Café Rub Elk Backstrap

Northwest elk backstrap crusted in Café Rub, seared hard in cast iron and basted with butter, thyme and garlic, then finished with a blackberry pan sauce.

Ingredients

Elk

1½–2 lb elk backstrap (loin), silverskin removed
3 T Café Rub
Kosher salt
1 T neutral oil
3 T butter
4 sprigs thyme
3 cloves garlic, smashed

Blackberry pan sauce

1 shallot, minced
½ cup red wine (or port)
½ cup beef or game stock
½ cup blackberries
1 tsp maple syrup
1 T cold butter

Instructions

Pat the elk dry, salt it, and coat all over with Café Rub. Rest uncovered in the fridge 1–24 hours, then bring to room temperature for 30 minutes.
Heat a cast-iron skillet until smoking. Add the oil and sear the backstrap 2–3 minutes per side until crusted. Coffee rubs burn fast, so keep it moving.
Lower the heat, add the butter, thyme and garlic, and baste continuously until the center reads 125–130°F for medium-rare. Elk is very lean, so don't take it past medium.
Rest on a rack 10 minutes.
Sauce: pour off most of the fat, sweat the shallot, deglaze with the wine and reduce by half. Add the stock, blackberries and maple and simmer until glossy, crushing a few berries. Off heat, swirl in the cold butter and season.
Slice against the grain and spoon the sauce over.

Plating

Serve over roasted chanterelles or a celery root purée, with the blackberry sauce spooned across the slices.

Pairings

Same rub, different animal: Café Rub Tri-Tip.