Kangaroo Rump on roasted Pumpkin w/ Beetroot Relish
Ingredients:
1 Kangaroo rump (cut into 3)
Roast Pumpkin:
pumpkin, Queensland blue,
1 sprig thyme
canola oil
Marinade:
1 sprig rosemary
1 only finger chilli
1 clove garlic
1 tsp pepper
1 tbsp anchovy fillets
1 cup canola oil
Beetroot Relish:
2 only beetroot. poached separately, chilled & shredded
1 red onion
2 tbsp brown sugar
4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
Red Wie Jus:
2 tablespoons olive oil
Mirepoix of red onion, carrot & celery stalk
1 shallot, diced
50 mls tomato paste
1 cup pinot noir or our preferred varietal
1 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon butter
1 pinch salt to taste (Optional)
Method:
When purchasing your Kangaroo rump, specify that you require bone removed & ask him or her to cut into three even pieces for ease of preparation.
For the marinade: Add all marinade ingredients except oil into mortar & pestle & roughly grind to a paste like consistency, add oil & marinate Kangaroo rump for 24 hours.
Beetroot Relish: Sauté sliced red onion until well caramelized, fold in shredded beetroot & add brown sugar & cook until almost jam like consistency, add apple cider vinegar & cook for another 10-15 minutes on a low simmer. Taste & season with salt & white pepper if necessary.
Cut pumpkin into 2.5cm baton sized cubes, toss with oil & dried thyme & roast until tender but still firm & evenly caramelized.
For the Kangaroo Rump: Sear kangaroo well to form a nice even crust in a hot Dutch oven, cool & place in freezer for 1 hours to firm. This will allow for easier carving. Remove from freeze & thinly slice into .5cm slices. Lay slices on a very light bed of sea salt & cracked black pepper on a baking tray & cook in a low oven at 120ºC for 8 minutes or until the rump is medium rare.
*Reserve all pan juices from the Dutch oven & baking tray & set aside to be use in the red wine jus.
Red Wie Jus: Add the mirepoix of sliced red onion, carrot & celery stalk with the shallots to the Dutch oven & sauté to release sugars & aromatic. Add tomato paste & continue to cook on a low heat for a further minute of two. Add 250mls pinot noir & deglaze Duch oven to remove sediment from the sear Kangaroo rump. Reduce by two thirds & add the chicken stock & further reduce by two thirds.
Add the reserved pan juices & 30mls of butter for a nice sheen to your jus & simmer to further reduce until you have achieved the desired consistency. Importantly, a jus consistency should always flow freely whereas a sauce will coat the relish, meat & pumpkin in this instance.
To plate, position pumpkin in middle of plate, top with sliced kangaroo rump & beetroot relish, & a little red wine jus poured over the beetroot relish & let it seep through to the sliced rump & caramelized pumpkin.