Venison Tenderloin with Cabernet Sauce

TOOLBELT DIVA's Note:

Another favourite venison recipe. This recipe considers farm-raised deer which is readily available in better butcher shops, or some larger super markets. A favourite cook offers up this recipe, and can be found in "Lee Bailey's Cooking for Friends". I like Lee Bailey's recipes because he shops for fresh ingredients; I have tried to make a habit of doing just that for each dinner party.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 5 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 2 1/2 lbs axis venison loin or 2 1/2 lbs denver cut venison
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• salt and black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups cabernet sauvignon wine
• 1/2 cup shallot, coarsely chopped
• 1 small carrot, thinly sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 sprigs parsley
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Rub the venison with garlic and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Put olive oil in a heavy skillet.
4. Add venison and sear over high heat until browned on all sides- about 3 minutes Place in oven and roast until medium-rare; for 16- 20 minutes, turning once.
5. Meanwhile, combine the wine with the vegetables and herbs and bring to a boil.
6. Reduce by half over medium heat- about 8 minutes.
7. Strain out vegetables and discard.
8. In a saucepan, reduce broth by half over high heat- about 7 minutes.
9. Combine all the liquids.
10. When meat is done, remove to cutting board and cover loosely with foil.
11. Pour any fat from the pan and deglaze with the reduced liquids
12. Whisk in the cold butter and add salt and pepper.
13. Spoon a bit of sauce over each meat serving.

Reviews

[Luby Luby Luby]

Toolie, this was excellent. I found a package of venison tenderloin stuck in the back of the freezer from last year and was so excited to try this recipe. The flavor of the sauce was so rich and complimented the tenderloin very well. Thanks for posting this winner.

[Denise!]

Outstanding! Now, this is the way to prepare venison tenderloin! I added more garlic and was pretty heavy handed with the pepper. I served this with garlic mashed potatoes and they devoured every bite. Thanks for posting!

[Chef Swifticus]

winThis one was fun. I used tenderloin steak for this recipe and it was very good. Personally I tenderized the meat first, and then let it sit in milk, preferably one with a higher fat content, this removes the gamey flavor from the meat and makes it juicier; aka if you serve it to company who don't like venison they won't know the difference. The sauce was surprisingly simple and flavorful. I used sweet onions over chives and that worked well. A good main dish for a classy or a meat-N- potatoes type of meal.