Two new venison and duck recipes from sporting chef Scott Leysath

Venison Osso Buco

A classic dish of braised veal shanks that works wonderfully well with any antlered game from sporting chef Scott Leysath. To prepare the shanks, cut a few inches below and six to eight inches above the knee joint. Once browned, this can also be prepared in a slow cooker.

4 venison shanks

1 teaspoon each salt and pepper

1/2 cup flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups carrots, diced

1 cup celery, diced

1 cup onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1 cup dry red wine

1 cup canned Italian tomatoes, chopped

1 cup game or beef broth

Season shanks liberally with salt and pepper. Dust with flour.

Cooking instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large oven-safe pot (like a Dutch oven). Add shanks and brown evenly on all sides. Add carrots, celery, onion, garlic and Italian seasoning and lightly brown. Add wine; cover with a tight-fitting lid or foil and place in the preheated oven for 2 hours. Check shanks for tenderness. If the meat does not pull away from the bone easily, recover and continue cooking for another hour or until shanks are tender.

Add tomatoes and beef broth, increase heat to 375 and return to the oven, uncovered, until liquid is reduced by one-half.

To serve, place one shank on each plate and spoon sauce over.

Spicy Duck or Goose Wrap

Don’t let the word “spicy” turn you away from this recipe. The amount of spicy heat can easily be adjusted, or eliminated altogether. You can turn down the heat by removing the ribs and seeds from the pepper and reducing the amount of Sriracha sauce in the marinade.

2 cups skinless duck or goose breast fillets, sliced across the grain

4 large flour tortillas

Lettuce

Tomato

Jack cheese

Marinade

1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons Sriracha sauce

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

1 jalapeño pepper, sliced into rings

1 teaspoon cracked black pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 green onions, roughly chopped

1/2 cup olive oil

Herb Mayonnaise

2 large egg yolks

3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 clove garlic, minced

1 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup finely chopped fresh herbs—parsley, basil, chives, oregano, etc.

Salt and pepper

Prep instructions

To prepare the marinade, whisk together all ingredients except the olive oil in a medium bowl. Once the mixture is well blended, add the olive oil in a thin stream, whisking until emulsified. Add the sliced duck or goose to the marinade, toss to coat evenly, cover, and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours, turning occasionally.

To prepare the mayonnaise, place the egg yolks, mustard, lemon juice, and garlic in a blender or food processor. Pulse to blend. With the motor running on low speed, add the vegetable oil in a thin stream until the mayonnaise is creamy. Add the herbs and season the mayo to taste with salt and pepper. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Remove the sliced breast fillets from the marinade and pat dry. Cook in a hot, lightly oiled skillet for 2 to 3 minutes or until desired doneness.

To serve, spread a layer of mayonnaise over each flour tortilla. Add the cooked breast fillets, lettuce, tomato, and cheese. Fold over the bottom flap and roll tightly.

Author notes

The Sporting Chef Scott Leysath has been an executive chef for more than 20 years, and is a leading expert on cooking fish and game. Author of multiple cookbooks, including “The Sporting Chef’s Better Venison Cookbook,” he hosts “The Sporting Chef” and “Dead Meat” TV shows on Sportsman Channel. SportingChef.com.

For more delicious recipes, look no further than MidWest Outdoors. Dishing up Beurre Blanc.