Recipe by Wild and Game
There are many reasons to use game meat in your recipes. Firstly, it’s delicious, but it’s also a healthy choice compared to many other meats.
Comparing game meat against common supermarket meats especially highlights the health and weight loss benefits of game. Pheasant, for example, has 27.1g of protein per 100g while chicken has just 20.1g – and while chicken contains 1.5g of fat per 100g, pheasant contains 1.2g. Pheasant also contains more than three times the amount of selenium, an essential mineral for the immune system. It’s a similar story with other game meats. Venison, for example, is much leaner than beef, has a third as much cholesterol and is lower in calories, while partridge has 25.8g of protein per 100g compared to chicken’s 20.1g, and 0.43g of selenium per 100g compared to chicken’s 0.1g.
VENISON TACO BOWLS WITH CHIMICHURRI
Serves 4 as a starter or 2 as a main
INGREDIENTS
For the chimichurri
- 100ml olive oil
- a handful of parsley (1 growing plant from the supermarket)
- a handful of coriander (1 growing plant from the supermarket)
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano leave, measure unchopped, then finely chop them
- 1 red chilli, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp sea salt
For the seasoning
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste (we recommend a few good grinds, roughly ½ tsp)
For everything else
- 4 little gem lettuces, finely chopped
- 2 Wild and Game venison steaks
- olive oil
- ½ a red onion, finely diced
- 8 small soft tacos (often sold as taco mini wraps)
METHOD
- Pre-heat the oven to 220°C/Gas mark 7
- Push each tortilla into a hole in a muffin tray: concertina the edges of the tortilla to fit it in, so it resembles a flower. Bake in the oven for 5 minutes (check after 3 to be sure they aren’t burning) then remove and leave to cool.
- Mix the seasoning ingredients and sprinkle on the steak. Leave at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the chimichurri by combining all the ingredients in a bowl and mixing thoroughly.
- Lightly oil a grill pan and place over a high heat until very hot, then add the steaks and grill for 3 minutes, turning once. Then turn the heat down low and continue cooking for 6 minutes, turning once. Remove from the pan and rest for 5 minutes.
- Finely slice the steaks on the diagonal. Stuff lettuce into the tacos the top with the steaks, chimichurri and diced red onion.