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December 12, 2018

Grilled Venison heart with Caper butter

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Heart is a highly underrated piece of meat that I would guess most people leave behind. It is unlike any other offal and less like liver or kidney and much more like a fine textured steak. If we’re going to respect and make the most of our kills we should try and take as much as we can and if you have the chance I recommend bringing home the heart and giving it a try next time.

Venison Heart - Copy

Grilled Venison heart with Caper butter
Serves 2
This recipe uses one Venison heart (see How to: Venison Heart butchery) and serves 2 as a main or 4 as a starter.
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Caper butter
250g salted butter, room temperature
1cl Garlic
1Tbs Capers
1tsp Mustard
1 Gherkin
1tsp Tarragon
Pinch pepper
To Serve
Salt and pepper
Cooking oil
Watercress or other salad leaves
Salad dressing
For the Caper butter
Roughly chop your garlic, capers, gherkin and tarragon. Combine all your ingredients into a food processor and mix until everything is well combined, you want the ingredients to be well incorporated and the last thing you want is to bite down on a massive chunk of raw garlic. You will want to serve the butter at room temperature so it is nice and soft but can keep in the fridge or the freezer for a few weeks. If you want to get a bit flash, when the butter is soft you can roll it up in glad wrap and set it in the fridge and once cold you can cut into nice round slices.
To Serve
Place the trimmed up heart on a plate. Drizzle it with a little cooking oil and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Grill on the BBQ over a high heat the same as you would a steak. It will need about 3 minutes on each side depending on the thickness of your heart for medium rare. Heart, as it is a very lean mean is best served medium rare and no more than medium otherwise it will start to dry out. Once it is cooked rest it somewhere warm for at least 4 minutes so that the juices can set. Cut the grilled heart into slices and serve with the caper butter and some watercress tossed in salad dressing or a little olive oil and lemon juice if preferred.
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/

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December 12, 2018

How to: Venison Heart butchery

hunters kitchen spread

 

Heart is a highly underrated piece of meat that I would guess most people leave behind. It is unlike any other offal and less like liver or kidney and much more like a fine textured steak. If we’re going to respect and make the most of our kills we should try and take as much as we can and if you have the chance I recommend bringing home the heart and giving it a try next time.

 

You will need:

1 large Venison heart

A tray to place you meat in as you prepare it

A bowl for your unusable off cuts

A good sized chopping board with a wet towel underneath to stop it moving

A sharp boning knife and steel

 

Step 1:

Place a wet towel under a chopping board so it won’t move around on you and grab a very sharp fine knife. Pat the heart dry with a towel and place on your board.

part 1 - Copy 

Step 2:

Remove all the fat and membrane from the outside of the heart making sure you cut away as little meat as possible.

part 2 - Copy

Step 3:

There are two sides to the heart each with two openings. Place your knife inside the opening and cut through both sides so you end up with the smaller side taken off.

part 3 - Copy

Step 4:

Place your knife in the other opening and cut through one side in order to butterfly open the larger half

part 4

Step 5:

Using your knife remove the membrane and any sinew from the inside of the heart.

part 5

 Step 6:

Trim up the heart and cut the larger of the two pieces in half if desired.

part 6 - Copy

 

 

 

 

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June 5, 2018

BBQ Wild Pork Ribs

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When summer is well under way this recipe is perfect to pull out for the BBQ. To get prepared ahead of time you can make the BBQ sauce and the dry rub beforehand and even go so far so pre-cooking the ribs. Once you’ve got everything ready you’re free to enjoy some beers and just throw the ribs on the BBQ and baste with the sauce once you’re ready to serve. Don’t worry if the sun isn’t shining though, you can still make this in the oven and if you don’t have time to go running round the hills then this recipe will work just fine with ribs from the supermarket.

BBQ Ribs

BBQ Wild Pork Ribs
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Dry Rub
2Tbs Smoked Paprika
2Tbs Cumin, ground
1Tbs Fennel, ground
2Tbs Onion Powder
1Tbs Salt
1tsp Pepper, ground
BBQ Sauce Marinade
1/4C Tomato Sauce
1/4C Sweet Chilli Sauce
2Tbs Golden Syrup
3Tbs Red Wine Vinegar
1Tbs Soy Sauce
1Tbs Worchester Sauce
1tsp Kaitaia Fire (or Tabasco)
1/4C Apple Juice
For the Dry Rub
Mix together the dry rub ingredients and rub all over your ribs. Wrap up in baking paper then tin foil and bake at 165C for 1hr 15mins until tender. Make sure there is a good seal on the foil so that the ribs retain all their moisture and don’t go dry.
For the BBQ Sauce
Combine all the ingredients in a pot and simmer over a low heat until reduced by about 1/3 and nice and syrupy.
To Serve
Once the ribs are cooked brush them with the sauce and either grill on the BBQ or roast in a hot oven. Turn and brush with the sauce until they are nicely glazed, sticky and browned.
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/
 

 

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November 3, 2017

Grilled Hapuka with spiced kumara and chickpea salad, crayfish mayo

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 This is an excellent recipe for those hot summer afternoons where you need to make use of the days catch (with enough veges to keep you in good nick). If Hapuka isn’t available, don’t dismay, as any fresh fish goes beautifully with this recipe. 

IMG_6712

Grilled Hapuka with spiced kumara and chickpea salad, crayfish mayo
Serves 4
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Prep Time
45 min
Cook Time
45 min
Total Time
1 hr 45 min
Prep Time
45 min
Cook Time
45 min
Total Time
1 hr 45 min
Ingredients
4 nice pieces (700g approx.) Hapuka (or any other fish is fine)
Chickpea, feta and kumara salad
1 large Kumera – 1cm dice
1tbs Mixed spice
50g Feta - crumbled
1 small can Chickpeas, drained
¼ Red onion, fine dice
1 Tomato, seeds removed, diced
1 Spring onion stalk sliced (green and white parts)
2 sprigs Mint, chopped rough
2 sprigs Italian parsley, chopped rough
1tbs Olive oil
1tsp Lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Smoky eggplant
1 Eggplant
1 Lemon (juice only)
1tsp Cumin, ground
50-100ml Olive oil
For the salad
Toss the kumara in a little oil and the mixed spice. Roast on an oven tray at 180C for abour 12-15 mins until the kumara is nicely roasted and cooked through. Toss all the ingredients together and can be kept in the fridge for a couple of hours if needed.
For the eggplant
Char eggplant over a high heat on the grill side of your bbq until the skin is very blackened, then peel when cool. Blend in a food processor with cumin, lemon juice and oil. Season with flaky sea salt. You want to be able to taste the olive oil and the lemon juice in the puree.
To serve
Grill the fish until just cooked and serve on the chick pea salad and the smoky eggplant. A nice touch if you’ve got some cooked crayfish left over is to dice it up, fold it through some home-made or good quality store bought mayo (Hellmann’s is good).
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/

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August 20, 2017

Paua Fritters with aioli

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One of the best things about New Zealand, and something that we probably take for granted, is our free and easy access to wild game and fresh seafood. If you’re into your hunting and fishing and like to go for a dip in the ocean, or know a mate who does then here’s a classic recipe to cook at home or chuck on the flat top of the BBQ. A few years ago I was lucky enough to be doing a stint as a chef in the Queen Charlotte Sounds and have access to paua fresh as you can get. We would slice thinly and fry it quickly in butter with a squeeze of lemon and they were amazing. If you’re using great, fresh ingredients often the more simple recipes are the best.

Paua can be pretty tough and everyone has their own theory on how to tenderise them. The general rule of thumb is once they’ve been removed from the shell, gutted and the teeth removed you need to slice them thinly and fry them quick and fast, slowly braise them or mince them which is the method I am using for this recipe. These fritters are great thrown between two slices of fresh white toast bread with some aioli or you can serve them with some buttered new potatoes and a salad for a full meal. As always, it’s up to us to be responsible and ensure the future prosperity of our resources so make sure you stick to your bag limits and know your minimum sizes so we’ll all be able to enjoy nature’s bounty for years to come.

Paua Fritter Image

 

 

Paua Fritters with Aioli
Yields 6
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Prep Time
45 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
1 hr 5 min
Prep Time
45 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
1 hr 5 min
Paua Fritters
3cl garlic
1/2 onion
1 egg
1/2 C flour
1/2tsp baking powder
1/2tsp salt
1tbs chopped parsley
3 large paua minced
4tbs milk
Aioli (makes 500ml)
5 yolks
1 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove
Juice of 1 lemon
400ml canola oil
100ml olive oil
Salt and pepper
For the Paua
Finely dice the onion and crush the garlic. Place the onion and garlic in a large bowl with the minced paua, a whisked egg, chopped parsley and the salt. Combine well. Mix together the flour and baking powder then add to the paua mix. Lightly fold in the flour and don’t mix too much, too much mixing will make the mix tough and rubbery. Add the milk, using a little less or a little more if needed to get a stiff batter.
For the Aioli
Combine all the ingredients except the oil in a food processor or blender and blend well for 1-2 minutes. With the blender running on high, slowly drizzle in the oil to emulsify and create the aioli. If your aioli is too thick you can add warm water at the end to thin it down if necessary.
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/
 

 

 

 

 

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June 2, 2017

Wild Venison burgers with pickled beetroot and a fried egg

 

 

Burger Pic

Wild Venison burgers with pickled beetroot and a fried egg
Serves 8
When it comes to using high quality ingredients I like to keep it simple. There’s no need to add a whole bunch of ingredients and flavours to something that is already so good and wild venison you’ve harvested yourself is about as good as it can get.
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Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
25 min
Total Time
55 min
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
25 min
Total Time
55 min
You’ll need to make or buy
Burger buns
Tomato relish or sauce
Mayo
Lettuce
Tomato
Venison Burgers
800g venison
200g pork mince
1tps salt
1/2tspn white pepper
Pickled Beetroot
3 large beetroot
1/2C cider (or white wine) vinegar
1/2C sugar
1/2C Water
For the Burger patties
Combine all ingredients well, mould into burger shapes 1-2cm thick and keep in the fridge until you’re ready to cook them.
For the Beetroot
Place the whole beetroot in a pot of salted water and simmer until the beetroot is very tender. Drain then rub the skins off and slice. Combine the vinegar, sugar and water and bring to the boil then take off the heat. Add the beetroot to the vinegar mix and allow to cool before storing in the fridge. Will last at least 4 weeks.Is best made well ahead of time and left to marinate.
To serve
After you’ve made your pickle and got your burgers ready, the first thing you’ll want to do is get your lettuce washed and either shredded or pulled apart and your tomatoes sliced up. This is a great recipe to throw on the BBQ if you get some good weather, so get your hot plate warmed up, crack a cold beer and get ready to make some burgers. Grease your hotplate (or fry pan if using the stove) with a little oil and making sure it’s nice and hot throw your venison on. Give it about 2-3 minutes on each side to ensure it is nicely browned but make sure you cook it so it’s still pink in the middle. Warm your buns, fry your eggs then put the whole thing together. Spread some tomato relish on the bottom bun and mayo on the top, place your lettuce and tomato on the bottom bun, then your venison, beetroot relish and then finally your fried egg and put the lid on.
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/

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September 5, 2016

Apple crumble

One of the topics I am passionate about is food wastage. In an ideal world we would show respect to our food and have none of it go in the bin.

Recently I was able to team up with Love Food Hate Waste (https://lovefoodhatewaste.co.nz) as part of Wellington on a Plate and hold a cooking demonstration on how to use up some of the most commonly usable but thrown away household food items.

According to the Love Food Hate Waste website: “New Zealanders throw away 122,547 tonnes of food a year. That is equivalent to 213 jumbo jets of food that has to go somewhere to rot, instead of being eaten. All of this food is worth about $872 million each year. That amount of food could feed the population of Dunedin for two years!” That’s only in New Zealand, globally “one third of food produced globally is wasted; that is 1.3 billion tonnes of food that is never eaten.” That to me is just mental and we can all do (and should) do our part by reducing our waste as much as possible. Shared here are some of the recipes that use some of LFHW’s top ten chucked out food items that you can try at home.

Apple crumble
Serves 4
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Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
1 hr
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
1 hr
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
Apple crumble
8-10 apples (can also substitute/mix with other fruit such as pears, rhubarb etc)
1/4C sugar
Water if required
5 Cardamom pods (optional)
Crumble topping
1C flour
125g butter, diced
1/2C sugar
1tsp mixed spice
For the apples
Peel, core and dice the apples. Add to a pot along with the sugar and a little water (and the cardamom if using). Cook on a low heat until the apples are soft and starting to break up. Depending on the variety of the apple they may require some water added if becoming too dry and starting to stick.
For the crumble topping
In a bowl mix together all the topping ingredients and crumble together with your hands until well combined.
To bake
In a baking dish spoon in the apple mix and top with the flour topping.
Bake at 170C for 30-45 mins or until nice and golden brown and bubbling.
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/

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September 5, 2016

Pan fried fish on truffled mash, petit pois a la Francais, lemon beurre blanc

One of the topics I am passionate about is food wastage. In an ideal world we would show respect to our food and have none of it go in the bin.

Recently I was able to team up with Love Food Hate Waste (https://lovefoodhatewaste.co.nz) as part of Wellington on a Plate and hold a cooking demonstration on how to use up some of the most commonly usable but thrown away household food items.

According to the Love Food Hate Waste website: “New Zealanders throw away 122,547 tonnes of food a year. That is equivalent to 213 jumbo jets of food that has to go somewhere to rot, instead of being eaten. All of this food is worth about $872 million each year. That amount of food could feed the population of Dunedin for two years!” That’s only in New Zealand, globally “one third of food produced globally is wasted; that is 1.3 billion tonnes of food that is never eaten.” That to me is just mental and we can all do (and should) do our part by reducing our waste as much as possible. Shared here are some of the recipes that use some of LFHW’s top ten chucked out food items that you can try at home.

Pan fried fish on truffled mash, petit pois a la Francais, lemon beurre blanc
Serves 4
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Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
Fish
700g Fish fillets
Beurre blanc
150ml White wine
2 Lemons juice/zest
¼ Onion
150g Butter
Salt and pepper
Potato mash
500g Potato
100g Butter
75ml Cream
20ml Truffle oil (optional)
Salt and white pepper
French style peas
200g Peas
½ Lettuce
1/2C Chicken stock
40g Butter
Salt and pepper
Chicken Stock
Left over chicken frame/bones
Vegetable offcuts and ends (carrot, onion, leek, celery, garlic)
Any herb stalks (thyme, rosemary, parsley)
Peppercorns (optional)
For the Beurre Blanc
Finely dice the onion and add to a small pot along with the white wine and the juice and zest of one lemon and simmer until reduced by ¾. Dice the cold butter and over a very low heat whisk onto the wine reduction piece by piece to emulsify. Season with salt and pepper and the juice from the remaining lemon if you want more of a lemon flavour.
For the potato mash
Peel and cut up the potatoes into even sized pieces so they cook at the same rate then place them in a pot of cold salted water and bring to the boil and cook until tender. In another pot heat the butter and milk together. Drain the potatoes and return to the pot, stirring over heat until they become fluffy. Mash with a potato masher or use a ricer or meuli. Fold in the hot cream butter mix and the truffle oil (if using) and season to taste.
For the peas
Boil the peas until cooked, add to a pan or pot with ¼ of the butter. Add the chicken stock and reduce by 2/3 then shake in the remaining cold diced butter to emulsify. Finely shred the lettuce and add to the pea mix to wilt and warm through. Season to taste.
For the chicken stock
In a pot place your left over chicken frame along with any vegetable off cuts or trimmings (and peppercorns) and cover with cold water. Bring to the simmer and leave to simmer for 4 hours. Pass through a sieve and you have chicken stock to use in any recipe you like such as soups, sauces, stews/curries, noodle broth etc.
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/

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September 5, 2016

Croquetten, Dutch style crumbed chicken and cheese croquettes

One of the topics I am passionate about is food wastage. In an ideal world we would show respect to our food and have none of it go in the bin.

Recently I was able to team up with Love Food Hate Waste (https://lovefoodhatewaste.co.nz) as part of Wellington on a Plate and hold a cooking demonstration on how to use up some of the most commonly usable but thrown away household food items.

According to the Love Food Hate Waste website: “New Zealanders throw away 122,547 tonnes of food a year. That is equivalent to 213 jumbo jets of food that has to go somewhere to rot, instead of being eaten. All of this food is worth about $872 million each year. That amount of food could feed the population of Dunedin for two years!” That’s only in New Zealand, globally “one third of food produced globally is wasted; that is 1.3 billion tonnes of food that is never eaten.” That to me is just mental and we can all do (and should) do our part by reducing our waste as much as possible. Shared here are some of the recipes that use some of LFHW’s top ten chucked out food items that you can try at home.

 

Croquetten, Dutch style crumbed chicken and cheese croquettes
Serves 2
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Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
1 hr 30 min
For the croquettes
500g cooked chicken
2Tbs Butter
4Tbs Flour
1 sprig thyme
2 bay leaves
1 clove
1/2C Milk
1/2C Chicken stock
Salt, pepper
2 eggs, separated
200g cheese
1Tbs Parsley
For the crumb
Reserved egg whites (2)
1/2C flour
1/2C breadcrumbs
To make
Heat the milk, chicken stock along with the thyme, bay leaves and clove. Melt the butter, add the flour and cook out until sandy. Strain the milk mix and pour onto the flour butter (roux) in batches, stirring until thickened. Add the cheese and stir until dissolved then add the chopped chicken and parsley, take off the heat and season with salt and pepper then stir in the egg yolks. Cool down on a tray and once cool make into balls and crumb by passing through the flour, then whisked egg whites and the breadcrumbs. Deep fry until golden brown at hot (170C).
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/
 

 

 

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July 1, 2016

Whole roast duck with cranberry, bacon and walnut stuffing

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Since it is now Duck shooting season, here is a wee bonus recipe utilizing the whole duck and which can be done easily at home. Be sure not to cook the duck longer than you need to or it can dry out.. This is a great opportunity to use your Dutch oven if you have one and it will yield great results as they retain the heat and moisture really well. My recipe for Duck Confit can be found in the July/August edition of NZ Guns & Hunting magazine and keep an eye out in the next edition for tips on how to pluck and dress your duck. 

Whole Roast Duck Image

Whole roast duck with cranberry, bacon and walnut stuffing
Serves 4
Here is an easy recipe that uses the whole duck but can be adapted to use for any roasting bird.
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Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
2 hr
Total Time
3 hr
Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
2 hr
Total Time
3 hr
1 Duck
plucked, cleaned and gutted
Stuffing
2 Stale Bread Rolls
1 Shallot or ¼ Onion
1 Clove Garlic
1Tbs Dried Cranberries (can substitute chopped dried apricots)
1Tbs Walnut Pieces
1Tsp Dried Mixed Herbs
1 Egg
1 Small Bunch Parsley (leaves only)
2 Rashers of Bacon
Salt and Pepper
Duck Fat Potatoes
Potatoes
Duck Fat
Salt
For the Stuffing
Roughly chop up the garlic, shallot and bacon. In a food processor pulse these three ingredients together then add the bread and parsley and pulse until it resembles coarse bread crumbs. Add the cranberries, walnuts and the egg along with some salt and pepper and mix for 5-10 seconds until it has come together. Stuff the duck’s cavity with the stuffing mix and secure the hole with a toothpick. Season the outside of the bird with some salt and bake in a preheated oven at 160C for 1.5-2hrs (depending on the size of your bird) or until the leg meat is tender and the skin is golden and crispy. If the duck is getting too brown but is not cooked to your liking you can cover it with tinfoil to stop it from burning. If you are concerned about the breasts drying out you can insert a rasher of bacon under the skin on top of each of the breasts. Save the duck fat for roasting your potatoes.
For the Potatoes
Peel your potatoes (Agria potatoes are nice here) and cook in a pot of salted cold water until they are about 80% cooked and are still a little bit firm in the centre. Drain and keep to one side. In a roasting tray place a few spoonfuls of duck fat and place the tray with the fat in it in a 200C oven until it is really hot, about 15mins. Being careful not to burn yourself tip the nearly cooked potatoes into the tray with the duck fat and shake the pan a little to coat the potatoes with fat and season with a little salt. Place back in the oven and roast until nice and crispy, about 20-30mins.
To Serve
Once the duck is cooked cover with some tin foil or a tea towel and leave it to rest for 15mins before carving so the juices set and the meat has time to relax. You can’t go wrong serving it with a good bottle of Central Otago Pinot Noir.
MacLean Fraser http://macleanfraser.com/

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