Meat and potatoes get an upgrade with veggies and cheese, all popped into one dish! Venison casserole is the perfect comfort food.
Steady work and cold temps require hearty, stick-to-your-ribs type meals. And that doesn't mean they have to be heavy! While this casserole does have cheese in it, there's no sauce on top if it to weigh you down. You'll just feel refueled after this dinner.
We also love Venison Cabbage Rolls as a classic dinner option. Don't forget some easy Raw Herbal Sauerkraut to aid in gut balancing. And if you want to get fancy? Try your hand at Venison Wellington, the perfect holiday show stopper.
Key Ingredients
Venison - Ground venison has a strong flavour sometimes, but using it in a casserole with lots of veggies and cheese helps mask it if your family is not a fan.
Potatoes - Creamy mashed potatoes are the perfect base for the filling.
Veggies - Onion, celery, carrots, and garlic give you the classic tastes and various colours so you know things are balanced.
Cheese - Yup, we make a sauce of cottage cheese with eggs to add moisture without heaviness, and then of course shredded cheese browned in the oven is the perfect topper.
How to Make Ground Venison Casserole
***See recipe card below for precise measurements and instructions.***
Step 1: Preheat oven and spread potatoes in a casserole dish.
Step 2: Brown venison in a skillet, then spread over the potatoes.
Step 3: Sauté veggies until softened and translucent.
Step 4: Top dish with cooked veggies.
Step 5: Whisk eggs and cottage cheese together and pour into the dish.
Step 6: Top with plenty of shredded cheese before baking!
FAQs
This is a great dish to use up what's in the fridge. Green beans are a great addition, or parsnips and turnips. And if you're short on veggies, just pour in some that you've frozen, or even just peas and corn from the grocery store. No one can resist their veggies when coated in a cheesy sauce.
We hunt and homestead, so venison is almost always in the deep freeze. However, it's just considered a red meat so you can go ahead and use anything you have on hand, whether that's bear or even beef. I think a mixed casserole is perfect for introducing people to wild game, because the other ingredients can mask it a bit. I don't hide the fact that I'm using wild game, but I offer it up as a new way to try a new food!
Photos by Dante from Shire by the Sea
More Venison Recipes
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Venison Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground venison or moose, elk, beef
- 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
- 1 large onion
- 2 stalks celery
- 3 carrots
- 2 - 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ½ cups cottage cheese
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups shredded white cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Spread mashed potatoes evenly on the bottom of the casserole dish and set aside.
- Brown venison in skillet on medium until browned and set aside.
- Peel carrots and chop into thin slices. Peel onion and finely chop. Dice celery into thin pieces.
- Add oil to skillet and add all the vegetables and garlic together on medium heat until softened somewhat, about 10 minutes.
- Add venison back to skillet and season with salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.
- Ladle mixture onto the mashed potatoes covering evenly.
- In a small bowl, mix eggs with the cottage cheese and then spoon over the meat mix.
- Grate cheese and spread over top of the casserole.
- Set in oven for about 20-25 minutes until the cheese is starting to brown.
- Take out and rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Any type of cheddar or other good-melting cheese is perfect on top.
- Even if you aren't a fan of cottage cheese, I highly recommend using it. It will melt some and is coated in cheddar so you won't even notice it.
- Use any ground meat, such as wild game or even beef. Turkey will likely work but may need more seasoning to not "disappear."
JVW
This looks like something my family would enjoy! Im going to give it a try and report back with an honest rating!
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Yay!