable or canola oil to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Lay the soaked french fries on a towel, and pat dry with a second towel. Make sure the fries are pretty dry before frying.
• Carefully deep-fry the fries for 6 minutes in the hot oil. Be sure not to over-crowd the pot or fryer that you are using.
• Remove the fries from the oil after 6 minutes, and allow them to drip and cool for about 10 minutes. Increase the oil temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Deep-fry the fries for a second time in the hotter oil. Fry until they are golden brown and beautiful.
• When fries are finished cooking, transfer them to a wire rack and season immediately with salt.
• The Poutine
• Shred and/or chop the venison meat into bite-sized pieces.
• Lay down a bed of hot, fresh-cooked French fries in a bowl.
• Scatter some venison meat over top of the fries (as much as you like!)
• Then distribute cheese curds atop/among the venison meat (as many as you like!)
• Ladle hot gravy over top of everything (as much as you like!)
• Drizzle some of the Gruyere sauce over top, either with a squeeze bottle or a spoon.
• Garnish with some chopped fresh chives.