🦌 Saddle of Venison, Pink – Low Temperature
The saddle of roe deer is the prime cut par excellence: tender, fine-grained, lean. To keep it juicy, it is seared hard and then cooked at a low temperature to an exact core temperature. With a meat thermometer it works every time.
Ingredients
Meat
- Roe-deer saddle, boned out (2 loin strips) – or on the bone, approx. 1.2 kgapprox. 600 g
- Clarified butter for searing2 tbsp
- Butter30 g
- Thyme2 sprigs
- Rosemary1 sprig
- Garlic, lightly crushed2 cloves
- Salt, black pepperto taste
Red-wine sauce
- Shallot, finely diced1
- Full-bodied red wine (dry, e.g. Pinot Noir)200 ml
- Game stock (or beef stock)300 ml
- Juniper berries, lightly crushed5
- Bay leaf1
- Lingonberries (preserve)1 tbsp
- Cold butter for finishing1 tbsp
- Cream (optional, for a milder sauce)50 ml
Method
- Take the saddle out of the fridge 30–60 minutes before cooking. Cleanly remove the membrane and silverskin with a sharp knife, pat the meat dry. Preheat the oven to 120 °C top/bottom heat (100 °C fan).
- Salt the meat only just before searing. Heat the clarified butter in a pan until very hot and sear the loins hard all over for 2–3 minutes, until coloured all round. Towards the end add the butter, thyme, rosemary and garlic and baste the meat with it (arroser).
- Place the meat on a rack or tray and insert a meat thermometer at the thickest point. Cook in the preheated oven until the core temperature reaches 55–56 °C (approx. 20–35 min., depending on thickness). From minute 10, check every 5 minutes.
- Take the saddle out, wrap it loosely in foil and let it rest for 5–8 minutes. The core temperature will rise a further 1–2 °C – so take it out of the oven in good time.
- Sauce: Pour off all but a little of the searing fat and sweat the shallot in it until translucent. Add the juniper and bay, deglaze with red wine and loosen the roasting residue. Reduce by half.
- Pour in the game stock and reduce uncovered for 8–10 minutes. Stir in the lingonberries (and cream if you like). Pass the sauce through a sieve, finish with cold butter and season with salt and pepper.
- Cut the saddle across the grain into medallions and serve with the sauce. It goes well with spätzle, potato gratin or napkin dumplings, plus red cabbage and glazed chestnuts.
Core-temperature table
| Doneness | Core temperature | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Medium rare | 52–54 °C | deep pink, very juicy |
| Pink (recommended) | 55–58 °C | delicate pink, juicy |
| Well done | from 60 °C | cooked through, dries out quickly |
Important note: Roe deer – unlike wild boar – may be eaten pink. Trichinella does not occur in roe deer. Even so, make sure it is perfectly fresh and that the cold chain has not been broken.
Tips to get it right
A thermometer is a must. The saddle is lean and has barely any fat reserve – just a few degrees too many make it dry. Without a thermometer it's a gamble.
Not above 60 °C. Cooking the saddle through wastes the best cut. The target range is 55–56 °C.
Cut across the grain. This shortens the fibres and makes every slice more tender.
Marinate? Unnecessary. Young, well-aged roe deer tastes delicate – a marinade only masks the fine aroma.
Read on
- 🍲 Classic game goulash – the braise from haunch & shoulder
- 🥩 Game meat guide – which cuts for what
- 🛒 Buying game from the hunter – recognising good quality