Ingredients

• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 medium sized carrots, diced
• 2 sticks of celery, diced
• 1 leek, diced
• 4 cloves of smoked garlic, chopped
• 125g pancetta, diced
• 500g venison, diced
• 1 bay leaf
• 250ml red wine
• 3 tbsp tomato puree
• 500ml beef stock
• 400g chopped tomatoes
• 1 bunch basil

Method

1. Firstly, to make the cartouche, take a piece of parchment paper and cut to the approximate size of your pan.
2. Place the diced onion, carrots, celery, leek and smoked garlic into a heavy bottomed pan with a good drizzle of olive oil on a medium heat.
3. Cook the vegetables for approximately 15 minutes or until it starts to caramelise.
4. Once caramelised, add the diced pancetta and venison to brown.
5. Add the bay leaf as well as the tomato puree and mix in thoroughly.
6. Once mixed, pour in the red wine and simmer until the wine has reduced by half.
7. Once the wine has reduced, pour in the beef stock and chopped tomatoes
8. Bring back to a simmer and then turn down to a low heat.
9. Cover the Ragu with the cartouche and leave to gently cook for two to two and a half hours or until the venison is tender and the meat falls apart easily.
10. Serve with some pappardelle pasta or creamy mashed potatoes and sprinkle over the remaining basil.