Venison Merguez Breakfast Sausage with Wood-Fired Sourdough and Butter Beans

Plan ahead: Make the sausage in advance, as it needs 24 hours to hang before smoking. The tomato ketchup, aioli and salsa verde can also be made ahead.

Ingredients

For the merguez sausage (makes about 1 kg)

• 800 g venison, minced
• 200 g pork fat, minced
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp ground coriander
• 2 tsp fennel seeds, toasted and ground
• 1 tbsp sweet paprika
• 2 tsp chilli flakes (or 2 tbsp harissa paste)
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 18 g salt
• 50 ml iced water
• About 2 m sheep casings, soaked and rinsed

The spice quantities are a guide. Add more or less of any spice to suit your taste, whether you like more heat, more cumin or more fennel.

For the butter beans

• 2 x 400 g tins butter beans, drained and rinsed
• 40 g butter
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• A few sprigs fresh rosemary and other fresh herbs
• Salt and pepper to taste

For the tomato ketchup (makes about 400 ml)

• 1 kg ripe organic tomatoes, chopped (or 2 x 400 g tins organic tomatoes)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 80 g brown sugar
• 80 ml apple cider vinegar
• ½ tsp ground allspice
• Pinch of ground cloves
• 1 tsp salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the lemon, herb and garlic aioli

• 2 egg yolks
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 250 ml light olive oil
• Small handful fresh herbs (parsley, chives and basil), finely chopped
• Salt, to taste

For the salsa verde

• 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
• 1 small bunch basil
• 1 small bunch mint
• 1 tbsp capers
• 4 anchovy fillets
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 gherkins
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 100 ml extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

• 4 thick slices sourdough

Method

1.      Make the sausage mix. Combine the venison, pork fat, spices, garlic, tomato paste, salt and iced water. Mix well until the meat feels slightly sticky. Adjust the spices to your taste.

2.      Fill the casings. Fill the casings with the sausage mix and coil into a round that fits your pan.

3.      Hang and smoke. Hang the sausage for 24 hours, then cold smoke in a smoker for 2 hours.

4.      Make the tomato ketchup. Sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil until soft. Add the rest of the ketchup ingredients and simmer for 45–60 minutes, until thick. Blend until smooth, strain through a sieve and return to the pan. Reduce to a ketchup consistency, then cool.

5.      Make the aioli. Whisk the egg yolks, garlic, mustard and half the lemon juice together. Slowly drizzle in the oil, whisking constantly, until thick and glossy. Stir through the lemon zest, herbs and remaining lemon juice, and season with salt.

6.      Make the salsa verde. Finely chop the herbs, capers, anchovies, garlic and gherkins by hand. Stir through the mustard, vinegar and olive oil, and season to taste.

7.      Cook the sausage. Cook the coil in a hot pan over the fire until browned and cooked through.

8.      Cook the butter beans. Melt the butter in a pan with the garlic, rosemary and herbs. Add the butter beans and sauté gently until just warmed through. Set aside.

9.      Toast the sourdough. Toast the sourdough over the fire.

10. Serve. Serve the sausage with the butter beans and toasted sourdough. Top with the tomato ketchup, lemon, herb and garlic aioli, and salsa verde.