Eat This: Venison is meltingly tender at Ruxbin

Game meat — rabbit, quail, boar, elk — is usually the perfect winter food. Rich, flavorful and comforting, game lends itself to rustic preparations like braising and slow-roasting, often with earthy, heady sauces to lull you into the coziest of food comas.

It’s rare to find a lighter preparation, but Ruxbin chef Edward Kim surprises with just that: a venison tataki that’s spot-on for this in-between season as summer relents to fall.

The dish is part of Ruxbin’s choose-your-own-adventure prix fixe menu (select five dishes from a list of 13, $85). Tataki is similar to carpaccio, but instead of being served raw throughout, the protein (sourced from Cattle Flat Station in New Zealand) gets a quick sear before being sliced into razor-thin shingles, creating a savory crust that gives way to rare, meltingly tender meat.

After being licked by fire, the venison is marinated in a piquant bulgogi-style mix of soy, apple cider vinegar, ginger and garlic. On the plate, Kim carefully composes the slices into a half-moon before studding them with pickled items from Ruxbin’s rooftop garden — chive flowers and other available herbs. Smears of bright yellow egg yolk and a walnut-miso puree bring even more umami goodness to the plate.

Finally, dollops of ginger-scallion puree alongside the venison act as tangy exclamation marks, adding lift to the earthy dish — not unlike the sun heating up an October day.

Ruxbin, 851 N. Ashland Ave., 312-624-8509, www.ruxbinchicago.com

[email protected]
Twitter @joeybear85

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