Wild Game Earthy Venison Biryani

Bold, earthy, rich flavorful, venison biryani is like no other biryani in this world and, believe me, I have tasted all kinds. The wild game flavor mixed with fresh herbs, long grain basmati rice and a mix of exotic spices all come together in a finely tuned, exquisite dish. I was in Philadelphia this past weekend, well Sunday through Tuesday actually, as I was teaching a food safety manager class. Added bonus, I got to spend some time with my sister and my cousins. Now my cousins have a freezer stuffed with venison, courtesy of their son who snagged a whole deer (WOW)!with an arrow. We decided to make venison biryani and I will admit I was intrigued and excited.  Although I have cooked venison in various forms, I have never made venison biryani.

Now my gorgeous, savvy cousin can be very practical when it comes to kitchen gadgets and does not own a pressure cooker by choice, (never mind that I have offered to give one of my many), coz she has seen evidence of too many instances of “pressure cooker bursts” in the past particularly in Indian kitchens. And so, we decided to improvise.  Seasoned the meat with salt and pepper and slow cooked all day long.  In the evening I was stunned at how incredibly tender and flavorful the venison was.  It certainly tasted better than pressure cooked.  Going forward, this will be my preferred method of cooking meat for biryani, I think. We then sautéed onions and spices in homemade ghee (clarified butter) that my cousin had just made in a fancy Le Creuset pot, filling the air with an intoxicating aroma that permeated through the home. So much so, my BIL (a connoisseur of fine cuisine) who was asleep/resting since he had the fevers came down to see what the aroma was all about 😊! When we added the venison, it looked amazing as you can see below. Some fresh mint, cilantro, and biryani masala blended to create a vivid kaleidoscope of exquisite colors and flavors.

The broth from the slow cooker made up the liquid for the biryani, enhancing its unique flavor. Once the broth was up and boiling, we added pre-soaked aromatic long grain basmati rice and cooked it on stove top for about 10 minutes, before covering with foil and transferring to a roasting pan at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. The biriyani was scrumptious, with the tender meat and fragrant flavor packed rice. We also made some venison kebabs which were again very tasty, and I have posted those pictures below.  Apart from the fabulous wild game biryani, gaming adventures 🙂 and spicy gamey kebabs it was a fun evening of cooking together with friends and family.

Venison Biryani

Print recipe

Ingredients

• 4 Lbs venison (cubed)
• 1 Large onion (sliced)
• 3 tomatoes (diced)
• 4 green chilli
• 4 Tsps ginger garlic paste
• 3 bay leaf
• 4 cloves (smashed)
• 4 cardomom (smashed)
• 4 Tsp biryani masala (( used aachi brand))
• 1 cup mint (chopped)
• 1 cup cilantro (chopped)
• 4 - 6 Tbsp ghee
• 4 Tbsp oil
• 2 Tsp salt or (to taste)
• 5 Cups basmati rice
• 8 Cups venison broth

Directions

	Cook venison with some salt and any spices you like in a slow cooker for about 7 to 8 hours covering the venison with about 1 inch of water
	Heat oil, add bay leaf, cloves, cardamom. Saute onions till translucent about 7 to 8 minutes
	Add ginger garlic paste and saute another 5 minutes
	Add tomatoes, biryani masala and cook another 3 minutes or till oil floats on top.
	Add meat and cook about 5 minutes.
	Add about 8 cups broth and bring to boil
	Wash and presoak the rice. Add pre-soaked rice, half the cilantro and mint to the boiling broth mixture and cook about 8 minutes on simmer till rice is half cooked. Test the broth for salt. It should taste salty
	Add rest of the cilantro, mint and the ghee. Transfer to a shallow baking dish, cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for 20 - 30 minutes.

I wrote this post yesterday evening on the bus back to DC. But, when I wanted to publish last night, I couldn’t find it and I was kind of sad coz it takes me time to write from the heart and I can never write the same way again. Today I was just pondering writing a new post and then it popped up out of the blue from my google drive. I was happy to have found it and before it could disappear again :)I stuck my pictures in and hit publish! Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful rest of the week! Love!

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