Venison Medallions with Chocolate Orange Sauce

Ingredients

• 150 g death trumpet mushroom
• 3 tbsp butter
• 8 venison medallions (about 50 g each)
• Salt
• Pepper (freshly ground)
• chopped parsley (for garnish)
• 2 tsp sweet paprika powder
• 2 tbsp Tomato paste
• 0.5 l dry red wine
• 1 l meat broth
• 1 handful rosemary
• Salt
• Pepper (freshly ground)
• 50 g sultanas
• 100 ml port wine (tawny)
• 1 untreated orange
• 1 tsp butter
• 50 g dark chocolate couverture
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar (optional)

Instructions

1. 1.

   For the sauce, sear the meat bones in a large pot with rapeseed oil until well browned all over. Meanwhile, clean and finely chop the mirepoix. Add the mirepoix to the pot, seasoning with bay leaf, juniper berries, and allspice. Sprinkle paprika on top and stir in tomato paste, sautéing while stirring. Deglaze with red wine and meat broth, then bring to a boil.

2. 2.

   Add rosemary to the sauce. Simmer gently for about 1½ hours at low temperature.

3. 3.

   During this time, soak sultanas in port wine. Wash the orange, peel it, and cut into cubes. Strain the sauce through a fine sieve at the end of cooking.

4. 4.

   Heat butter in a saucepan, add orange cubes, and simmer while stirring for about 5 minutes. Drain sultanas, reserving the port wine. Add the strained sauce, chopped chocolate couverture, and port wine to the oranges. Cook over low heat until the chocolate melts. Strain again through a fine sieve, pressing the orange cubes to extract juice, and reduce the sauce to the desired consistency. Adjust sweetness with balsamic vinegar if needed.

5. 5.

   While the sauce simmers, boil starchy potatoes in salted water for about 25 minutes as boiled potatoes. Peel firm potatoes, dice them, and boil in salted water for about 5 minutes. Drain and cool. Mash the boiled potatoes, season with salt and pepper, and mix in olive oil. Keep warm if desired.

6. 6.

   For the venison medallions, clean the mushrooms. Heat 1 tbsp butter in a pan and sauté mushrooms for about 5 minutes. In another pan, heat remaining butter, season medallions on all sides with salt and pepper, and cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat on each side.

7. 7.

   During this time, heat sunflower oil in a non-stick pan and fry potato cubes until crisp.

8. 8.

   Arrange mashed potatoes as a bed on deep plates, top with venison medallions and mushrooms. Drizzle sauce over everything and sprinkle with potato cubes and parsley.