Selle de Chevreuil à la Créole

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Shallow roasting pan with a fitted rack
• •Instant-read or probe thermometer
• •Small 2-quart saucier
• •12-inch broad skillet
• •Long warmed serving platter
• •Small warmed sauce boat

Instructions

1. 1

   Marinate for hours

   Place the venison in a snug nonreactive dish or sealable bag. Pour over 1½ cups of the fully chilled Cooked Marinade for Venison (No. 168), turning the roast so every surface is coated. Reserve the remaining ½ cup separately in the refrigerator before anything touches the raw meat. Refrigerate the saddle for 3 hours, turning it once; do not leave it overnight, because the vinegar will tighten the exterior before the center has taken much flavor.

   A snug bag lets a home quantity of marinade surround the meat. Five quarts belonged to a brigade vessel filled with game, not to tonight’s roast.
2. 2

   Prepare the roast

   Remove the saddle from the marinade 30 minutes before roasting and discard the liquid that held the raw meat. Pat the roast thoroughly dry, particularly between any folds made by the butcher’s tying; a wet surface will pale instead of brown. Season lightly with the salt and pepper. Heat the oven to 450°F (230°C) with a rack set over a shallow roasting pan. Meanwhile, bring the reserved ½ cup Cooked Marinade for Venison (No. 168) to a full boil in a small saucepan, boil for 2 minutes, then keep it hot for basting.

3. 3

   Roast and baste

   Set the saddle on the rack and roast for 10 minutes at 450°F (230°C). Lower the oven to 400°F (200°C), then spoon a little hot marinade over the roast every 7 to 8 minutes without flooding the pan. Continue until the thickest center registers 138 to 140°F (58 to 60°C), usually 25 to 35 minutes in total; resting should carry it toward 145°F (63°C) while leaving the meat pink. If the sugared marinade darkens before the center is ready, lower the oven to 375°F (190°C) and shield the roast loosely with foil. Ça se rattrape. The thermometer governs, not the clock.

   This temperature guidance is for an intact saddle from a reliable butcher. With wild game, follow the processor’s food-safety guidance if it calls for a higher finishing temperature.
4. 4

   Rest the saddle

   Transfer the roast to a warm board, cover it loosely with foil, and rest it for 12 to 15 minutes. Do not wrap it tightly, or the crust softens. Resting lets the temperature settle and the juices redistribute; carving immediately would leave those juices on the board instead of inside the venison.

5. 5

   Unite the sauces

   While the saddle rests, combine the 1½ cups Sauce Robert and ½ cup Sauce Poivrade in a small saucier. This is the book’s exact relation: three parts Robert to one part poivrade. Bring the mixture only to a bare simmer, stirring until completely smooth, then remove it from the heat. Monter au beurre, finish by whisking in cold butter, one piece at a time, until the sauce gleams and lightly coats a spoon. If it turns oily, stop adding butter and whisk in 1 teaspoon of cold water off the heat; ça se rattrape. Taste before adding any salt, because both finished sauces should already carry their seasoning.

6. 6

   Toss the bananas

   Melt the 2 tablespoons butter in a broad skillet over medium heat until it foams and smells nutty but remains golden. Lay in the banana halves cut-side down and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, then turn them carefully and cook the second side just until butter-gold at the edges. They should be warmed through and glazed, not collapsing. If one begins to slump, lift it out at once and hold it on the serving platter while the others finish.

7. 7

   Carve and serve

   Remove the strings and carve the saddle across the grain into slices about ½ inch (1.25 cm) thick. Overlap them down the center of a warmed long platter and arrange the buttered bananas around the meat, keeping the fruit whole and generous rather than fussing over it. Pour the Robert-poivrade sauce into a warmed sauce boat and serve it at the same moment, allowing each guest to spoon it beside the venison. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask for a boned saddle loin from a young animal, trimmed of every strip of silver skin and tied to an even thickness. The smaller tied roast is what makes the brigade centerpiece cook evenly for four.
• •The Cooked Marinade for Venison (No. 168) must be cold before it meets the meat. Warm marinade begins cooking the exterior and creates the grey band you are working so carefully to avoid.
• •Sauce Robert and Sauce Poivrade are finished classical preparations, not ingredients to reconstruct hurriedly while the saddle roasts. Make or obtain them in advance, keep them separate, then combine three parts Robert with one part poivrade only at the finish.
• •Use bananas that are yellow and fragrant but still firm, with few brown marks. Very ripe fruit turns to purée in the skillet; green fruit stays chalky and brings no sweetness to the game.
• •Pour a structured, peppery red with enough freshness for the mustard and fruit. A northern Rhône Syrah is particularly comfortable here, served cool rather than warm.

Advance Preparation

• •Prepare and chill the Cooked Marinade for Venison (No. 168) before the day’s work begins. It must be completely cold before the saddle is added.
• •The Sauce Robert and Sauce Poivrade can be prepared up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated separately. Reheat them gently before combining, then monter au beurre only just before serving.
• •Have the butcher trim and tie the saddle in advance. The meat itself should receive only its brief 3-hour marinade on the day of cooking; longer is not better here.
• •The bananas must be cooked at the last moment. They lose their shape and clean buttered surface if held or reheated.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 465g)