Capriolo in Salmì con Polenta Bergamasca

Ingredients

• For the marinade
• 1.2 kg roe deer shoulder or haunch, cut into 80 g pieces, sinew trimmed
• 750 ml Barbera or Bonarda, full bottle
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 2 carrots, roughly chopped
• 2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
• 6 juniper berries, lightly crushed
• 4 cloves
• 3 bay leaves
• For the braise
• 50 g lard
• 500 ml Barbera or Bonarda, fresh, not the marinade
• 500 ml vegetable broth, hot
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp pig's blood, optional; whisked smooth
• For the polenta
• 250 g bramata grossa polenta, coarse Bergamo stone-ground
• 1 litre water, salted
• 10 g fine salt

Method

1. 1
   Place the deer pieces in a non-reactive container with the marinade wine, onion, carrots, celery, juniper, cloves and bay. Submerge completely. Cover and refrigerate for 48 hours, turning once at 24 hours. The wine will deepen in colour and the meat will take on a purple tinge — this is the correct sign.
2. 2
   Lift the deer from the marinade. Discard all marinade liquid and the spent aromatics entirely — they must not enter the braising vessel. Pat the meat thoroughly dry with a cloth. Fresh vegetables are prepared separately for the braise.
3. 3
   Heat the lard in a heavy braising pot over the highest available flame until it begins to smoke. Brown the deer pieces in batches — do not crowd the pot. Each piece must achieve a deep mahogany crust on all faces; lean venison will not colour at lower heat, and a pale piece means a shallow sauce. Remove and rest each batch.
4. 4
   In the fat remaining in the pot, sweat the fresh chopped onion, carrot and celery over medium heat until softened and lightly coloured. Return all the deer to the pot. Pour in the fresh wine and allow it to reduce by half — the sharp alcohol smell will soften to a round, fruity note. Add the hot vegetable broth to barely cover.
5. 5
   Cover the pot and transfer to an oven set at 150–160 °C. Braise for 2 full hours without disturbance. The meat is ready when a skewer meets no resistance and the braising liquid has reduced to a dark, coating consistency.
6. 6
   Remove the deer pieces to a warm dish. Pass the braising vegetables and liquid through a mouli or fine sieve, pressing firmly to extract all solids. Return the passed sauce to the pot and reduce further over low heat if it does not coat a spoon cleanly. If pig's blood is used, remove the pot from the heat, whisk in the blood, and do not return to flame. Taste for salt.
7. 7
   For the polenta, bring the salted water to a rolling boil. Pour the bramata grossa in a thin, steady stream, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat to its lowest setting and cook, stirring regularly, until the polenta pulls cleanly from the sides of the pot — approximately 45 minutes. The coarse grain must be fully swollen and no longer gritty on the palate.
8. 8
   Return the deer pieces to the sauce and warm through. Serve directly from the pot onto warmed plates alongside the polenta, with the dark sauce spooned generously over both.