Seared Antelope Loin with Rhubarb
Rhubarb provides both color and a little acidity for this dish, pan-seared antelope with rhubarb slices, rhubarb puree, and rhubarb sauce. Chef Jean-Louis Palladin notes that the sauce mixture is similar to a gastrique — a mixture of sweet and sour — used in French cuisine.
Ingredients
- Antelope Loin - Two, 6-ounce pieces (alt. venison, beef tenderloin)
- Olive Oil - 2 tablespoons
- Thyme - 3 sprigs, chopped
- Bay Leaves - 8 – 10
- Rhubarb Syrup
- Simple Syrup - 1/2 cup
- Water - 1 cup
- Rhubarb Stalks - 4
- Sugar to taste
- Rhubarb Sauce
- Rhubarb Syrup (above) - 1/4 cup
- Rhubarb Stalks - 2, chopped
- Veal Stock - 1 cup
- Rhubarb Puree
- Rhubarb Syrup (above) - 1/4 cup
- Rhubarb Stalks - 2, chopped
- Rhubarb Garnish
- Rhubarb Stalks - 2
- Rhubarb Syrup (above) - 1/4 cup
- To finish the antelope
- Foie Gras Fat - 2 ounces, rendered
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
To prepare the antelope: Rub the meat with olive oil. Press the thyme all over the antelope pieces and lay the meat on a bed of bay leaves; top with more bay leaves. Set aside to marinate for 2 hours.
To make the syrup: Combine the simple syrup, water, and chopped rhubarb in a saucepan over medium heat and simmer 15 to 20 minutes, until the rhubarb is falling apart. Strain through a fine-meshed sieve, pressing down on the rhubarb. Return to the saucepan and reduce to 3/4 cup over medium-low heat. Adjust with sugar; the syrup should be neither sweet nor sour.
To make the sauce: Combine the syrup and chopped rhubarb in a saucepan over medium heat and simmer 15 minutes, until the rhubarb is very soft. Stir in the veal stock and cook until reduced by one third. Strain and set aside; keep warm.
To make the puree: Combine the syrup and chopped rhubarb in a saucepan over medium heat and simmer 15 to 20 minutes, until the rhubarb is very soft and the liquid has almost all evaporated. Puree until smooth. Set aside; keep warm.
To make the garnish: Cut the stalks on the bias into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Combine the syrup and chopped rhubarb in a saucepan over medium heat and simmer 12 to 15 minutes, until the rhubarb is soft but still holds its shape. Lift out the pieces with a slotted spoon and drain on a towel.
To prepare the antelope: Take the antelope out of the bay leaves and wipe with a towel. Season with salt and pepper. Heat the foie gras fat in a medium saute pan or skillet over high heat and brown the antelope on all sides, 30 seconds to 1 minute per side. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook to taste, 2 to 3 minutes per side for rare. Remove the loin slices and roll on a towel to remove the fat. Let rest 5 minutes.
To serve: Arrange rhubarb slices around the edge of a warmed platter, leaving room in the center for the meat. Spoon puree in the center. Slice the loins 1/2-inch thick and arrange the slices over the puree. Spoon rhubarb sauce over the antelope, letting it run down onto the plates and between the pieces of rhubarb.
