Twice-Cooked Venison Hash
Pre-cooked venison chunks fried crisp with rehydrated vegetables. Camp breakfast off a leftover roast.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 5.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 113
- protein
- 40 g
- serves
- 2, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 15 min
- total time
- 25 min
- water
- 400 ml boiled
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Breakfast
- Dinner
- Canister stove
- Campfire coals
- Liquid fuel
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Backpacking
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Cooked venison scrap, dehydrated | 3 oz | braised leg trim, simmered tender, then dried in chunks |
|---|---|---|
| Dried mixed vegetables | 1 1/2 cups | carrot, cauliflower, turnip, brussels sprout; mix the colors |
| Cooking oil or rendered lard | 2 tbsp | lard fries harder and does not go rancid fast |
| Bouillon | 1 cube | beef or game stock cube |
| Garlic, dried and minced | 1 tsp | |
| Ground cumin | 1/2 tsp | |
| Dried parsley and mint | 1 tbsp total | |
| Dried green onion | 1 tbsp | |
| Salt and black pepper | to taste | |
| Mayonnaise packets with hot sauce | 2 packets | |
| Lemon powder or a lemon wedge | 1/4 tsp |
Method
- Boil 400 ml of water with the bouillon cube. Pour it over the dried vegetables and venison in your pot and let it sit off the heat for ten minutes, lid on.
- Drain the liquid into a mug and drink it or save it. Wet vegetables steam instead of browning.
- Wipe the pot, add the oil, and get it hot before anything goes back in.
- Fry the venison chunks first, undisturbed, until the edges crisp. Three or four minutes.
- Add the drained vegetables, garlic, and cumin. Toss and let it sit still between tosses so it colors.
- Kill the heat. Stir in the parsley, mint, green onion, salt, pepper, and lemon powder.
- Squeeze a mayo packet over the top and eat straight from the pot.
The point of this one is the second cooking. Meat that was already braised soft has no water left to fight you, so it hits hot oil and crisps on the outside while staying tender inside. That is why the pouch of leftover roast beats fresh ground meat here. Ground meat just browns and goes grey.
The two rules that break this dish are wet vegetables and a crowded pot. Rehydrate first, then drain hard, then fry. If you dump soaking water and vegetables into oil together you get a stew, not a hash. Cook it in two rounds if your pot is small. The herbs, lemon, and mayo all go on at the end because heat kills the first two and splits the third.
Packing
Dry the venison and vegetables at home and bag them together in one quart bag. Oil rides in a leakproof bottle. Herbs, garlic, and cumin go in one small bag so seasoning is a single pour.
Variations
- Corned beef from a pouch stands in for the venison with no other changes.
- Add a half cup of instant potato flakes to the drained pot if you want it to go further.
- No dehydrator: a pouch of shelf-stable roast beef and freeze-dried vegetables gets close.
https://foragerchef.com/twice-cooked-venison-vegetable-hash