A Gourmet Ostrich Steak Recipe

A guide to making a Roundhouse meal in the comfort of your own home.

Dining out is always a treat because the food is so deliciously different from what you would make at home. You’re out at a fabulous venue with good company and most probably a glass or two of wine - the only problem is occasionally you want to stay home, but still eat the same quality of food. Now, with the generosity of Chef Dylan Laity from the fabulous Roundhouse Restaurant, you can cook this restaurant quality dish in your own kitchen! Chef Dylan Laity has contributed to the success of the inaugural JHP Gourmet Guide with his insight into daring combinations of ingredients.

The Roundhouse Restaurant in Camps Bay is known for their innovative and all-round scrumptious meals. The eclectic energy within the restaurant has to come second to the quality of the food served here. Customers absolutely rave about the elements used in the eight-course tasting menu; the watermelon with quail egg, balsamic vinegar and aged parmesan demonstrates his brilliant creativity.The watermelon is cooked and smoked, and cooked again to replicate a beef carpaccio, ideal for vegetarians.

This is all sounding pretty out of this world so far right? Well it is about to get a better because  you are going to be able to make the most exquisite ostrich dish, that’s served in the restaurant, with the recipe below.

The recipe comes from the inaugural JHP Gourmet Guide which is available in retail stores and online is receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback. The guide aims to help readers discover the top restaurants in South Africa, whether it be in major cities or in the countryside. The brilliance of the guide lies in the impartiality of the the book, as there are no advertisers in the book.

OSTRICH

Ingredients

• 1 x 80-90g piece ostrich fillet

• 15g onion and juniper berry puree

• 20g piece charred celriac

• 20-30ml red cabbage jus

• 3 disks cider apples

Spiced Red Cabbage Jus:

• 200g shallots

• 150g butter

• 1kg red cabbage brunoise

• 30g honey

Powder of

• 1g coriander

• 1g ginger

• 1g cumin

• 1g turmeric

• 1g 5 spice

• 1g cloves

• 2g caraway

• 2-3 cardomon pods (crushed)

• 2-3 whole star anise

Juices

• 7 large oranges

• 2 large lemons

• 500ml red wine

• 500ml duck jus (or veal if none)

• 3t cranberry jam

• 10ml sesame oil

Method:
To prepare the ostrich you should take your portion of ostrich and marinade it in a toasted coriander seeds, black pepper and juniper power combination. Cook sous vide for approximately 20minutes at 54 degrees celsius. You should then cool it immediately in ice water.

Next make your onion and juniper puree. Take 3-kg of large onions and thinly slice them. Add to large pot with vegetable oil and a few crushed juniper berries and caramelize slowly until deep golden brown. Take out the juniper berries and puree onions only when they are very smooth - then season them with salt and pepper.

Next is the celeriac, which you bake in crust as per normal. You should portion it in 20g pieces and char before serving as well as adding goats butter to it. You will need to cider the apples as per normal.

The Cabbage powder requires you to thinly slice red cabbage and vacpac with a little pickling liquid, cook sous vide at 85 degrees celsius until tender (around about an hour), drain the cabbage and place in dehydrator until it has become completely crisp, blend to form a powder and keep in airtight container.

For the onions you need to peel and shell pickling onions, blanch in boiling water for 20-seconds to remove harshness of raw onion, cool in ice water, vacpac in red wine pickling liquid for at least 4-5 days.

For the garnish you should shave red cabbage thinly, watercress, wood sorrel, red cabbage powder, onions pickled in red wine vinegar.

For the shaved red cabbage- slice cabbage as thin as possible and try to keep whole, remove stem and place in ice water to crisp up.

For the red cabbage jus you will need to add 70g of the butter into a pot, add the onions and sweat until translucent, add the honey and the spices and cook gently (do not burn the spice) until fragrant, pour in the juices and jam and bring to the boil, simmer for 2-3 hours and strain, thicken slightly with corn flour and blend in the last of the butter and sesame oil.

To serve:

Remember to use your garnish and place all elements onto a beautiful plate.

Enjoy!

Go to our recipe page for more delicious recipes.

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