Venison tartare

I once employed a chef who used to say that cooking was simply burning bits of food to various degrees. Funny but untrue. Making a salad’s cooking so, therefore, must be a raw meat dish.

Most of us have heard of steak tartare but we’ve currently got a fabulous venison version on the menu at the restaurant. As with any raw food, make sure that everything is scrupulously clean including the meat before preparing. If you’ve any doubts about eating raw meat or eggs for personal health reasons, please listen to them. However, I’ve never known any problems as long as cleanliness is observed and the best ingredients are used.

Serves four

800g venison loin – trimmed of any sinew and fat.

One medium onion - chopped

One tablespoon of capers – drained and washed if pickled

One tablespoon of chopped chives

One tablespoon of chopped gherkins

Two tablespoons of tomato ketchup

Four tablespoons of extra virgin rapeseed or olive oil

Two tablespoons of chopped parsley

Four to five drops of Tabasco

One teaspoon of Worcester sauce

Sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Four egg yolks – optional

Using a large sharp knife, chop the venison as finely as possible. You could use a food processor but a knife leaves the meat with a better texture. Place the onion, herbs, capers and gherkins on a chopping board together and chop finely.

Place all the ingredients, except the egg yolks, in a bowl mix, checking the seasoning as you go.

To serve, pile onto plates and, if using the egg yolks, make a dip in the top of each into which you place a yolk. Great if accompanied by toast or even Melba toast.