RECIPE:
Reindeer from Finnmark

How to prepare a tasty inside round dish

Norwegian reindeer meat is nutritous, lean and rich in flavour.

Learn how to prepare an inside round cut of reindeer meat, with several delicious sides that beautifully complement the rest of this delectable dish.

This recipe comes from the Maku restaurant at the high-end Sorrisniva Wilderness Lodge in Alta.

Sorrisniva means rushing river and Maku means taste in the Kven language. Kvens are a Balto-Finnic ethnic minority in the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia.

“We pride ourselves on our use of local ingredients from Finnmark and pure flavours from nature. There is always a reindeer dish on our menu.”

Magnus Kristiansen

chef, Sorrisniva

Ingredients:

(Makes about 2 portions)

Inside round cut of Reindeer (you can also use sirloin and tenderloin)

Salt and pepper to taste

Some sprigs of fresh thyme (optional)

Butter for frying

Side dishes:

Baked portobello mushrooms

2 portobello mushrooms (or other mushrooms in season)

1 tbsp neutral oil

1 bay leaf

A pinch of salt and a few peppercorns

Summercabbage

1 summer cabbage

200 ml water

2 tbsp butter

A pinch of salt

Morel mushroom sauce

2 shallots

50 g dried morel mushrooms (or other mushrooms such as porcini)

500 ml red wine

1 bay leaf

5 peppercorns

1000 ml meat stock

2 tbsp butter

Onion and thyme cream

500 ml skimmed milk

500 g onions

375 g double cream

450 g chicken stock

90 g butter

1% Gellan gum powder

Pickled red onion

2 red onions

150 ml sugar

150 ml lemon juice

Method:

Inside round cut of Reindeer

1. Prepare the meat by removing any unwanted tendons (tip from the chef: scraps can be used in a stock).

2. Season the meat with salt and pepper. You can also use fresh thyme sprigs, but it's not necessary as the meat is quite rich in flavour.

3. Sear the meat in a frying pan, before giving it a butter baste. Once that's done, transfer it to an oven with a temperature between 80-120°C and allow the meat to cook until it reaches a core temperature of 53-54°C.

4. Let the meat rest for around 10-15 minutes before slicing it.

Baked portobello mushrooms

1. Remove or keep the stems (they can also be used for stock) and slice the mushroom into four chunks.

2. Add the mushroom to an airtight vacuum bag with oil, salt, a bay leaf, and peppercorns, and bake in the oven at 100°C until tender.

3. Give the mushrooms a quick fry in a pan prior to serving.

Morel mushroom sauce

1. Mix shallots, dried morels, a bay leaf and peppercorns in a pan and add red wine.

2. Pour in the meat stock and boil until the mix reaches a thickened consistency, then add salt and pepper to taste and mix butter through it.

Onion and thyme cream

1. Sweat the onions in butter, pour over milk and double cream, and bring it to a gentle boil.

2. Add thyme and blend the sauce until smooth. Leave it to simmer for about 30 minutes and add salt to taste.

3. Pour the liquid through a sieve, before adding it to a thermomix on speed level 1 until it reaches 100°C.

4. Add the gellan gum powder and run the thermoix on speed level 4 for 2 minutes.

5. Run it through a sieve over an ice bath and cool the mixture until it has a jelly-like texture. Then blend it into a smooth purée.

Tip: If the liquid separates in the thermomix, you can add some heat and/or some milk.

Pickled red onion

1. Slice a red onion in two and remove the peel.

2. Vacuum seal it with a lemon simple syrup (one part sugar and one part lemon juice).

3. Steam for 15-20 minutes at 80°C until tender and then leave it to cool.

Tip: This should be made at least a day in advance in order to get a nice pink colour. It also lasts for a long time, so you can make a larger batch.

The secret to the complex and gamey flavour of reindeer meat, is that they find all their food in nature. Norway has both wild and tame reindeer that roam freely their entire lives.

Reindeer are highly valued in Sami culture and have been herded by the Sami for generations.

They use the entire animal for food, clothing, shoes, crafts and more.

Hungry for more?
How about trying the Sami national dish bidus?

Make bidus at home