New Forest venison poivrade with polenta chips, roasted root vegetables & blueberry sauce

4 x 180g medallions of venison saddle, save bones & trimmings
Handful black peppercorns, crushed
Curly kale, wilted and dressed with vinaigrette (see below)

Polenta
50g red onion, diced
500ml milk
125g polenta, plus a little extra 50g Parmesan cheese, grated
1.5 litres vegetable oil, for frying

Venison sauce
Mirepoix (200g each diced onion, carrots, celery and leek)
5 juniper berries
1 sprig of thyme
200ml red wine vinegar
500ml red wine
2 litres veal stock
1kg venison trimmings & bones Knob of butter

Garnish
4 baby carrots with tops, peeled and cut in half lengthwise
2 each purple & golden beetroots, peeled and sectioned
½ celeriac, cut into batons
8 baby leeks, blanched
Splash of olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 sprig of rosemary Vinaigrette
500ml olive oil
1tbs dry mustard
Splash balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 shallot, finely chopped
¼ cup fresh herbs
1 egg yolk

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Serves 4

For the polenta sticks, sweat the red onion in a pan, add the milk and bring to the boil then add the polenta and cook for about six minutes until the mixture leaves the side of the pan and starts to form a ball (this is critical for the frying). Add the Parmesan and turn out onto a lightly oiled tray to set. Once set, cut into sticks and then roll in a little dry polenta. These can be made and frozen ahead of time.

When ready to serve pre-heat a deep fryer to 180°C and fry the polenta until lightly golden, drain on kitchen paper and season to taste.

For the venison sauce, roast the trimmings and bones at 180˚C until browned then drain. Colour the mirepoix in the pan with the juniper and thyme, deglaze the pan with the red wine vinegar and reduce until almost gone then add the red wine and reduce by two-thirds. Add the stock, bones and trimmings, bring to the boil and simmer for three hours skimming all the time, pass through a fine sieve and reduce to a sauce consistency and stir in a knob of butter. Season to taste.

For the garnish, roast all of the vegetables at 180˚C with olive oil, garlic and rosemary till golden. Keep warm. For the venison, preheat the oven to 200°C. Roll the meat in the pepper, heat a frying pan with a little oil and seal off on all sides then roast in the oven for about five minutes. Turn halfway through, then rest.

Mix all the vinaigrette ingredients together and season to taste.

To assemble arrange the polenta on plates with the vegetables, warm the sauce and stir in a knob of butter. Carve the meat and arrange on top of the vegetables and polenta and serve with the sauce.