Celebrate Canada day with Seal Meat Poutine

Celebrate Canada day with Seal Meat Poutine

 

 

There are a ton of Canadian ways to celebrate our Canada Day. Fireworks, parades, barbecues, concerts, carnivals, fairs, picnics… etc. However, food is always an important part of any celebration event. This year, celebrate Canada’s birthday with delicious and exotic food that you may never have tried before. Here, we introduce you the Canadian-inspired seal meat poutine that you definitely should try with your family and friends for the Canada Day celebrations.

 

 

Seal meat poutine

 

Poutine is considered the most famous National Food of Canada. It is a very tasty meal made of French fries covered with fresh cheese curds and a thick, brown gravy! If you already know how great poutine is and are looking for a creative and special poutine recipe to make at home, skip down to the Seal Meat Poutine recipe!

 

 

Seal meat is considered a Canadian “Superfood” and is one of the most nutritious meats on the planet. Canada is one of the few places in the world where you can try seal meat, which makes the experience even more special. Seal meat is leaner and healthier than any domesticated meat such as beef, pork, and chicken. The flavor of seal meat can be described as deer or moose meat, with a slightly gamey taste.

 

 

Both seal meat and poutine are iconic Canadian food. What if we mixed them together?  It would likely create one of the greatest food combos ever. The only way to truly know about the taste is to try it for yourself. Below are a few seal poutine recipes.

 

 

Seal Merguez Gnocchi poutine

 

 

Ingredients:

 

• Seal merguez
• Grain cheese (to taste)
• Kale
• Marinated pearl onions
• Veal stock

 

For sweet potato gnocchi:

 

• 500 g of sweet potato puree
• 250g of mashed potatoes
• 300g of flour
• 1 egg
• Salt

 

Preparation:

 

For gnocchi

 

• Mix all the ingredients
• Spread the dough 2 cm thick
• Slice strips lengthwise and cut into thumb-size pieces
• Store in the freezer

For the poutine with the merguez:

 

• Preheat the fryer to 350F
• Cut the merguez and roast in the skillet
• Add the kale with the merguez
• Put the gnocchi in the fryer until they go up
• Drain and place on a plate
• Place merguez, kale, onions, and cheese on the gnocchi
• Drizzle with veal stock

 

Recipe Credits: Chef Benoit Lenglet, 5ième Pêché / Teacher at ITHQ

 

Pulled Seal Flipper Poutine

 

 

For 4 people

 

Ingredients:

 

• 600 g fresh cheese curds
• 10 Yukon gold potatoes cut into French fry size
• 500 g Pulled seal flipper (from below recipe)
• 500 ml (2 cups) of poutine sauce
• 1 large onion, diced
• 15 ml of olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• Canola oil (for fryer)

 

 

Directions:

 

Pulled seal flipper meat:

• 1 seal flipper
• 2 liters of veal or chicken stock
• 3 onions
• 2 large carrots or 6 to 8 Nantaise carrots
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 150ml of maple syrup
• 200g of cranberries
• Olive oil
• Butter
• Salt

 

1. Season the flipper and sear it each side using olive oil. Add butter to finish the coloring of the meat.
2. Fry the vegetables. Add garlic, thyme, maple syrup.
3. Reduce the heat by half and add the cranberries.
4. Pour in a cup of veal stock. Cover tightly with tin foil.
5. Bake at 280-300 ° F for 12 hours depending on the size of the flipper.
6. Every hour check the meat and add stock as needed to prevent the meat from drying out.
7. When the flipper is ready the meat will easily fall off the bone.
8. Remove the flipper and reduce braising liquid in a pan to reach the perfect consistency.
9. Spoon the sauce over the meat.
10. Serve

 

Home fries:

 

In a large bowl, soak the cut potatoes in cold water for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

Preheat the fryer oil to 325 ° F (165 ° C). Drain and clean the potatoes with a clean cloth and place them in the fryer basket. Immerse in hot oil and cook for about 2 minutes.

Drain fries and place on paper towels. Let cool. Increase the temperature of the fryer oil to 375 ° F (190 ° C). Re-fry the potatoes for 2 to 4 minutes or until the fries are golden brown.

 

Sauce:

 

• In a saucepan, cook the onion until lightly browned.
• Add the poutine sauce and some of the braising juice from the flipper.
• Reduce sauce to desired consistency, then add the pulled flipper.
• Service:

 

1. Put cheese curds over the fries and then add the sauce with the seal flipper.
2. Enjoy.

 

Bon appétit Canada!!!

 

Recipe credit: Chef Benoit Lenglet and SeaDNA.

 

Places to try seal meat poutine

 

The pulled seal meat poutine was served at O’Reillys (St. John’s NL) and the Seal Merguez Gnocchi poutine was served by Bar à vin le Liège (in Repentigny, Quebec) during Seal Fest. O’Reilly’s Irish Newfoundland Pub (voted Canada’s Favorite Bar) is one of a kind, located in the heart of Newfoundland’s famous Entertainment District on the legendary George Street. The pulled seal meat poutine offered in this pub during the Culinary Seal Festival (Seal Fest) was made with pulled seal meat, cheese curds, crispy French fries and was covered with gravy. The pulled seal meat was ultra-tender and flavorful, soft enough to pull apart with a fork.

 

 

Bar à vin le Liège is a little wine bar based in Repentigny that is serving seal poutine from time to time — in the form of seal merguez, served on a fried gnocchi “poutine” with cheese curds. The restaurant has a very cozy industrial look, an open kitchen, and a few seats at the bar to be able to appreciate the chef at work.  The seal poutine is currently not offered on their summer menu, but you can try their Seal Carpaccio with radish as well as candied and marinated shallots.

 

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Where to find seal meat?

Visit this page to find out sources of seal meat:

https://canadiansealproducts.com/products/seal-meat/where-to-buy-seal-meat

 

This is by no means a complete list of places to buy or dine on seals, but it should get you started.

 

If you are a restaurant based in Quebec City or Montreal, you can order seal meat products from the distributor LA GAMME. Check out page 37 of their catalog which includes a list of available seal meat and seal charcuteries from

Boucherie Spécialisée Côte-à-côte: https://lagammegaspesieiles.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/GAMME-Repertoire-Mars2022-FormatLettre-WEB-1.pdf