Venison Shanks Braised with a Whiskey Sauce

How about a delicious alternative to your usual lamb shanks, well get to your local butcher and order some 300g venison shanks! (he will need to get them in, could also ask for osso bucco) Then try this beautiful recipe.
Ingredients
4 x 300g Venison hindshanks on the bone (get your butcher to prepare them, you may have to pre order but this is no problem)
100g Carrots
100g Parsnips
100g Turnips
100g Swede
100g Celeriac (celery root)
100g Red onions
300ml Whisky
200ml Red wine
Beef stock to cover, upto 2-3 litres
Oil, salt and pepper
4 Servings of your best lump free mash potato
Method
- 1. Peel and dice all the vegetables evenly and quite chunky as they are going to be cooking the whole time with the venison so approx. 5cmx5cm should be good.
- 2. Have the oven set to 180◦C
- 3. Have a heavy based pan on high heat on the stove and quickly fry all the vegetables until evenly coloured, remove this to a deep roasting tray, as deep as you can get into the oven!
- 4. Immediately add the shanks and again colour completely on all sides, then add these on top of the vegetables.
- 5. Deglaze your pan by pouring first the whiskey then the red wine into the hot pans. BE CAREFUL THE WHISKEY WILL FLAMBE!
- 6. When the flames have subsided add this liquid to your roasting tray also and completely cover with beef stock. (Remember the simple rule the more flavour in the beef stock the better.)
- 7. Cover with tin foil and roast for approx. 4 hours in the oven or until the meat begins to pull away from the bone.
- 8. When cooked remove the meat and vegetables and reduce the sauce until it thickens and is full of flavour. You can also blend the vegetables to thicken the sauce. My advice is to constantly taste so it doesn’t over reduce and become salty.
- 9. Serve piled on your best mash potatoes and with extra vegetables if you like.
- 10. Enjoy!