Creamy Onion Curry Over Venison and Egg Noodles

This dish is an adaption of "Creamy Garlic and Onion Gemsbuck/Oryx Tagliatelle"-- a recipe sent to us from the Omuwiwe Hunting Lodge in Namibia, South Africa. Obviously, where are we gonna find a Gemsbuck around here? So we made it using venison and tweaked the recipe a little bit to better match our taste. We also went with egg noodles because it's easier to find than tagliatelle. This recipe was AWESOME. It's quite different from what we've done before, but it turned out to be a light, savory pasta dish that is very easy to love and enjoy. Not to mention ... learning how to flambe was an adventure, indeed! We are glad to report that the house did not burn down.

We want to thank the Omuwiwe Hunting Lodge for this fabulous recipe. From what we could gather in the original recipe sent to us, we interpreted it as an Indian influenced dish, so our dish is presented in this way. (Indian culture has a strong foothold in South African regions.) At the end of this post, you can find the original recipe sent to us, should you ever get your hands on a Gemsbuck/Oryx to cook. Feel free to contact Omuwiwe to plan your next African safari hunt!

In the words of our friend Martenique Scott who sent us this recipe, "Lekker Eet! Afrikaans for Have a good Meal!"

Food for Hunter's Recipe: Creamy Onion Curry Over Venison and Egg Noodles

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

- 1 lb. venison tenderloin

- 1 onion, sliced

- 4 cloves of garlic, minced

- 1 1/2 cups of cream

- 2 tbs. Maker's Mark, or other whiskey/bourbon

- 1 tsp. mild curry powder (yellow)

- 1 tbs. ketchup

- 2 tbs. Sweet Mango Chutney, or any other Indian fruit chutneys you like

- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

- vegetable oil

- egg noodles

1.Remove all fat and silver skin from tenderloin. Cut into pieces, however you like. Dab with a paper towel to dry, and then lightly sprinkle steaks with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Set aside.

Start the egg noodles. Follow directions on package.

2. Heat about 1 tbs. of oil in a medium sized pan. Over medium-low heat, saute onions and garlic until onions become soft and translucent. Lightly sprinkle salt over onions to help onions release their moisture.

3. Add curry powder to the softened onions.

Here's a picture of the curry we used, in case if it helps any. You can also buy curry at most American grocery stores. McCormick makes curry.

Then add ketchup and chutney ...

Here's also a picture of the chutney jar we used. The awesome thing about living in Southern California is that we have access to all kinds of foods, just 5 minutes away. 

You'll most likely find this at an Indian grocery store. You can also use regular fruit preserves if you want, but it is quite different from the Indian stuff.

And then add cream! Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Lots of pepper.

Allow curry to thicken over low heat. Stir occasionally.

4. In another pan, heat about 1 tbs. of oil over high heat. Make sure the pan is really hot before laying meat down. Sear venison steaks on each side for a nice brown color, about 1-2 minutes each side for medium rare. DO NOT OVERCOOK. 

Then turn down the fire to medium.  Here comes the fun part...

5. Carefully add whiskey to the meat pan (not letting it touch any open flames from the stove because this can cause an explosion). With a long reach lighter, stand back and ignite the fumes coming from the alcohol so that it can catch fire.

Lift the pan and shake it back and forth until flames die out. Here is a helpful article on How to flambe. 

If you're still confused about how to flambe, we suggest that you youtube it first. 

Serve meat and curry sauce over warm egg noodles.

If you really want to try something new, serve this dish with roti and pickled mangoes on the side. Roti is kind of like the Indian version of tortillas.

We want to give our friendly neighborhood Indian market Ambala a plug for helping us out with these ingredients (except the whiskey). Below is their business card.

Thanks, Kamal and Anita!

Rick and I hope you enjoy this recipe! It was sooo good. As promised, below is the original recipe sent to us from Namibia. 

Original Recipe: Creamy Garlic and Onion Gemsbuck/Oryx Tagliatelle

(Serves 4)

Ingredients:

- 400g tenderised Gemsbuck steak cut into strips

- 1 onion chopped

- 1 teaspoon or more of garlic

- 1 1/2 cups of cream

- 25 ml Southern Comfort

- 1/2 teaspoon curry powder

- 1 tablespoon ketchup

- 1 tablespoon chutney

- salt and lotsa pepper

- oil for frying

Directions: 

Saute the garlic and onions in the oil until tender.

Ensure the pan is very hot and then add the steak. Fry until the steak is cooked to your liking.

Flambe the steak with the Southern Comfort.

Add the ketchup, curry powder, chutney, salt and pepper and cream.

Reduce the cream, over low heat, until thick.

Cook the Tagliatelle al dente and serve with a few good gratings of Parmesan.

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