Passionate Living

Passport & Plate - Stuffed oryx fillet in bacon with cranberry sauce

Namibia | Tuesday, March 4, 2014 | 5 photos

Ingredients

500 grams streaky bacon
1 oryx fillet, trimmed
2 tsp dijon mustard
salt
freshly ground black pepper
toothpicks to secure
cranberry sauce

FILLING:
250 grams marscapone cheese
125 grams blue cheese
250 grams mushrooms
1 Tsp butter
2 tsp crushed garlic
1 cup of freshly chopped coriander

 

How to prepare this recipe

Finely chop the mushrooms and stir fry in the tablespoon of butter. Put aside to cool. Beat together the marscapone cheese, blue cheese and crushed garlic. Fold in the freshly chopped coriander and mushrooms and leave in the refrigerator.

Place the streaky bacon on a flat surface, making sure that each slice overlaps the previous slice. Cut the oryx fillet in half lengthways, making sure you do not cut right through the meat and then open up the two flaps. Place the open fillet over the layered bacon and smear lightly with the dijon mustard. Sprinkle the salt and freshly ground black pepper over the mustard. Remove the prepared filling from the refrigerator and spoon an even layer down the middle of the fillet. Start at the top and roll the bacon together with the filled fillet into a tight log-shape until both ends of the bacon overlap. Secure the bacon all along the top with toothpicks.

Place the filled, wrapped fillet into an oven dish and roast in a pre-heated oven at 220 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before carving. Serve with cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and stir-fried seasonal vegetables.

 

The story behind this recipe
I live in Namibia, which is a country directly north-west of South Africa. Namibia has a population of about 2.2 million people who mainly live in the capital city Windhoek or in the few smaller towns throughout the country. This means that we have a lot of wide, open spaces and a lot of countryside between towns. Namibia is often referred to as the land of endless horizons. The countryside has an abundance of antelope and therefore many Namibians eat a lot of venison. These antelope do not have a lot of fat on them and are therefore lower in cholesterol , so it is the ideal meat for the health-conscious. Growing up in Namibia my family ate a lot of venison and my mother found many ways to prepare it. Namibians mostly cook it over hot coals which they call a braai or barbeque, but it can be prepared in many other ways, including casseroles, steaks, roasts, sausages, pies, or dried into what we call biltong, which is like jerky. My love of cooking started when I was about nine years old, with me watching my mother as she cooked, savouring the aromas that filled the house as she tried different herbs, spices and fresh ingredients in her cooking. Like her, I seldom follow recipes and prefer to experiment when I cook. I love the fact that I can be creative and cook the same meal many times and by just adding or changing a few ingredients, am able to come up with a completely different tasting dish. Variety is the spice of Life and this is definitely the case in the kitchen. For me there is nothing more rewarding than cooking for other people and seeing the enjoyment on their faces and the sounds of appreciation they make as they taste your creations. I sincerely hope my mother felt the same way when she watched us savour her culinary delights and it is her I have to thank for instilling in me my love of and passion for cooking.