Red Deer Birria-style Tacos
Slow-braised Red Deer folded into crisp cheese tacos and served with its warm dipping broth.
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 3 hrs 35 min
- Total
- 4 hrs 5 min
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Medium
Species: Red Deer
Ingredients
- 800 g diced Red Deer wild venison, in 3 cm pieces
- 25 ml rapeseed oil
- 200 g onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 20 g chipotle paste
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes
- 700 ml low-salt beef stock
- 20 ml cider vinegar
- 1 bay leaf
- 8 small corn tortillas, about 240 g
- 150 g mozzarella, grated
- 15 g coriander, chopped
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
- 1 g fine salt
The cut for this recipe
Diced Wild Venison
Method
Heat the oven to 160°C, or 140°C fan. Heat 15 ml oil in a lidded casserole and brown the venison in batches for about 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
Cook the onion for 6 minutes. Add garlic, chipotle paste and dry spices for 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, stock, vinegar, bay leaf and salt, then return the venison and bring to a simmer.
Cover and braise for about 3 hours, stirring once and adding hot water if needed. Continue until the meat separates readily with two forks. Check with a clean food thermometer: the centre must stay at or above 70°C for 2 minutes and be piping hot throughout. Continue cooking if necessary.
Lift out the meat with a slotted spoon and pull apart with clean forks. Remove the bay leaf. Keep the broth gently simmering, loosening with hot water if it has become too thick to dip into.
Warm a wide non-stick pan over a medium heat with a little of the remaining oil. Briefly dip a tortilla in the hot broth, place in the pan, add cooked venison and cheese to one half and fold. Fry for 2–3 minutes per side. Repeat, keeping finished tacos hot; use two pans for the stated timing.
Serve the crisp tacos with bowls of piping-hot broth, coriander and lime. The filling must stay hot during assembly and frying.
Storage
Store the cooked meat and broth separately from unused tortillas and cheese. Cool and refrigerate within 1–2 hours at 5°C or below and use within 48 hours, or freeze meat and broth for up to 3 months for best quality. Defrost in the fridge and use within 24 hours. Reheat only once until piping hot; assemble fresh tacos after reheating.
