Sous-vide caribou roast with rapini

I recently visited my parents up in Canada for the holidays. Like many families, cooking is an important part of our tradition. This year, caribou roast was on the menu. I’ve never eaten caribou before, but I generally love game meat.

Caribou tends to be a very tough meat. That being said, we decided to use the sous-vide method to soften the meat. The result was a caribou roast that was soft as butter. Delicious.

Sous-vide refers to a cooking technique where food is vacuum sealed and cooked in a water bath at a relatively low and constant temperature over a prolonged period of time. This helps enhance the flavor of the food with little to no added salt or fat. Essentially the food slowly cooks within its own natural fats. Vacuum sealing also means that vitamins and minerals are not lost during the cooking process.

This is a perfect solution for tough meats like game meats, brisket, shanks, etc. However, you can also sous-vide fish, vegetables, and even fruit.

Sous-vide caribou roast with rapini

1 lb caribou roast

2 tsp Vindaloo Masala

3 cups rapini/broccoli rabe, cut into generously bite-sized pieces

3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1/4 cup olive oil

Salt and pepper

Instructions

For the caribou

1. Season the caribou roast with salt, pepper, and the Vindaloo Masala. However, other types of spice will do. Be creative!
2. Seal the meat in a food grade plastic bag according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
3. In a hot water bath, sous-vide the meat at 134°F for approximately 12 hours for medium rare. Don’t like medium rare, follow this link for more instructions.
4. Once complete, remove the meat from the sealed bag and sear on a hot pan for 30 seconds on each side.
5. Let rest covered for 5 minutes. Cut and serve.

For the rapini

1. Wash the rapini in cold water.
2. In a large pot, bring salted water to a rolling boil.
3. Boil the rapini for about 5 minutes and then drain.
4. Return the rapini to the pot and add the garlic and olive oil.
5. Saute for a few minutes until soft.
6. Season to taste.

Serve with a starch like mashed potatoes or as is. You can also make a sauce with the left over broth from the sous-vide process. Thicken with a little corn starch or flour-butter mixture. Nothing is engraved in stone. Have fun!

Serves 4