Venison Mussaqa
The Elitist's Venison Mussaqa'a
Long-standing professional relationships with colleagues in Egypt have
taken me to that beautiful country twice, and I plan to return. Like
the Great Pyramid of Cheops, Egyptian cookery is one of the Wonders Of
The World, and I've had fair success in teaching myself some of the
rudiments. Many Egyptian dishes use beef or lamb; they are well suited
to the substitution of venison, and I present here one such example.
This recipe is adapted from the one for mussaqa'a in "Egyptian
Cooking: A
Practical Guide" by Samia Abdennour, and published by The American
University In Cairo Press (ISBN 977 424 026 X). It's a little more exotic
than most venison dishes, but it's absolutely authentic and worth the
work it entails.
This recipe easily will produce enough to feed four to six people,
and makes a fine centerpiece for a meal with a Middle Eastern theme.
And even your friends who "don't like venison" will enjoy
it--guaranteed! In fact, unless you tell them, they'll never know it
was venison.
VENISON MUSSAQA'A
3 pounds coarsely ground lean venison (loin, haunch or shoulder)
1 onion, chopped fine
2 cups tomato puree
1 to 2 tbs ground allspice
1 to 2 tbs ground cinnamon
1 tbs ground nutmeg
1/4 to 1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 large eggplants
Prepared Bechamel sauce (see below)
Slice unpeeled eggplants into discs about 3/4" thick. Sprinkle the slices
with salt on both sides and set aside for at least one hour.
Next prepare the meat filling. Add the onion and the spices to the ground
venison and mix thoroughly. Brown the spiced meat in a skillet, until it
is thoroughly cooked; don't let it burn! When the juices have been
reabsorbed into the meat, add the tomato puree and continue to cook
slowly untill all of the liquid has been absorbed again. Add the olive
oil, stir to blend, and set aside.
Now prepare the bechamel sauce: melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a deep
saucepan, and add 1 tablespoon oilve oil. When the butter is completely
melted take the pot off the stove and add 3 tablespoons of flour,
stirring until thoroughly blended. Return to the stove and when the
mixture begins to bubble, add slowly 2 cups cold milk, stirring
constantly. When the milk has heated the mixture will begin to
thicken; as it gets thicker and thicker, add slowly up to 1 cup of
chicken broth to adjust the consistency, and add salt and pepper to
taste. The end product should be quite thick and creamy-looking; add to
this one beaten egg, stir well, and set aside.
By this time the eggplants will have begun to "sweat" and they will be
ready to fry. Press the slices with paper towels gently to absorb excess
moisture and deep fry in at least 1" of hot cooking oil. Brown both
sides of each slice and set aside to drain.
To assemble the final dish, lightly oil a deep covered casserole with olive
oil. Layer eggplant slices over the bottom, covering as much of the
surface as possible. Then spoon in the meat mixture and spread it evenly
over the eggplant layer. On top of this put the rest of the eggplant
slices, again covering as much
of the surface as you can. Pour the bechamel sauce over the top and spread
it evenly with a spatula. Put the lid on the casserole and back at 350
degrees for about an hour and a half or so. The contents should be bubbling
hot when you remove it from the oven; a little extra time won't hurt. If
any grease has risen during the baking process it can be sucked out with a
turkey baster and discarded.
Source: rec.hunting
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