The Taste of the Wild
Ulrich Heimann, the starred chef de cuisine of the Le Ciel in the InterContinental Berchtesgaden Resort, has a particular fascination: Game.
He tells us why the Bavarian highlands are an ideal setting for his contemporary variations on venison.
Ulrich Heimann: "Game" is his game
From Le Ciel one has an incredible view over lush meadows, dark forests and breathtaking mountain ranges. The national park „Berchtesgadener Land“ is home to more than 50 different kinds of game, the variety ranges from the chamois to the European hare. It is also Ulrich Heimann’s hunting ground.
The fame of his sophisticated venison dishes has spread far beyond the Alps, and he is probably just the person one should talk to, to learn more about the art of contemporary game preparation.
Preparing the Hunt: Thinking out of the Box
If the term „venison“ first conjurs up images of heavy dishes, such as deer goulash, then you have obviously never tasted one of Heimann’s dishes. His venison dishes are subtle, aromatic, and have a natural flair about them – they are made to „pleasantly rest in the memory for months to come“. Not an easy aspiration, but also not an exaggeration. There’s another stereotype one should quickly forget about: That of the rustic trophy hunter. „Hunting“ goes by the name of „Game Management“ these days; it has become a part of a sophisticated development plan laid out for a forest region. In the old days, game populations were artificially kept at high numbers to guarantee aristocratic hunters good kills. Modern hunters strive to aid the natural balance in an effort to keep the sensitive ecosystems functioning.
Hunting Grounds: The Taste of the Wild
There’s one thing that Ulrich Heimann wants to be clear about: The game he uses for his dishes has truly, really lived in the wild. It simply tastes quite different from game that has been reared on so-called „deer farms“; there is a definite difference in quality, since the whereabouts and the lifestyle of an animal contribute much to the quality of its flesh. This is why Heimann has begun a close collaboration with the „Jagdgemeinschaft Berchtesgadener Land“, a regional hunting collective, a number of years back. Here, in the area around the Königssee, the animals graze freely in forests and meadows at altitudes between 600 and 1 700 m. The UNESCO biosphere reserve offers an abundance of grasses, herbs, buds and fruits. And only such a diverse, natural diet can give the animal’s meat that wonderfully aromatic taste, rich with subtle nuances... It is a difference that even the most inexperienced palate will readily recognize.
Hunting Season: Exclusivity and Nature in Harmony
The game of the Berchtesgadener Land is a rather exclusive treat - a fact that is helped along by the extensive closed seasons and the strict hunting quotas. The closed seasons are different for the various species and customarily comprise not only the mating season, but also the times during which the young are born and reared. Accordingly, autumn is the classic hunting season. For Ulrich Heimann this is a source of inspiration: „Apart from the taste it’s also the harmony of the colours that suggests a worthwhile combination: The mushrooms’ autumnal brown, the green shades of the herbs and side ingredients, the dark flesh - it makes for a wonderful symbiosis“. Now, this does certainly mean that one has to refrain from enjoying venison during summertime. When talking about the „Maibock“, the “Buck of May”, Ulrich Heimann positively raves: „Early summer is the time when the roebuck reaches its glory time. Then, it can be easily integrated into subtle, summery dishes.“
The Hunter: Stalking the Good Stuff
Ulrich Heimann himself does not wield weapons. But his best friend is an avid hunter. And the first important step of the game preparation is the hunting itself. A clean hit does not only grant an easy death to the animal, but is also necessary to allow the meat to mature optimally. But that is not all a hunter has to keep in mind. The animal is gutted on the spot, so that the corpse can cool down quickly. The game is then transported into a game chamber, where it matures at seven degrees celsius. According to the species, it takes between three days and two weeks for the meat to mature and to become nice and tender. Now the gifted cook can turn the meat into a delicacy.
The Kitchen: Sensational Venison
The chef du cuisine of the Le Ciel „lives“ his region, both as a nature lover with a deep love for the various sports popular in the Alps and as a gatherer who is always on the hunt for the finest regional ingredients available: „I spend much time in the forests, for inspiration. You meet the hunters, you chat. Then there’s the wild fruits, the berries, the food the animals also feed on.“ Here, he gained the knowledge and the experience necessary to put delicious venison dishes on the table. And in the process he created a network of regional suppliers ranging from herb gardeners to organic fisheries.
But his dishes do not stop at regional borders. Heimann dares to have his own style, his individual touch: „In contemporary game preparation the finest pieces of the animals are used, like the back and the joints, along with regional spices, to prepare rather subtle, easily digestible dishes. This has very little to do with traditional venison dishes - the challenge, the beauty is in inventing your own creations.“ Just a taste of his oriental-style rabbit on a bulgur salad, served with hummus made of chickpeas, shows his perfect command of ingredients and flavours. And just a bite of his pink-glazed „Rehnüsschen“, fine meat pieces, served with a cacao bean gravy, medlars and chanterelles, is enough to make one feel that everything that was said about forest, game and the hunt can be tasted right on the palate. A gratifying experience.
Photos: Fotolia, Küche / Claudia Rothenberger, InterContinental Hotels Group
