Guest Chef

Cameron Huley’s coffee, chili, chocolate-rubbed venison loin

Chef Cameron Huley, who is new to cycling, found a properly fitting bike and a pair of bib shorts to be revelations. “I never knew bibs had padding in the butt area. That was a bit of an eye opener for me,” says the executive chef at the Winnipeg Squash Racquet Club.

His cycling journey began at the beginning of 2020 when chef friends asked him to participate in Chefs Cycle – a fundraising ride for the charity No Kid Hungry. “Before that I had ridden maybe 20 km, but nothing like 300 miles in three days.”

He began riding indoors on a trainer. When covid-19 hit, and the June 22 ride was cancelled, he was cycling three hours, with a “rest” halfway to lift weights. By mid-may his bike, which was on back order because of the high demand for bikes at the time, finally arrived – a Giant Defy Advanced 3. “What an amazing feeling to ride a bike that is fitted properly and light,” he says. “I never thought I could reach such speeds on a bike.”

After riding on the smooth pavement around his three-acre hobby farm in rural Winnipeg, he was hooked. “I love the freedom I get from it,” he says. “I just let my mind escape the everyday hustle and bustle of life. It’s really freeing for me.”

Cycling has also changed his way of life. Not only has Huley stopped drinking, he’s taken his French techniques and Japanese-influenced cooking in healthier directions. “I still cook with butter because it’s a good fat, but I now cook with more vegetables and fewer heavy foods, including meat. It’s more energy foods now.”

Huley also believes in being self-sufficient. He hunts boar, venison, bear, and duck. He also forages for wild ramps, fiddleheads and mushrooms – “Last year I picked 120 lb.,” he says.

Next up for the foraging cyclist: finding a local cycling group and learning how to draft so he can ride even faster.

Ingredients

450 g venison loin

¼ cup instant coffee

¼ cup chili powder

¼ cup brown sugar

1 tbsp ground cacao nibs 2 tbsp smoked paprika

2 tbsp kosher salt

2 tbsp cracked pepper

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tbsp chili flakes olive oil

¼ cup butter

6 sprigs of thyme

1 medium-size sprig rosemary

Directions

1. Mix the instant coffee, chili powder, brown sugar, cacao, smoked paprika, salt, pepper, cumin and chili flakes together.

2. Rub venison loin with olive oil.

3. Cover venison completely with rub. Let it sit for four hours.

4. Preheat oven to 350 F.

5. Pan sear the loin with butter, fresh thyme, and rosemary.

6. Place loin in the oven. Bake until it reaches an internal temperature of 125 F.

7. Let rest 10 minutes before slicing.

“I never thought I could reach such speeds on a bike.”