Delicious, juicy and succulent venison goulash with German potato dumplings and red cabbage is the perfect comforting meal to come back to after an Autumn or Winter walk. This German deer stew is slow-cooked and infused with aromatic herbs. The rich red wine and sweet cranberry sauce (affiliate link) contrast and complement one another, making this the perfect winter dish.
It is also a popular German Christmas food. If you find duck and goose too fatty but turkey to dry then this is a great alternative. Goulash is very popular in Germany but replacing beef with deer adds a bit of festive flair to this dish.
What is Vension Goulash?
Venison goulash is a variation of the traditional beef goulash. It is a deer stew that is slow-cooked.
In Germany, this stew is typically served in the autumn and winter. The hunting season for deer is from August to January so that this overlaps. Most of the venison meat available in Germany comes from hunting, only some are from farmed animals.
What is Vension goulash in German?
Hirschgulasch is the German term to describe vension goulash. "Hirsch" is the word for deer in German, "Gulasch" is the word for Goulash.
You pronounce is "HERE-SHHH-GUL-ASH as an English speaker.
The term venison comes from the Latin word "venatus" which means "to hunt" It is used to describe meat from any kind of meat. Originally it referred to any game meat, but now the use is restricted to game.
Venison has a similar consistency to beef, however, it has a stronger and earthier taste.
Venison meat contains less fat than beef and is high in protein. A further benefit of venison is that it has a high amount of vitamin B, iron, zinc and selenium.
How to make Venison Goulash
Ingredients:
- Venison meat cut into 2 cm chunks. (You can use the meat from any kind of deer for this stew)
- Clarified butter (if you don't have any you can replace it with 2 tablespoons vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon butter, which will add the buttery taste)
- Onions
- Carrots - cut into chunks
- Mushrooms (I used champignons but any will work really)
- Tomato paste
- Bay leaves
- Juniper berries (affiliate link)
- Thyme
- Cloves
- Venison stock/broth - or replace with beef stock/broth
- Dry red wine
- Red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
- Cranberry sauce (affiliate link)
- Salt and pepper
Recipe Steps:
- Wash and slice the venison. Pat, it dry with a towel.
- Finely slice the onions, and roughly slice the carrots and mushrooms.
- Crush the juniper berries (affiliate link) with a pestle and mortar, or another heavy object.
- Place the juniper berries (affiliate link) together with the thyme, cloves and bay leaves in a spice bag, or I use a loose tea bag. (This is optional, you can also add them in without a bag, and then remove them from the stew before serving, but removing all of them can be a bit tricky)
- Heat the clarified butter in a large saucepan. Fry the meat until browned for about 2 minutes and remove from the pot and place in a separate plate.
- Briefly fry the onions, carrots and mushrooms, until the onions begin to brown. Add the tomato paste and fry for a further minute. Pour in the red wine, stock/broth.
- Add the meat, spices, cranberry sauce (affiliate link) and vinegar to the pot. Season with salt and pepper.
- Close the saucepan with a lid and cook on slow heat for up to 3 hours. Stir the deer stew once in a while. The meat should become very tender.
- After three hours, check the meat. If the sauce is too liquid mix two tablespoons of cornflour with 2 tablespoons of meat and add to the pot. Briefly bring the pot back to boil. This should thicken the sauce.
- Serve with more cranberry sauce (affiliate link) on the side.
Recipe Variations:
Slow cooker / crock pot venison stew
To make this recipe in a slow cooker (affiliate link) or crockpot (affiliate link), simply follow the recipe until step 5. Then place everything into the slow cooker (affiliate link) and leave to cook for 6-8 hours on slow heat.
Replace Venison with Beef
You can replace the venison with beef in this recipe. The cooking time will reduce to about 1 ½ hours. The flavour will not be the same as venison has a more gamey taste to it.
How to serve?
Anything that soaks up sauce goes well with venison goulash. Perfect side dishes for this stew are:
- Semmelknödel (German bread dumplings)
- German potato dumplings (kartoffelklöße/knödel)
- German spätzle
- Noodles
Vegetable side dishes that go well with venison include:
- German red cabbage
- Butter vegetables
- Braised cabbage
- Boiled broccoli or cauliflower
Storage Instructions
Like many stews, this dish might taste even better the next day, when the flavours have time to infuse. The goulash will stay good in the fridge for up to four days when kept in an airtight container. Simply reheat in the stove or microwave.
If you want to freeze this deer stew, it will stay good for up to three months.
More Goulash Recipes?
More Delicious German Main Courses
- Königsberger Klopse
- Käsespätzle- German cheese spätzle
- Frikadellen - German Meatballs
- Wiener Schnitzel
- Turkey Schnitzel
- Chanterelle Pasta
Did you try this recipe?
Please leave a rating or make a comment below. I would love to hear from you. You can send me an e-mail or comment on Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest.
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Recipe
Flavourful Venison Goulash (Hirschgulasch)
Equipment
- a large pot at least 5 l
Ingredients
- 1 kg venison meat cut into 2 cm chunks
- 3 tablespoon clarified butter if that is not available use 3 tablespoons vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon butter for the buttery taste
- 200 g onions 7 oz
- 200 g carrots 7 oz
- 200 g mushrooms 7 oz I used champignons
- 6 juniper berries
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 cloves
- fresh thyme can be replaced by 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 200 ml dry red wine (6.7 fl oz)
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar can be replaced with balsamic vinegar
- 500 ml venison stock/broth if not available then replace with beef stock /broth
- 4 tablespoons cranberry sauce (affiliate link) more for serving
Instructions
- Wash and slice the venison. Pat it dry with a towel.
- Finley slice the onions, roughly slice the carrots and mushrooms.
- Crush the juniper berries (affiliate link) with a pestle and mortar, or another heavy object.
- Place the juniper berries (affiliate link) together with the thyme, cloves and bay leaves in a spice bag, or I use a loose tea bag. (This is optional, you can also add them in loose, but then remove them from the stew before serving.)
- Heat the clarified butter in a large saucepan. Fry the meat until browned for about 2 minutes and remove from the pot. Place the meat on a separate plate and set it aside.
- Briefly fry the onions, carrots and mushrooms, until the onions begin to brown. Add the tomato paste and fry for a further minute. Pour in the red wine and stock/broth.
- Add the meat, spices, cranberry sauce and vinegar to the pot. Season with salt and pepper.
- Close the saucepan with a lid and cook on low heat for up to 3 hours. Stir the deer stew once in a while. The meat should become very tender.
- After three hours, check the meat. If the sauce is too liquid mix two tablespoons of cornflour/ cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water and add to the pot. Briefly bring the pot back to boil, this should thicken the sauce. In reverse, you can add more liquid, if the stew is too dry.
- Serve with more cranberry sauce (affiliate link) sauce on the side.
To make vension stew in a slow cooker / crockpot
- To make this recipe in a slow cooker or crockpot simply follow the recipe until step 5. Then place everything into the slow cooker and leave to cook for 6-8 hours on slow heat.
Notes
Side dishes
- Semmelknodel (German Bread Dumplings)
- German Potato Dumplings ( Kartoffelklöße/knödel)
- German Spätzle
- Noodles
- German red cabbage
- Butter vegetables
- braised cabbage
- boiled broccoli or cauliflower
Mihaela | https://theworldisanoyster.com/
I buy game meat rarely because I don't really know what to make with it. Your goulash is a perfect idea, and I would love it with potato dumplings!
Joanna
Sounds absolutely delicious especially this time of the year. I love the addition of juniper berries. They must make the stew super flavorful!
Jeannie
I never tried this recipe before but some family members likes venison and we will give this a try.
nancy
i never cooked deer before this looks very interesting!
Giangi Townsend
Absolutely love this recipe! I miss my mom making it and each time I travel to Germany, without fail I always order it if on the menu.
Thank you for sharing it .
Frau Dietz (Eating Wiesbaden)
I bet the cranberry sauce was delicious with it... I'm having it with EVERYTHING at the moment!
Ginger
Looking delish - never heard of it before! Hope you get your kitchen soon, perhaps Santa will help 😉