Venison and Cheese Skillet Pie
Ground venison, hard cheeses, and a biscuit lid, cooked in a covered pot over coals.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 9 oz
- cal / oz
- 69
- protein
- 38 g
- serves
- 8, scales
- prep
- 20 min
- cook
- 45 min
- total time
- 65 min
- water
- 180 ml cold
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Ground venison | 1 1/2 lb | kept frozen in the cooler, thaws on the drive |
|---|---|---|
| Italian seasoning | 1 tbsp | |
| Salt | 1 tsp | |
| Black pepper | 1/2 tsp | |
| Salami or diced ham | 6 oz | stands in for venison bacon |
| Provolone | 6 oz, cut in 1/2-inch cubes | |
| Fontina | 6 oz, cut in 1/2-inch cubes | |
| Grated parmesan | 1/2 cup | the shelf-stable kind |
| Whole milk powder | 1/3 cup | |
| Egg powder | 3 tbsp | about three eggs' worth |
| Biscuit mix | 2 cups | premeasured at home |
| Olive oil | 2 tbsp |
Method
- Build a fire and let it burn down. You want coals, not flame.
- Cut the cheeses into cubes and dice the salami before the pot goes on. Once the coals are ready you will not have time.
- Set the dutch oven over a bed of coals with the oil. Brown the venison hard, breaking it up, then stir in the Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Add the salami for the last two minutes.
- Pull the pot off the heat. In a mug, whisk the egg powder and milk powder into 120 ml of cold water until smooth. Pour it over the meat and fold in both cubed cheeses and the parmesan.
- Stir the remaining 60 ml of water into the biscuit mix a splash at a time until it holds together as a thick dough. Drop it in patches over the filling.
- Lid on. Eight or ten coals under the pot, twice that on the lid. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until the biscuit top is dry and browned underneath.
- Rotate the pot and the lid a quarter turn every ten minutes so nothing scorches. Rest it five minutes before cutting.
The original is a double-crusted Easter pie built on drained ricotta, which needs a refrigerator and two hours of hanging cheesecloth. Neither travels. Milk powder and egg powder rehydrated in a mug do the same job of binding the filling, and a biscuit lid replaces the pastry without a rolling pin or a cold slab to work on.
Provolone and fontina are the point. Cubed rather than grated, they stay as distinct melted pockets instead of turning the whole thing into one uniform mass. Venison is lean enough that it will dry out on its own, so the fat from the salami and the cheese is what keeps the filling together. Bottom heat browns the meat; lid heat bakes the biscuit, which is why most of the coals go on top.
Packing
Cheeses and meat ride in the cooler, bagged separately. Biscuit mix, egg powder, milk powder, parmesan, and the seasoning get premeasured into labeled bags at home so camp is pouring, not measuring.
Variations
- Swap the biscuit lid for a store-bought pie crust if you are only out one night and can keep it cold.
- Ground beef or bulk sausage works if you have no venison.
- A drained can of spinach folded into the filling cuts the richness.
https://realtree.com/timber-2-table-wild-game-recipes/venison-pizzagaina-pizza-rustica-or-italian-easter-pie-recipe