Sous Vide Venison Roast

Step 1

Bring the meat to room temperature before cooking. Preheat a large pot or container full of water using your sous vide device to 130 degrees for medium-rare/medium or 135 for medium/medium-well.

Step 2

In a mortar and pestle, smash the peppercorns and sea salt together to form a granular con-sistency. Sprinkle a portion of this mixture across top and bottom of meat, rubbing it in, you will only use 1/3 to 1/2 of it. Heat a large sauté pan over high heat and add 1 T. of butter and a small splash of cooking oil. Once hot, lay the venison roast down and sear on one side, flip, and brown on the other side. Remove and let it rest for a minute or two. Add a small splash of water or stock to the sauté pan and scrape up the fond at the bottom. Prepare a large vacuum seal bag or ziplock bag and place the roast inside along with a couple sprigs of rosemary, sliced shallot and smashed garlic cloves. Pour the little bit of juice and fond into the bag. If using a vacuum sealer, suck about 90% of the air out and seal shut (you don’t want to lose any of the juices inside). If using a ziplock bag simply squeeze as much air out as possible and zip shut.

Step 3

Submerge the bag of meat completely inside the water, using clips to hold it to the side of the container. A 1 lb. roast will need to cook for 6-8 hours, a 2 lb. roast will need to cook for 12 – 14 hours. Set a timer and let it do its thing.

Step 4

After the meat has finished cooking remove it from the water and let the entire bag rest on the counter for 30 minutes. Cut the bag open and pour the juices and aromatics into a measuring cup ( I got nearly 3/4 C.) and place the meat on a cutting board. Pat the meat dry with paper towels and season again on both sides with the leftover peppercorn rub.

Step 5

Now you will repeat the searing process. Again, heat a large sauté pan over high heat and add 1 T. of butter and a small splash of cooking oil. Once hot, lay the venison roast down and sear on one side, flip, and brown on the other side. Remove and let it rest. Deglaze the pan with the stock and add all the juices from the sous vide bag. Let the liquids softly boil and reduce down into almost half or for about 5 minutes. Taste and season if needed with salt. Turn the heat off and strain the liquids using a fine mesh strainer.

Step 6

Slice the meat thinly and serve with the jus.