Reindeer Goulash with Christmas Spices

Ingredients

• 4 slices breakfast bacon
• 800 g reindeer meat (pre‑cooked, from shoulder or hindquarter)
• 400 g onions
• 1 Carrot
• 1 parsley root
• 1 Organic lemon
• 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
• 200 ml dry red wine
• 600 ml game stock
• 0.5 cinnamon stick
• 2 cloves
• 0.5 star anise
• 0.5 tsp Peppercorns
• 2 allspice berries
• 2 cardamom pods
• 5 juniper berries
• 2 Bay leaves
• 200 g grapes
• 80 g peeled walnut halves
• 3 tbsp crème fraîche
• 2 tbsp lingonberry jam
• Salt
• pepper (ground)

Instructions

1. 1.

   Preheat the oven to 150°C with top and bottom heat.

2. 2.

   Cut the bacon into 2 cm wide pieces. Wash, pat dry and cut the meat into bite‑sized cubes. Peel and dice the onions, carrot and parsley root. Rinse the lemon hot, shake dry and zest it.

3. 3.

   In a pot render the bacon until crisp, remove and drain on kitchen paper. Brown the meat in batches in the bacon fat, then set aside. Sauté the vegetables in the remaining fat, stir in tomato paste and deglaze with wine. Reduce slightly, add stock and return the meat. Roast in the preheated oven for about 1½ hours. Place the spices in a spice bag, seal well and add after about 40 minutes.

4. 4.

   Wash and drain the grapes. Toast the walnuts in a hot pan without added fat, remove, cool and roughly chop.

5. 5.

   Take the goulash out of the oven, discard the spice bag and stir in crème fraîche and lingonberry jam. Season with salt and pepper, fold in grapes, lemon zest, bacon and nuts and let simmer for another 5 minutes.

6. 6.

   Serve on a plate with optional apple potatoes if desired.