Venison Medallions with Potato Galette

 
Nothing better than fresh game, sustainably raised by nature.
No antibiotics, no hormones, and fed naturally.
Venison Medallions served with Potato Galette
The meat in this photo may look overcooked but it is not.
 Scroll down to the last photo to check it out.

A friend gifted us some venison, the package says tenderloin.
I saw this diagram of the various cuts of venison meat.
I am slowly learning the ways of my ancestors.
I've decided to make venison medallions with potato galette
for the holiday season. We will have leftovers too.

The red you see in the package is not blood it is myoglobin.
Something I love about cooking and culinary pursuits,
 it's a lot like pottery there's chemistry involved and
there's always so much to learn, never a dull moment.

Here's the tenderloin after I removed the silver skin.
To remove the silverskin I take a sharp knife
 and insert the point of the knife just under the silverskin,
 keeping the sharp portion of the knife
directed away from the meat. 
That's how I carefully remove this tough
membrane which was on one side of the meat.

I decided to marinate the tenderloin overnight.

I used olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, minced garlic and ginger,
some worchestershire sauce, a couple of dashes of hot sauce,
a bit of agave syrup, some thyme, spanish tarragon, salt and pepper.
After marinating the tenderloin overnight, I drained off the marinade.

Next I let tenderloin come to room temperature and pat it dry.

Next I slice my potatoes with a mandolin then toss in butter.
The potato slices must be real thin or parboil them if not.
I grate approximately 6 ounces of gruyere cheese.
I saute one shallot and start my galette with one layer of potatoes.
Then I sprinkle on some shallots, then some of the grated cheese.

I continue with layering till I fill the casserole dish,
then top it with some grated asiago cheese.
The potato galette takes patience to make,
 but is wonderful for a special occasion.
The galette is baked at 400 F for 40 minutes.

Don't start cooking your medallions till galette is out of the oven.
Don't worry it will stay warm while you cook the venison.

Next I cut the tenderloin into medallion sizes for searing.

I'd prefer to outdoor grill the medalians but at 20 F it's not happening.

I had to use corn starch as a dredge because I'm out of flour.
I saute the medallions in olive oil till internal temp is 135 F.
I used a cast iron pan because it holds heat evenly.
Check each medallion for temperature, since they're different sizes.
After cooking, I set aside the medallions for 10 minutes to rest.

Even though the meat look overcooked in the first photo,
as you can see here, it is perfectly medium rare.
Needless to say the medallions and galette were scrumptious.
Happy Holidays to all.