Deer Meat Lasagna Recipes

VENISON LASAGNA

Steps:

• Make the sauce. Brown the meat in a large, heavy pot like a Dutch oven. Take your time and do this in batches. It could take as long as 20 minutes. Put all the browned meat back in the pot and then add the chopped onions and cook for another 4 to 8 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add seasonings - fennel seeds and pollen if using, oregano, basil, maybe a little cayenne if you want - and mix well.
• Mix the wine and tomato paste and pour in the pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring often. Add the tomato sauce and can of crushed tomatoes and mix again. Bring to a simmer and taste it: If it's too acidic, add the sugar. Cook slowly for 1 to 2 hours. This can be done as much as two days ahead of time.
• Prepare the lasagna. Soak the lasagna noodles in hot water for 15 to 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Meanwhile, mix the parsley with the ricotta cheese in a bowl. Grate the pecorino or parmesan and shred the mozzarella. Grate 1/2 a nutmeg into the ricotta. If you can't find whole nutmegs, use 1 teaspoon.
• To assemble, spread a good amount of the meat sauce on the bottom of a standard 9-inch by 13-inch casserole pan. Remove the lasagna noodles and lay on the meat sauce. Spread half the ricotta cheese mixture on the noodles, then half the mozzarella cheese, then 1/2 the pecorino.
• Add another layer of meat sauce - you will have one final layer after this - then the rest of the noodles. Add the remaining ricotta and mozzarella, plus 1/2 of the remaining pecorino. Spread the remaining meat sauce on this, then sprinkle with the last bit of pecorino.
• To cook, cover the lasagna with foil. You might want to spray the underside first with non-stick spray so the cheese doesn't stick to it. Bake covered for 25 minutes. Carefully take off the foil and bake for another 25 minutes. Let the lasagna rest for 10 to 15 minutes before serving with a strong red wine.

VENISON LASAGNE (OR BEEF)

Steps:

• Cook lasagne noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
• For meat sauce: In a large saucepan or skillet, scramble-fry meat, onion, and garlic until meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain fat (if you're using venison, there likely won't be any -- that's my little plug for venison!).
• Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce and paste and seasonings. Bring to a boil.
• Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• For Cheese Filling: Combine egg, cottage cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, and parsley.
• Layer half lasagne noodles in a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Spread with half the meat sauce and then half the cheese filling. Repeat layers.
• Sprinkle remaining Parmesan cheese on top and additional grated mozzarella, if desired.
• Bake at 375F for 30-35 minutes and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

VENISON LASAGNA | EASY & CLASSIC RECIPE WITH DEER MEAT SAUCE

Steps:

• Start by making the sauce (see notes if you want to use store-bought sauce). Add the olive oil to a large pot over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and saute until the edges start to brown.
• When the onion starts to brown, add the ground venison and brown that. Then, add the garlic, Italian seasoning, sugar, salt, pepper, and tomato paste. Cook for an additional 1-2 minutes before deglazing the pan with the balsamic vinegar.
• Finally, add the crushed tomatoes and let the sauce simmer covered over low heat while you prepare the cheese mixture and noodles.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the lasagna noodles. Drain and set aside. You can toss them in a little bit of olive oil if they're sticky so they don't clump together.
• Mix together all of the cheese filling ingredients in a medium bowl. Preheat the oven to 350F.
• Now it's time to assemble the lasagna in a 9×13-inch baking dish. Remove the sauce from the heat and make an assembly line with the sauce, cheese filling, and noodles.
• Start by pouring 1/4 of the sauce on the bottom of the dish. Then, lay 4 noodles on top of the sauce, overlapping them a bit so they all fit, and cover the bottom of the dish. Next, spread half of the cheese mixture on top of the noodles. You can just kind of sprinkle it around the best you can. Then, add another 1/4 of the sauce. Then, top with 4 more noodles.
• Repeat this whole process one more time. Then, cover the exposed noodles with the remaining sauce and parmesan cheese. Make sure the sauce goes all the way to the edge of each noodle so the edges don't dry out.
• Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and then bake for an additional 10 minutes until everything is bubbly and melted. Slice & enjoy!