Cranberry Venison
Cranberry Venison

Cranberry Venison

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This feast will impress even fussy eaters who claim they don’t enjoy wild game. Plus, it’s low in fat, full of flavour and quick and easy to prepare. No deer loin? Try moose, elk or antelope instead. And for the sauce, you can substitute the cranberries with any strong-flavoured berry.

Serves: 4

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Ingredients

  • 1 to 2 tbsp olive or canola oil
  • 8 boneless venison loin steaks (11/2 to 2 inches thick), trimmed of fat and silver skin
  • Salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 1/4 cup brandy (or bourbon)
  • 1/2 cup wild cranberry jelly or sauce
  • 3 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • Venison juices
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • Salt and black pepper, to taste

Preparation

Venison

Preheat a heavy sauté pan on high heat. Add just enough oil to coat bottom, then sear steaks on each side; remove steaks, place on a plate and cover with foil.

Wild Cranberry-mustard Sauce

  1. Drain oil from pan and de-glaze with brandy. Stir in jelly and mustard.
  2. Once jelly melts, add steak juices from plate. Add wine to pan and simmer until sauce thickens.
  3. Add butter and return steaks to pan for a couple of minutes to finish cooking, turning them to coat with sauce. Season with salt and pepper.

Tasty Sides

Oven-roasted baby potatoes flavoured with garlic and rosemary, along with steamed asparagus, complement this dish nicely.

Eschew the Fat

  1. For truly delectable venison, remove the fat during the butchering process, as well as any remaining bits of fat when preparing to cook the meat. Why? Fat on game animals goes rancid very quickly, even when frozen.
  2. Also carefully remove any silver skin on loin and tenderloin cuts, as well as on larger muscle groups; it’s usually easiest to do this while the meat is still partially frozen.

For the Glass

Try a stout beer or a full-bodied red wine—such as a Canadian Merlot, California Zinfandel or Italian Barolo—to accompany this venison dish.

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