The Gochujang
I work in Hawaii seasonally, and I typically have several tenderloins from the axis deer we harvest in the refrigerator at all times. They are not big enough to package and freeze so the other guide, Kenny, and I save them for ourselves. One of my favorite preparations for the tenderloins came about after finding a bottle of gochujang, a hot and sweet sauce at the local market. This dish can best be described as a Korean inspired stir fry. Tenderloin is what I usually use for this recipe but any cut of venison free of connective tissue will work. Cut the meat into bite-size medallions and fry for an amazing dish.
Ingredients
Marinade
½ cup soy sauce
4 egg whites
1 ½ –2 pounds venison sliced in bite-size medallions
2–4 cups of canola or vegetable oil depending on the shape of your pan or wok
1 ¼ cup of cornstarch
1 gallon zip-close bag
Sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
½ tablespoon lemongrass
2 cloves garlic crushed
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
2–3 tablespoons Gochujang, depending on preferred spice level
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
1 small yellow onion
1 red pepper
1 green pepper
2 cups of jasmine rice
Directions
Combine soy sauce and egg whites in a bowl and mix vigorously. Add the venison chunks to the mixture and let marinate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
While the meat is marinating, prepare 2 cups of jasmine rice to package directions.
Dice the onion and peppers in bite-size, stir fry chunks.
Add oil to a large wok for deep frying. Heat the oil to 350 F.
Put cornstarch in a gallon zip-close bag. Pull the meat out of the soy sauce marinade and allow it to drip dry for a couple seconds before adding it to the bag of cornstarch. Shake the meat and cornstarch well to coat the meat thoroughly.
Once oil is up to temperature, shake excess cornstarch out of the meat and place the coated meat medallions gently into the oil a few at a time. They will spit and crackle a bit. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes until they start to turn golden brown. It does not take long. Using a slotted metal spoon remove the medallions and place them on a plate with 2 or 3 layers of paper towels to cool. You will see some blood leak from the cooked meat. This is normal.
After you safely discard the oil for the meat, add the sesame oil to the wok and heat on medium high. Add the grated fresh ginger, lemongrass and crushed garlic, and stir continuously. Next, add the vegetables, and sauté for about 5 minutes. Next, add the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, toasted sesame seeds and 2–3 tablespoons of gochujang sauce, depending on preferred spice level. Turn the temperature to high, add meat medallions, and toss until evenly coated for 1 to 2 minutes.
Pull the wok of meat and vegetables off the heat and serve a large spoonful over jasmine rice.