Fit To Be Stewed
Very little in life makes Scandinavians more content than tucking into aromatic reindeer stew. Here’s an adaptation of a standard Swedish recipe.
Grandpa's Own Reindeer Stew
Makes: 3-4 servings.
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes
Equipment
- 1 large, deep fry pan or wok
- Spatula and stirring spoon
Ingredients
- 1 package (240g =1/2 lb) frozen reindeer slices OR fresh reindeer cut into razor-thin slices
- About 200g (1/3 lb) thickly sliced mushrooms – ordinary or chanterelles
- 1 yellow onion, sliced or diced
- 4 tablespoons pure butter – or margarine
- 1 heaping tablespoon flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 3-4 crushed juniper berries (optional)
- 1/3 cup mushroom bouillon/stock
- ¾ cup Crème Fraiche or thick cream
- 2 tablespoons soy
Directions
Be sure the frozen or fresh reindeer meat is sliced into razor-thin strips. Now, slice the mushrooms – not too thinly. Slice the onions.
Melt most of the butter or margarine over medium heat in a fry pan or wok. Sauté the reindeer strips very lightly – reindeer meat contains only 3% fat. Remove the strips, add the remainder of the butter, and sauté the mushroom and onions, 5-10 minutes. Now, add the sautéed reindeer and mix everything together. Sprinkle the flour over the stew and stir vigorously. Add salt, pepper and thyme and optional juniper berries – and keep stirring. Add mushroom bouillon and stir. Let everything bubble away for about 5 minutes. Now, add the crème fraiche or thick cream, and also soy, and let the stew simmer vigorously for 3 minutes.
Serve immediately! Can be served with rice - or peeled, cooked potatoes the way Scandinavians do. Or serve with pasta, veggie or mixed salad.
Article comments
1 - alessandro nicolo
does it taste like horse or caribou meat?
2 - Roger Choate
I've never tasted caribou but know they're related to reindeer - which taste like venison, certainly not at all like horse meat
3 - Finnmark 2007 Expedition to the arctic
Just wondered if you were aware of the Finnmark 2007 Expedition which is undertaking a study of the Sami people and climate change, it will be working with Sami reindeer herding communities. The expedition has a website Finnmark 2007 and it begins on March the 7th 2007
4 - Jeff Otto
Living up in the western arctic we get to eat many kinds wild game caribou, reindeer, and Musk-ox meat we also operate a small wild game sausage kitchen.
5 - Roger Choate
Don't know whether it's true, but I have the impression that consumption of these types of meat is perhaps healthier than, say, standard beef or pork. What do you think, Jeff?
6 - bliffle
Wild game is generally healthier, fat-wise, because there is much less fat and it is better distributed thru the meat. Taste quality usually depends on dressing the carcass quickly.
7 - Roger Choate
My personal experience in roasting reindeer or elk is the need for a relatively low oven temperature, and basting or pre-marination, just because the fat content is so low - the thing can otherwise emerge from the oven as overly-dry and uninteresting