Bones_ Recipes, History, and Lore - Jennifer McLagan [113]
2. In a Dutch oven or flameproof casserole large enough to hold the venison pieces in a single layer, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the venison and brown on both sides, then transfer to a plate. Discard the fat from the pot, pour in the stock, and bring to a boil, deglazing the pot by scraping up the browned bits from the bottom. Add ‘A teaspoon salt, then return the venison to the pot. The liquid will come about three quarters of the way up the pieces. Scatter the julienned ginger over the top, and cover with a damp piece of parchment paper and then the lid.
3. Pour 2 cups (500 ml) water into a saucepan, stir in the sugar, 1 tablespoon of the finely diced ginger, the grenadine, and cloves, and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute, and remove from the heat. Peel the quinces and cut them into eighths, then cut out the seeds and cores. Place them in a single layer in a baking dish, pour over the syrup, and cover the dish with aluminum foil.
4. Place the venison and quinces in the oven and cook for 1½ hours.
5. Carefully remove the lid and aluminum foil to avoid the steam and turn both the venison and quinces. Cover them both again and cook for another 1½ hours, or until the venison and quinces are tender. Transfer the meat and quinces to an ovenproof serving dish with a lip and keep warm, loosely covered with aluminum foil. Reduce the oven temperature to 300°F (150°C).
6. Skim the fat from the venison cooking juices. Remove and discard the cloves from the quince syrup, and then pour it into the venison cooking juices. (There will be about 2 cups [500 ml] liquid.) Bring to a boil and boil hard for 5 to 7 minutes to reduce the sauce to 1 cup (250 ml). Pour it over the venison and quinces, cover, and return to the oven for 10 to 15 minutes to reheat.
7. Mix the remaining teaspoon of the chopped ginger with the garlic and parsley. Serve this gemolata with the venison, and don’t forget to enjoy the marrow in the bones.
TIP If you can’t buy large pieces of osso buco, cook two smaller pieces per person. Sometimes if the osso buco is sold in packages that include very small pieces, not worth serving, either save the them for stock or cook them along with the bigger ones. You can use their meat for Game Soup (page 210) or in dumplings for consommé (page 209).
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Quinces
Quinces are becoming more widely available. Try to buy green quinces, free of any marks or bruises. They hold their shape better when cooked. Nestle them in paper towels to keep them from knocking against each other and store them in the vegetable section of your refrigerator; I have kept quinces this way for more than 3 months. They will slowly ripen and turn yellow.
Grenadine is added to the cooking syrup in this recipe to ensure a pinky hue to the quinces. if you can’t get quinces, substitute cooking apples, such as Rome, Spy, or Mutsu.
Apples cook much more quickly than quinces. Instead of baking them, cook them in the syrup on top of the stove, for about 30 minutes or less.
Venison Neck
While searching for venison osso buco at the market, I happened across some venison neck. I used it in this recipe for Venison Osso Buco with great success. One of the cheapest venison cuts you can buy, they are delicious and you can use them instead of the venison osso buco, or try them in the Lamb Neck with Anchovies recipe (page 122). With larger animals like elk, though, the neck is better cut into pieces and used for stock.
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Bonelogue
The connection between bones and dessert may not be immediately apparent. While marrow bones were a popular dish at English high teas and often served at the end of dinner, a plate of roasted bones is not my idea of dessert.
However, both bones and the marrow they contain were