Make this: Slow cooker venison stew

Slow cooker venison stew

Last spring, my uncle brought me a venison shoulder roast from deer hunting season. I put it in the freezer, and I never got around to doing anything with it. Over the weekend, I renewed my commitment to waste less food (for about the 100th time), and I decided I was going to pull the venison shoulder out of the freezer, even if it was past it’s prime.

I had downloaded “Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker” to my Kindle with some gift certificate money I was given for Christmas. I’ve always wanted this slow cooker cookbook, but since I get sent so many cookbooks to review, I’ve held off. When I saw it was only $9.99 for the Kindle version, I decided it was worth spending part of my money on (I’ve been unbelievably frugal with my Kindle gift certificate).

There was one recipe for venison in “Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker,” and it was for venison stew. It said that venison shoulder is good for stew so I decided to look no further. I’m glad I did. This stew is delicious. After slow cooking all day long, it’s finished off with a little balsamic vinegar. A few months ago I treated myself to a bottle of DiBruno Bros “Gold” Barrel Aged Balsamic Vinegar. It’s so thick and flavorful – a little goes a long way. I used that to finish off the stew, and it added an incredible depth of flavor to the already savory stew.

I use my slow cooker often, but I tend to make the same recipes in it over and over. I have a goal to try one new slow cooker recipe a week this winter. This cookbook is certainly going to get a lot of use. If you are lucky enough to get your hands on some venison this winter, grab a copy of “Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker” and make yourself some stew.