Venison and Smoked Scallops Bernhard
Chef Bernhard Gotz of Fillets in New Orleans combines venison with a wild mushroom sauce with hickory-smoked scallops in a sauce made of cream and saffron. This is a dish to serve at an elegant dinner party, flanked by a simple first course and a make-ahead dessert. Multiply the ingredients to fit the size of your party. Make the Venison Sauce (recipe follows) ahead of time. Note that the dish may be divided into two dishes -- the smoked scallops on tasso-saffron sauce, and venison on chanterelle sauce. Either would make a wonderful entree by itself.
Ingredients
- Smoked Scallops
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Pinch of ground ginger
- Soy Sauce - 1/4 teaspoon
- Sesame Oil - 1 tablespoon
- Hickory Chips - 1/2 cup
- Sea Scallops - 6 large
- Louisiana Gold or other hot pepper sauce - 3 dashes
- Venison loin - four, 3-ounce pieces, well trimmed
- Peanut Oil - 2 tablespoons
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch each of freshly ground black and white pepper
- Chanterelle Sauce
- Bacon - 3 ounces, finely diced
- Shallots - 2, minced
- Gin - 2 tablespoons
- Dry Red Wine - 1/2 cup
- Venison Sauce - 1 cup (recipe follows)
- Green Peppercorns - 1 teaspoon
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Chanterelle Mushrooms - 3 ounces, sliced
- Unsalted Butter - 4 tablespoons, at room temperature
- Tasso-Saffron Sauce
- Oil - 2 teaspoons
- Shallots - 2, minced
- Riesling or other fruity white wine - 1/2 cup
- Saffron Threads - 1/4 teaspoon, crushed
- Heavy (whipping) cream - 1 cup
- Tasso (spicy, heavily smoked ham) - 2 teaspoons, diced
- Unsalted Butter - 3 tablespoons, at room temperature, cut into 3 pieces
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Bouquet Garni
- Bay Leaves - 3
- Juniper berries - 1 tablespoon
- Fresh Thyme - 1 sprig
- Fresh Sage - 1 sprig
- Peppercorns - 1 tablespoon
- Parsley Sprigs - 1 dozen
- Venison Sauce
- Bacon Fat or Oil - 1/2 cup
- Venison Bones - 5 pounds, cut into chunks
- Onions - 1 pound, coarsely chopped
- Garlic Cloves - 3, crushed
- Carrots - 1 pound, peeled and coarsely chopped
- Ham Scraps - 2 pounds
- Leeks - 1 pound, cleaned and cut into small pieces
- Tomato paste - 1/2 cup
- Red Burgundy Wine - 2 cups
- Water - 8 cups
- Brown Roux - 4 tablespoons
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Instructions
To make the smoked scallops: Mix the first 5 ingredients together and pour into a non-aluminum container. Add the scallops and marinate at room temperature for 1 hour. Meanwhile, soak the hickory chips. When the scallops are ready, light a charcoal fire and let the coals burn until hot and covered with white ash. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Drain the hickory chips and sprinkle them over the hot coals. Grill the scallops for 2 to 3 minutes, then finish in the oven if necessary until they are just opaque throughout and tender to the touch. Keep warm.
To prepare the venison: Season the venison with salt and pepper and let sit for 20 to 30 minutes. In a large saute pan or skillet, heat the oil and brown the meat on both sides.
To make the sauce: In a medium saute pan or skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. Saute the shallots in the bacon fat until translucent, about 3 minutes. Pour in the gin and red wine and cook over medium heat, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the venison sauce, peppercorns, salt, and pepper. Strain the sauce through a fine-meshed sieve. Return to the pan, add the mushrooms, and whisk in the butter. Set aside; keep warm.
To make the tasso-saffron sauce: In a medium saucepan, heat the oil and saute the shallots until translucent, about 3 minutes. Pour in the wine, add the saffron, and cook over medium heat for several minutes to reduce slightly. Add the cream and tasso; simmer until reduced by half. Strain the sauce through a fine-meshed sieve and return to the pan. Whisk in the butter a piece at a time. Set aside; keep warm.
To serve: Pool venison sauce on one side of each warmed plate; pool tasso-saffron sauce on the other side. Place 2 slices of venison in the chanterelle sauce and 3 scallops in the tasso-saffron sauce.
Venison Sauce
This is a reduced stock. The same preparation may be used with other meats to create other sauce/stocks.
Bouquet Garni
Prepare the bouquet garni: Tie the herbs and seasonings in a square of cheesecloth with cotton string.
In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat the bacon fat and saute the venison bones with the onions, garlic, carrots, ham scraps, and leeks until all are well-browned. Add the tomato paste and red wine and cook over medium heat to reduce by one-third, about 10 o 12 minutes. Add the bouquet garni and water to the pot and simmer for 3 to 4 hours, or until reduced by half. Add salt and pepper to the pot and strain the liquid through a fine-meshed sieve lined with 2 or 3 layers of cheesecloth. Add the liquid to the roux, stirring constantly over medium heat until the mixture begins to thicken. Simmer until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Leftover sauce may be frozen in an air-tight container.
