Simple Venison Pot Roast Recipe

When you're looking for something simple yet deeply comforting for dinner, there's nothing quite like classic pot roast. Ideal for feeding a family or a gathering of friends, pot roasts are known for being cosy and comforting, and make an especially great addition to chilly winter evenings. While beef may be the most common pot roast protein, this recipe switches things up by using venison instead. And, with only 15 minutes of hands-on work, recipes don't get much easier or more straightforward than this simple venison pot roast recipe, from the kitchen of recipe developer Jennine Rye.

Venison joints are at their best when cooked low and slow in a bit of broth. This cooking process allows the lean, gamey meat to cook gently while infusing it with the flavors of the stock and other ingredients, resulting in a wonderfully tender and rich entree. The venison is paired simply with onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes, and cooked in a herby red wine and stock base, for a hearty and rustic one-pot dinner that will leave everyone feeling extra cozy and full. Read on to find out how easy it is to make this simple venison pot roast recipe.

To begin this simple venison pot roast recipe, first you will need to gather the ingredients. You will want olive oil, a venison roasting joint, an onion, celery, carrots, garlic, and small potatoes. To give the pot roast plenty of flavor you will additionally need red wine, beef broth, dried rosemary, dried thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper, and also all-purpose flour, to thicken the stew base.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

Heat a large, ovenproof casserole dish (one with a lid, which will be used later on) to a medium-high temperature on the stovetop.

Rub 1 tablespoon oil over the venison joint and season well with salt and pepper.

Sear the outside of the venison joint for 6 to 10 minutes, turning regularly, until well colored.

Remove the venison from the pan and set aside.

Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan, along with the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic.

Saute the vegetables for 5 minutes.

Stir in the all-purpose flour.

Add the red wine, beef broth, dried rosemary, dried thyme, and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Return the venison joint to the pan.

Add the potatoes to the pan around the venison joint.

Place a lid on the pan and transfer the pan to the oven for 2 hours.

Remove from the oven and let the venison rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving with the vegetables.

One of the great joys of the humble pot roast is how such simple collection of ingredients can come together and create a richly flavored and comforting dish. Pot roasts are also pretty much fool-proof, and can be easily adapted according to your personal preferences.

If you know anything about pot roasts it will be that root vegetables are a must-have ingredient. This recipe includes onions, carrots, and potatoes, which are all popular inclusions due to their hardy qualities. For a bit of variation, add rutabaga, parsnips, turnips, or swede to your pot roast either alongside or in place of the carrots and potatoes. These can all be safely added to the dish at the beginning of the roasting process and will stand up well for the duration of the cooking time. Some other great additions are mushrooms, green beans, and butter beans, however you will want to add these to the pan roughly halfway through the cooking process, to avoid them becoming overcooked and mushy.

The type of meat you choose for your pot roast can really make or break the meal, so you will want to choose your ingredients wisely. Venison makes an excellent choice as it is an incredibly tender cut of meat and it benefits from low and slow cooking to stop it from becoming tough and chewy. If you don't have any venison available but would still like to enjoy this simple pot roast recipe, there are a couple of great alternatives that will result in a deeply satisfying dinner for you and your loved ones.

Beef chuck or brisket make two of the best alternatives for this dish, and will give you a very hearty pot roast. Beef chuck is a tough cut of meat that is loaded with connective tissue. The slow cooking process tenderizes the tough meat and the connective tissue breaks down adding plenty of moisture and flavor to the beef to give you a succulent and rich pot roast. Brisket also works well and has quite a high fat content. When roasted it breaks down into tender, easily shreddable meat that melts in the mouth.