Oven Baked Venison and Coconut Curry

This rich and comforting venison and coconut curry is an easy oven-baked dish with tender venison, fragrant curry paste, cardamom, tomatoes and creamy coconut milk. It makes a delicious family meal served with rice, coriander and a squeeze of lime

Serves 6

Ingredients

  • 1 kg venison shoulder, cut into 4–5 cm pieces
  • 2 tablespoons rapeseed or sunflower oil
  • 2–3 tablespoons ready-made curry paste
  • 1 onion, thinly sliced
  • 10 cardamom pods, lightly bashed
  • 400 g tin whole plum tomatoes, in juice
  • 200 ml coconut milk
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

  • Coriander leaves (optional)
  • Lime wedges (optional)
  • Rice

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C/Gas 7.

Put the venison pieces into a large roasting tin. Trickle over the oil and season with a little salt and pepper.

Roast the venison, uncovered, for 20 minutes, or a little longer if necessary, until it is nicely browned.

Remove the roasting tin from the oven and reduce the temperature to 170°C/Gas 3.

Stir the curry paste into the browned venison. Add the sliced onion and cardamom pods.

Crush the tinned tomatoes in your hands and add them to the roasting tin along with their juice, removing any stalky pieces. Mix everything together well.

Cover the roasting tin tightly with foil and return it to the oven for approximately 1¼ hours, checking towards the end to ensure the venison is tender and not drying out.

Remove the venison from the oven and stir in the coconut milk. Add a little water if the sauce needs loosening—the sauce should have a nice coating consistency.

Return the roasting tin to the oven, uncovered, for a further 10 minutes, or until heated through.

Serve scattered with coriander leaves, with lime wedges on the side if you like. Rice is the ideal accompaniment.


Home-made Curry Paste

Finely grate 50 g peeled fresh ginger, 4 large or 6 medium peeled garlic cloves, and 1 small or ½ medium onion. Mix with 1 tablespoon curry powder, 1 tablespoon rapeseed or sunflower oil, and a pinch of salt. Alternatively, put all the ingredients into a small blender with 2 tablespoons of water and pulse to a purée.
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