I don't eat a lot of meat. I have an entire article on What Does "Mostly Vegetarian" Mean & Will I Post Meat Recipes? because I almost never post recipes with meat and always debate about being a part of the "pseudo-vegetarian" community. And I like being a part of the food bloggers normalizing fruits and vegetables in everyday cooking rather than relying on and being inundated with meat-focused recipes. However, I more describe myself as someone who "usually doesn't eat meat." And I do want to promote more sustainable meat practices. This venison was given to me by a family member of a friend who's making sure that all of the meat goes to use. Not having meat- or any food- waste is an important thing and I am going to highlight that here. Hence the Venison Goulash w/ Red Wine & Brick Cheese.
Meat & Cheese Substitutions for Venison Goulash
If you're on this site for the lack of meat-centric recipes, don't fret! For a pescatarian option, I'd recommend substituting the venison for Patagonian shrimp. And for a a vegan alternative, I would do French green lentils.
I'm particularly fond of brick cheese. I'm from the home of the Tillamook Creamery and the Pacific Northwest is known for its artisanal cheeses and craft beer. Which also might explain why I've ended up in Wisconsin. It has a mildly sweet flavor profile and almost resembles a cross between a soft cheddar and mozzarella. Although it's a better melting cheese than either of them. Cheddar tends to have a higher melting point and tendency to separate when cooked. It takes a lot of milk or cream slowly incorporated in, like with Macaroni & Cheese. Whereas mozzarella tends to pool together when it melts, which makes it more suited for Lasagna where the cheese is melted between layers.
If you don't have brick cheese readily available, good substitutes are: less aged cheddar, low-moisture mozzarella, scamorza, Oaxaca, muenster, Colby, and Monterey Jack.
Gallery
I cooked the meat in a cast iron dish. However, when you. add tomatoes, cheese, and anything acidic, this can eat away at the cast iron seasoning. So, while I cooked this in a cast iron pan, I reheated it in a non-cast iron pan. I try not to use Teflon because it leaches chemicals into the food.
Variations of Venison Goulash
I don't tend to eat much meat. Hence the entire explanation for whether or not to post this recipe! Although I do make a plethora of dishes that are maybe goulash-adjacent.
This Venison Goulash consists of yellow onion, garlic, jumbo shells, broth, tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, red wine, brick cheese, and parmesan. Although you can easily swap out any pasta shape of choice and cheese that you have on hand or that fits your own personal tastes and preferences. One of the fun things about cooking is making recipes your own! You can also substitute seafood, instead of red meat, or green lentils for a vegetarian options. I'd recommend French green lentils. Although any semi-hard legume would work in this dish.
32oz.broth(I used vegetable broth, but beef broth would work, too)
2lbs.tomatoesdiced
1tbsp.Worcestershire sauce
1/4c.red wine
dashcumin
dashcoriander
dashsmoked paprika
2/3lbs.brick cheesegrated
1/3lbs.parmesangrated
Instructions
Cook Pasta
Add about 4 inches of water to a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat.
Cook pasta according to the manufacturer's instructions. This typically entails boiling for about 8-12 minutes, or until barely al dente.
Drain the pasta and set aside. You may want to stir it occasionally to keep the noodles from sticking together.
Cook Venison
While the pasta is cooking, preheat a cast iron skillet on medium-high heat. Add the venison, diced yellow onion, minced garlic, and a dash of salt and pepper.
Sauté until the venison begins to brown, about 10-15 minutes.
Goulash
Add the broth, tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, wine, cumin, coriander, and smoked paprika (everything except for the pasta and cheese) to the venison mixture. Simmer on medium-high heat for about 20 minutes, or until the broth has reduced to your liking.I like to cook mine down pretty far because I like to eat everything with a fork, rather than a spoon. But a lot of goulash will retain a decent amount of liquid, if you want to cook down less.If you started out using a cast iron skillet for the meat, it can be a good idea to switch to another type of large sauté pan or even a medium-sized pot. This will keep the broth from eating away at the seasoning on the cast iron. If yours is well-seasoned, it might last for this amount of time. Although just make sure to clean and reseason really well afterwards!
Stir in the macaroni and sprinkle with cheese. Serve immediately or refrigerate.
Tips, Tricks, & Notes
Goulash is a great recipe to make ahead of time and reheat. Just put the goulash back on the stove, add a splash more broth, and simmer over medium-heat until warm.
You can also make this into a single-pot meal. Use a large pot to cook the venison as instructed. Then, when you add in the broth and all of the other ingredients, add the pasta and cook the pasta while the broth simmers down.
I tend to like the way that cast iron skillets sauté. Although you could also cook the venison separately in a cast iron skillet and then make the rest of the dish in a pot. This wouldn't be a one-pot meal. Although it is still pretty close to it!
You can also substitute seafood, instead of red meat, or green lentils for a vegetarian options. I'd recommend French green lentils. Although any semi-hard legume would work in this dish.
This Page Contains Edited Images
As a general rule, I don't like to edit images. Food styling, editing, alteration, and even faking entirely is just as rampant a problem in the recipe realm. Cooking is a very visual art and you can tell when a lot of foods are cooked based on the color. So, when this is altered and you can't use the coloration as a gauge, it makes it quite difficult to follow some recipes. I have an entire article about Food Styling and Unrealistic Expectations of Recipes. My place has very warm lighting, though. So, sometimes my camera overcompensates and ends up with an unnatural hues. I've adjusted the hues, levels, and/or cropped the following images:
Leave a Reply