Early winter at our house generally means the return of venison to the table. Here is a simple slow cooker venison stew that is in our regular/easy recipe rotation. The smaller you dice the veggies the more elegant this will look. We tend to leave it pretty rustic, i.e. very rough chopped, as you can see from these photos.

This substantial stew is great for a snow day–just start it before you go out to shovel and play. Three hours later, you will have earned this… and a beer. Enjoy!

Veggie prep

Venison Roast

Cube and flour the venison.

Browned Venison

Deglaze the pan with beer. Fancy beer.

Add the hot beef stock.

Everything goes in the slow cooker.

Set it and forget it… well for 3 hours anyway.

Cooked on high for 3 hours. All done.

Slow Cooker Venison Stew

Slow Cooker Venison Stew

Serves 6

Ingredients

• venison roast (1-2 pounds), silver skin removed and cubed
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, seasoned with salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup beer (whatever you’re drinking; red wine also works)
• 3 cups hot beef stock
• 3 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
• 1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 pint cremini mushrooms, cleaned and stemmed
• 1 pint baby potatoes, washed and halved (or not depending how big they are)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, washed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon salt
• fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

Roll the venison cubes in the flour, shaking off any excess. Heat the butter in a wide skillet and brown the venison cubes over medium heat. Remove from the pan and deglaze the pan with beer then add the hot beef stock. Be sure to scrape up all the fond and stir it into the liquid.

Meanwhile, prepare the veggies and measure your spices. After deglazing the pan, everything goes into your slow cooker to cook on high for about 3 hours.

Remove the bay leaf and rosemary stems before serving with crusty bread and more beer.

Other Good-Looking Venison Stew Recipes from Around the Web:

Venison Bourguignon (A Spicy Perspective) – I will definitely be making this!

Venison Stew (Saveur)