Creamy venison and chestnut 'st-oup'
Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 20 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Ant Duncan
Creamy venison and chestnut 'st-oup'
Part stew, part soup, ‘st-oup’ really is the ultimate in comfort food. Here, savoury venison is paired with sweet chestnuts for a balanced bowl of heaven.
Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 20 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (serving (1 of 6))
Calories
413Kcal
Fat
15gr
Saturates
6gr
Carbs
37gr
Sugars
8gr
Fibre
5gr
Protein
32gr
Salt
1.6gr
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst’s recipes
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst’s recipes
Ingredients
- 30g dried porcini mushrooms
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 600g diced venison
- 100g smoked bacon lardons
- 2 echalion shallots, chopped
- 1 large carrot, chopped
- 2 celery sticks, chopped
- 250g chestnut mushrooms, thickly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
- 1 tbsp rosemary, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 1 litre beef stock (made with 2 stock pots)
- 125g pearl barley
- 1 x 180g pouch cooked chestnuts
- 75ml single cream
Step by step
- Put the porcini mushrooms in a bowl and add 300ml of just-boiled water. Set aside for 10 minutes for the mushrooms to rehydrate.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 160°C, fan 140°C, gas 2. Heat the oil in a deep casserole and brown the venison for 3-4 minutes until browned all over. Transfer to a plate.
- Add the bacon lardons to the casserole with the shallots, carrot and celery. Fry over a medium-low heat for 6-8 minutes, until the vegetables have softened. Add the chestnut mushrooms and continue to cook for a further 3-4 minutes, then add the garlic and rosemary and continue to cook for a further minute. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for 2 minutes, stirring regularly. Return the meat to the casserole and sprinkle over the flour. Stir well to coat, then slowly add the beef stock and the rehydrated mushrooms with their liquid. Add the pearl barley and chestnuts, stir well and cover. Transfer to the oven for 2 hours.
- Remove from the oven and stir through the cream. Season well and serve in shallow bowls.
