Venison dishes are traditional for the national cuisines of the northern peoples. Reindeer meat soups are especially popular among them - hot and hearty, capable not only of satisfying hunger, but also warming in cold weather.
Venison is still widely used both in northern Europe and in many Russian regions. One of the interesting recipes from it is a traditional Northern European soup made from venison and barley with carrots, turnips and other winter products.
The main secret of this soup is the use of nettle, which gives the dish a greenish color and unusual taste. If you cannot find this plant, you will have to use spinach. Another important aspect is that you need to cook the venison at a temperature below boiling. This will keep the meat tender and pinkish. Boiling venison while boiling is okay, but keep in mind that it will become tougher and turn gray.
How to make venison soup: ingredients
You will need:
- 1 kg of venison, cut into small pieces;
- 250 ml of rich meat broth;
- 2 liters of water;
- salt;
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped;
- 2-3 turnips, peeled and cut into pieces;
- 5-6 small carrots, peeled and chopped;
- 2 stalks of celery, chopped;
- 1 glass of barley;
1 cup scalded and chopped nettle (or spinach)
- black pepper to taste.
Cooking process
Pour water and stock into a large saucepan and add the venison chunks. Bring to a light simmer, but do not simmer too much. You will see a lot of foam forming on the surface. Shoot it as best you can and often.
Simmer the meat on a gentle simmer for about 20 minutes, then fish it out and place in a bowl. Then strain the broth through a fine metal sieve placed over another saucepan.
Add salt to the strained broth and put the venison pieces back into it, put on a small fire under the lid. Don't let the broth simmer this time, keep the heat to a minimum. For the venison to be ready, it should be cooked almost without boiling for 2-3 hours.
Then add all the vegetables required by the recipe and the barley, cover and cook for another hour or so, until the barley is tender.
Add chopped nettles to the soup and add some black pepper, then cook again for about 5 minutes. Then remove the pot from the heat, pour the soup into bowls and serve immediately with dark ale or red wine.
This soup can be refrigerated for up to a week, although the barley will swell if stored for too long. It is best to eat this dish the day after cooking. When reheating, it is also undesirable to boil the soup so that the meat does not become tough.
