Strawberry salad with venison, pistachio and balsamic

Babiche Martens

There was a time when strawberries were commonly included in chicken salads which never tickled my fancy and ruined for me the thought of strawberries being used in a savoury dish. After a bit of experimenting, however, I think pairing them with tender slices of rare venison, toasted pistachios and sweet well-aged balsamic is a winner. The flavours and textures work well and look gorgeous.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp	Balsamic, plus 1 extra for dressing (choose a good quality aged balsamic)
1	Venison tenderloin
2 tsp	Brown sugar
1	Orange, finely grated zest
1 tsp	Chilli flakes
1 Tbsp	Extra virgin olive oil, plus 1 extra for dressing
1 pinch	Salt & freshly ground pepper
½ cup	Pistachio nuts, toasted and chopped
4 handfuls	Rocket, or 1x 120g bag
1 punnet	Strawberries

Directions

1. Place the venison into a container then add the balsamic, sugar, orange zest, chilli, olive oil and seasoning. Massage with your hands then cover and leave to marinate for as little as 2 hours or up to 24.
2. Heat a frying pan and add the oil. Cook the venison by first searing on all sides then covering and letting it cook on a gentler heat for 10 minutes. Let rest until cool then slice.
3. Arrange the venison with the pistachios, rocket leaves and sliced strawberries. Drizzle over the extra balsamic and olive oil then serve.