I usually make a stew like this in the morning and take it out of the oven at lunch time. You can reheat and cook for a bit more in the early evening for supper.

What you’ll need:

3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

4 large onions [500g], sliced or finely chopped

2 fat cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 large carrot [125g], chopped into little dice

1 stick celery, chopped into little dice

Spice mix [mix together on a piece of kitchen paper]

2 Tbsp paprika [you can used sweet smoked paprika]

¼ tsp dried chilli flakes

1 tsp muscovado sugar

¼ tsp ground cumin

1 tomato, red and ripe, peeled and chopped

125ml red wine

300ml Nomu beef stock (or other)

1 Tbsp tomato paste

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Fresh parsley and roasted red peppers for a garnish

What you’ll do:

Set the oven at 160℃, with the shelf in the middle. In a medium sized cast iron enamel casserole, over medium to low heat, heat the olive oil and in it slowly fry the onion, with a light sprinkling of salt to extract the moisture. Do not hurry this, it is important for the onion to release its water and for the sugar in it to start caramelising. When the onion is soft and turning golden brown, add the garlic and continue stir frying for a while. Toss in the spices and stir fry for a while. Add the tomato, red wine, beef stock, tomato paste, and finally the venison. Bring to the boil. Season well and push the meat under the surface of the liquid. Cut a cartouche of kitchen paper [or parchment paper] using the lid of the casserole as a guide, scrunch it up and run it under a cold-water tap. Place the cartouche of paper on the surface. Braise in the oven for 3 hours. Watch the level of the liquid and add more stock or water if required. When the meat is soft and the sauce somewhat reduced, check for seasoning. You may need to give it a bit more time in the oven. Dish onto a platter and garnish with chopped parsley and the vinaigrette-marinated red peppers.

Serve with buttery broad strips of pasta called pappardelle, steamed white long grain rice or some form of potato.

This will serve 4 people. DM/TGIFood

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