In late February of this year, I celebrated my 33rd birthday by spending several days near Winter Park, Colorado in a secluded mountain cabin that had no heat, no running water, and you could only get to the front door on a snowmobile. I think everyone involved was a little bit nervous about how I was going to handle this situation, especially when I realized that going to the bathroom meant a trip to the outhouse in snowshoes. I’d have to do without showers, too. When I told one of my girlfriends about my upcoming plans, she responded to the news with a sincerely dumbfounded “and you’re doing this for FUN?!?!” At that point, I was beginning to get a little bit nervous as well. What, exactly, was I signed on for here?
I grew up in Colorado. I’m no stranger to high altitudes and low oxygen. I’m absolutely in love with the spectacular beauty of the Rocky Mountains, and all of their seasonal changes. Skis and snowboards and 4-wheel drive vehicles have been a fact of life since childhood. But never in the stupor of a serious Rocky Mountain High would I have imagined that home could be like this. In the entire 9 years I lived in Colorado, I had never spent a Sunday morning in the front yard with a cup of coffee, a clay shooter, and a 12-gauge shotgun. I’d never snowmobiled out into the backcountry world with a bunch of snowboards strapped to the back. And I’d never eaten antelope meat that was from an animal actually shot and killed by someone I knew.
Scott gave me a pound of frozen ground antelope at the end of the trip, and it made its way home with me stuffed deep within my luggage inside of a snowboarding boot. I spent the flight home wondering what I was going to do with it. It was, after all, a special gift. Though all meat comes from, of course, an animal that was once alive, it’s easy to think of beef or chicken or pork as an ingredient that comes from the supermarket. Being confronted with this idea definitely created a feeling of reverence inside me, and I found that I was having trouble coming up with a preparation that was “good enough” for the antelope. How interesting to consider what this means.
And so it remained in my freezer until I stumbled upon a recipe in Amanda Hesser‘s wonderful “The Essential New York Times Cookbook” entitled “Border Town Hunter’s Stew.” Instantly transported to a campfire dinner on the open range with a bunch of cowboys, that’s all I needed to see. My version borrows liberally from hers in terms of some of the ingredients and the overall flavor profile, but takes a different road entirely beyond that. It’s a long recipe with a lot of ingredients, and it takes a lot of time to make. However, portions of it can be made in advance (and frozen, if you like), and I’ve done my best to break it down this way below. Definitely read through the recipe before starting to make sure you allow yourself enough time. This is the perfect way to feed a crowd in autumn, and it’s chock full of vegetables and beautiful colors. If you can find antelope, definitely give it a try. There’s nothing scary or “game-y” about it. I would describe antelope as being very lean and similar in flavor to a mixture of dark turkey meat and beef.
This is a delicious recipe, one that was definitely worth waiting for, and hopefully one that adequately respects the animal that lost its life to be a part of it.
Ingredients:
PART ONE (Component assembly): (NOTE: Each of these components can be made ahead by 1-2 days.)
For the sofrito: (NOTE: This will make about twice as much as you need for this recipe, but you can freeze the rest and use it as needed as a flavor base for many Latin-tinged preparations, including other soups or stews, beans, taco meat, chili, etc. It’s great to have around.)
2 medium onions, washed, peeled, and cut into chunks roughly 3/4″ in size
2 plum tomatoes (or other medium-sized tomatoes), washed and cut into chunks roughly 3/4″ in size
2 medium poblano peppers, washed, inner ribs and seeds removed, and cut into chunks roughly 3/4″ in size
1 large celery stalk, washed, trimmed, and cut into chunks roughly 3/4″ in size
1 jalapeño or 2 serrano peppers, washed, inner ribs and seeds removed, and cut into chunks roughly 3/4″ in size
Large handful of fresh cilantro leaves (a few small stems are ok here too), washed very well to remove sand, and shaken dry
For the antelope dumplings:
1 medium onion, washed, peeled, and diced fine
1 1/2 tbsp. tomato paste
2 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 large clove garlic, washed, smashed, skin discarded, and minced fine
1 lb. ground antelope meat (NOTE: Alternatively, you could try this with ground dark turkey meat, ground venison, or lean ground beef.)
1 egg
1 tbsp. flour or very fine breadcrumbs
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
For the purple corn/hominy: (NOTE: This step is for dried hominy only. If using canned hominy, skip this portion.)
1 cup dried maíz morado (purple corn) or white hominy, soaked overnight in a big bowl of water
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt
PART TWO (Finally assembly):
Neutrally-flavored oil, such as vegetable or canola
1/2 of the sofrito mixture
1 medium onion, washed, peeled, and diced into pieces roughly 1/4″ in size
2 medium poblano peppers, washed, inner ribs and seeds removed, and diced into pieces about 1/4″ in size
2 12 oz. bottles of amber beer (NOTE: I used Dos Equis Amber.)
6 cups salt-free or low-sodium chicken stock, preferably homemade
1 29-oz. can of pumpkin purée (NOTE: I used Libby’s, but there’s a lot of other brands out there. You could also purée your own if you like. There’s a lovely tutorial here.)
5-6 chiles de arbol
1 cinnamon stick
2 large cloves of garlic, washed, smashed, and peeled, but left whole
2 bay leaves
Antelope dumplings (above)
Soaked dried hominy, or drained and rinsed canned equivalent
1 tbsp. butter
Big handful of fresh cilantro leaves, washed very well to remove sand, dried, and chopped fine or en chiffonade
Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
Lime wedges, for serving
Other ideas for garnish: Mexican crema, sour cream, queso fresco, queso cotija, cream cheese, tortilla chips, sliced radishes
Instructions:
PART ONE (Component assembly):
For the sofrito:
1. Place all sofrito ingredients in a food processor fitted with the regular blade. Process everything down until it is well combined and finely chopped, but still has some texture to it. (You don’t want to make a soup here.) Reserve in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or freeze until ready to use (being sure to defrost before using).
For the antelope dumplings:
1. Place all ingredients in a large, non-reactive bowl. Using clean hands, work everything together until just evenly combined. Do not over-mix. Chill the mixture for about 1 hour in the refrigerator. Using clean hands, form the mixture into balls roughly 1″ in diameter, and reserve on a wax or parchment paper-lined tray. Cover with plastic wrap and reserve in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or freeze until ready to use (being sure to defrost before using).
For the purple corn/hominy: (NOTE: This step is for dried hominy only. If using canned hominy, skip this portion.)
1. Put a medium saucepan full of water over high heat and bring to a boil. When the water boils, add a small handful of salt, the bay leaf, and the soaked hominy. Boil the hominy until cooked through but not mushy (sort of like cooking a pasta to al dente), about 45 minutes. Drain and reserve in the refrigerator.
PART TWO (Final assembly):
1. Place a large soup or stock pot on the stove over medium-high heat. When the pot gets nice and hot, add just enough of the neutral oil to coat the cooking surface. Add sofrito, onion, and poblanos, stirring quickly to coat with the oil. The sofrito and vegetables will first shed all of their water content, and then begin to take on some color, so cook until the sofrito, onion, and poblano are a nice, deep, golden brown, about 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Pour in the beer and scrape up all of the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the chicken stock and pumpkin, stirring to combine. Drop in the chiles de arbol, cinnamon stick, garlic, and bay leaves. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil, skimming off any fat or scum that comes up to the surface. Once the pot reaches a full boil, turn the heat back until you get a nice, gentle, bubbly simmer. Continue to simmer for 30 minutes.
3. Drop in the antelope dumplings and simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes in order to cook the dumplings through. Add the prepared hominy, whether dried or canned was used, and stir gently. Simmer an additional 2-3 minutes. Season the stew to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. At the last minute, stir in the butter and chopped cilantro. Divide the stew among bowls and serve hot, with extra chopped cilantro and lime wedges on the side. (There are other ideas for garnish listed above, too.)
Yield: Grub enough for 8 or so cowboys and cowgirls
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