Got a LOT of venison

[Buckshot Bear]

Got a LOT of venison today from a mate ... never cooked it before and never eaten it before.

 

What's a good way for a newbie to try cooking it for the best experience?

[Wild Eagle]

I envy your good fortune.  My wife and I have been in mourning for the last two weeks because we just ran out of venison.  Luckily hunting season is upon us and more should find it's way to the freezer soon.

 

Slice it about 3/8" thick x 1" wide x whatever length will fit in your skillet.  Tenderloin or back strap works best for this, but I have done it with other parts too.  Soak it in milk for a couple of minutes, coat it with seasoned flour (usually available already seasoned from the store), and then fry it in oil at 375 F for about 3 minutes.  I usually use canola oil, but any frying oil should work fine.  Venison is very lean (no fat), so you need to keep it from drying out when you cook it.  Don't over cook it.  There should be at least a hint of pink in the center.

 

Makes good shish kebabs too.  Just cut it into about 1" cubes skewer it with onion, peppers, mushrooms, and bacon (need the bacon to add fat) and then grill it.

 

Also is good in stew.  

 

If you have any made into hamburger you will need to add beef fat or it will be too dry when you cook it.  I like to add 20% beef fat to mine.  Some of my friends add beef brisket to get the fat content up.

 

Hope you enjoy it.  It's a mainstay in my house and we have it once or twice every week.

 

[Trigger Mike]

My wife takes the ground deer and makes spaghetti or tacos and the kids love it.  She doesn’t add fat , maybe a little olive oil.

 

once she ground a deer roast and made bbq with it.  

[Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129]

I and Pork for it's Fat content, when I grind it ... 

 

Jabez Cowboy

[Alpo]

I can it when I can get it.

 

And then use it to make my famous Bambi Stroganoff.

[Steel-eye Steve SASS #40674]

I strongly recommend Hank Shaw’s cookbook, Buck Buck Moose: Buck, Buck, Moose: Recipes and Techniques for Cooking Deer, Elk, Moose, Antelope and Other Antlered Things https://a.co/d/hR3SaK1

[Chickasaw Bill SASS #70001]

I cook in a crock pot , then use the broth to make rice or just make a stew 

 

  fast stew 

Venison ,

1 can Tomato's W green chilis 

1 can green beans (cut)

1 can carrots 

2 cans diced potato's 

I med onion diced 

add some Tony's Cajin spice to taste 

let it cook all day 

you cam pull the venison and slice it (cross Grain , or chop it and mix back into the stew 

serve with corn bread or Brochin 

 

  CB 

 

[Kid Rich]

I use just a little pepper and cook it in butter or lard and don't over cook it. I used to get 4 or 5 whitetails or mulies a year and that's the only red meat I would eat. Also If you like chili google "Navajo Green" chili and use that recipe. Best chili I've ever had. I used to substitute jalapenos for the mild green chilis.

kR

PS I substitute the pork with venison

[LawMan Mark, SASS #57095L]

Can of cream of mushroom soup, a couple of onions, three pounds of venison roast, a slow cooker and 6 hours on low heat.  Be prepared to eat too much.

[Chickasaw Bill SASS #70001]

forgot to add 

 

  if making rice with the broth 

 

 still add the tom w chilis , and the onion 

 

 makes a pretty good gumbo 

 

  CB 

[Dirty Dan Dawkins]

We have whitetail deer. Not sure if hind or roe are much different. And sizes of roast will vary in cooking time.

We process our own, so don’t grind as much as a processor would and don’t have a cuber, yet ( my whole life never needed one, but now the wife does). We age our meat. I won’t go into that too much , but everyone asks us what we do different to make our venison taste so much better than theirs. The only difference we find is we do our own processing and let the deer hang 1-2 weeks. 2 on a rutty buck. A yearling- 2-3 days is all you need. As a kid, my dad built a cooler and they’d hang for weeks. Primo meat! People want to argue with me over this aging point all the time. We have experience with hundreds of deer (I’d say 400 or more). I doubt the Meat Eater (Steve Rinella-which always gets brought up by naysayers. I like his show by the way ) can say that. 

 

We do what we do. There is no wrong other than don’t taint the meat with bile and  don’t fail to gut and cool promptly. But remember venison is lean. Cooking to temp or til meat falls apart is our two primary methods. Vegetables and seasoning is your choice.
 

Neck roasts, typically, depending on size, 6 hours in crock pot on medium heat or 8 on low. We either do bone-in but sometimes debone. Bone in takes longer. Comes out great. Cooked any less, it typically won’t be tender and the gristly parts won’t render out. Meat will fall apart when done. If you’re slicing, it’s not done and unrendered gristle affects flavor. Exponentially better than grinding it up if you have the patience and can cook a few to get the hang of it.

 

Shanks- all day on low in crock pot. Good stuff, but if not left in long enough, gristle won’t render. Will fall apart when done. If your slicing, not dine. Unrendered gristle will affect flavor. Meat will slide clean off bone. Far better treat than ground.

 

Shoulders- we generally take the roast portions off the shoulder and turn to stew meat. Grind the trimmings. 
 

Sirloin- steaks grilled.

 

There are three primary sizable roasts in the hind quarter. Top round, bottom round, sirloin tip. You will hear different names depending on butcher. All can be roasted or cut into steaks.   Cook each as such, remember it’s lean so cook to internal temperature you prefer. Eye of round is a fourth cut, but generally small, so we cook like back straps. The tri-tip is really small on deer, as such we grind. There’s also a rump portion, it’s generally small. We make it into steaks.

 

 

Or, just cook whole hind quarter (or whole shoulder for that matter) in oven 350-375. In roasting pan covered in foil and onions. 16-20 oz water on large hind quarter. Baste occasionally. When meat slides of the bone, it’s pretty well done and everything that needs to render has. Add water as needed. Will take most of the day to render gristle. Save drippings for gravy.

 

Smoking a shoulder or hind quarter whole is an excellent option, best on younger deer with smaller quarters. 

 

Back strap, we cook medium rare in skillet. Sometimes bacon wrapped. Sometimes not. Season to your taste. Sear in butter. Wrap in bacon if you like at this point. Finish in oven in same skillet. I think my wife does 400 til internally medium rare at thickest part. 

 

Tenderloin- salt pepper butter skillet 

Cook to preferred temp.

There is also a very tiny tenderloin under the spine between the shoulders. This is very good, but most people fail to get it out.

 

Im not a liver eater, nor kidney, but do like sliced heart cooked in salt pepper and butter.
 

 

[Eyesa Horg]

 My season just ended with no deer again.  Tracks near my 2 blinds, but nothing in them! Can't believe it, 19 years with out getting one.  When I lived in Connecticut, I used to get 2-3 a year. Here in Vermont,....zero! Well, next year is coming!!

 

Oh, don't cook that venison beyond pink, it will turn into holster leather. Chunks can be wrapped in bacon and cooked on the grill. Yummy

[Texas Jack Black]

30 minutes ago, Eyesa Horg said:

 My season just ended with no deer again.  Tracks near my 2 blinds, but nothing in them! Can't believe it, 19 years with out getting one.  When I lived in Connecticut, I used to get 2-3 a year. Here in Vermont,....zero! Well, next year is coming!!

 

Oh, don't cook that venison beyond pink, it will turn into holster leather. Chunks can be wrapped in bacon and cooked on the grill. Yummy

Jump over to NH  Plenty there .

 

Best wishes

 

We have put three in the freezer this year ,Still have some Moose, Elk steaks, Pronghorn and a bit of Bison and Mule deer.

 

[Eyesa Horg]

4 minutes ago, Texas Jack Black said:

Jump over to NH  Plenty there .

 

Best wishes

 

We have put three in the freezer this year ,Still have some Moose, Elk steaks, Pronghorn and a bit of Bison and Mule deer.

 

I'm jealous 

[Linn Keller, SASS 27332, BOLD 103]

Uncle Jack, rest his irascible old soul, gave me a quart of home canned venison.

Dumped the whole of the quart jar into my biggest frying pan.

Added a large diced Bermuda onion and let it simmer a few hours, added a little sprinkle of flour to thicken it just a little, and (oink) ate the hull dern skillet full! 

Genuinely good!

(Alpo, thank you for resurrecting this gastronomic memory, you mentioned canning the meat and I was instantly hungry!)

[Alpo]

A quart? Damn. A pint jar holds right at a pound, and since I live by myself I put it up in pints.

 

This is cow, cuz I ain't got no pictures of my canned deer. But you get the idea.

[Painted Mohawk SASS 77785]

You'll be hooked Bear, we love it,,,just experiment with the different recipes & you will find one you like...start with the good 'ole croc pot.

[Buckshot Bear]

Thanks pards, must say.....got me a little worried on how to cook it, glad I asked!

 

[Buckshot Bear]

Last question - What's the best way to freeze it?

 

It was shot Saturday night, kept cool, butchered Sunday afternoon, been in our fridge portioned and in zip lock plastic bags overnight its now Monday morning.

 

Ok to freeze in the bags?

[Subdeacon Joe]

4 minutes ago, Buckshot Bear said:

Last question - What's the best way to freeze it?

 

It was shot Saturday night, kept cool, butchered Sunday afternoon, been in our fridge portioned and in zip lock plastic bags overnight its now Monday morning.

 

Ok to freeze in the bags?

 

I'd put a little salt and pepper on it and vacuum pack it, but salt and pepper, put it in a ziplock, close it most of the way, then submerge the bag right up to the zipper in cold water and finish closing it while it's in the water.  That gets almost all the air out of the bag, almost as good as a vacuum sealer.  Be sure to label it.

 

When I freeze meat I always season it with salt and pepper, I think that it helps reduce the frozen taste it can get after a few months

 

 

 

[Texas Jack Black]

3 hours ago, Eyesa Horg said:

I'm jealous 

 Now that I am retired I am a traveling man. Relatives in Washington for my fishing . I have hunting buddies in several states and I visit during the season .

Planning a trip for stag next year.

[Buckshot Bear]

Home alone....10.30am couldn't wait to try just a little.

 

Dusted in cornflour seasoned with salt and pepper and a hot skillet with butter.

 

I'm a meat eater.....and I've got to say I reckon that was the NICEST piece of meat I've ever tasted!

 

 

[Eyesa Horg]

1 hour ago, Buckshot Bear said:

Home alone....10.30am couldn't wait to try just a little.

 

Dusted in cornflour seasoned with salt and pepper and a hot skillet with butter.

 

I'm a meat eater.....and I've got to say I reckon that was the NICEST piece of meat I've ever tasted!

 

 

Oh, that is cooked to perfection mate. 

[Last Call Saul]

venison!!!

 

had 50 lbs of summer sausage and smoked andouille made last weekend, made some bacon wrapped backstraps, 15 lbs of venison salami are curing now

 

[Buckshot Bear]

28 minutes ago, Eyesa Horg said:

Oh, that is cooked to perfection mate. 

 

Can't believe how nice it was Eyesa......just hope I can replicate it when Jenorado gets home this afternoon.

[Sarge]

If you like corned beef, look up a venison corning recipe.  Take a roast, de-bone it.  Lots of venison corning recipes on line.  Takes about 5 days.  Prepare as you would corned beef (except boil the old fashioned way, not in a crock pot).  

 

[Painted Mohawk SASS 77785]

5 hours ago, Buckshot Bear said:

Home alone....10.30am couldn't wait to try just a little.

 

Dusted in cornflour seasoned with salt and pepper and a hot skillet with butter.

 

I'm a meat eater.....and I've got to say I reckon that was the NICEST piece of meat I've ever tasted!

 

 

Way to go Bear. it is a beautiful meat...couldn't live full time on just venison as it's so lean & you need some fat in your diet but never the less when cooked right it's pretty hard to beat !!

[Buckshot Bear]

Wow what a gourmet dinner!!!!!! .....the boys have been told they have a mission now!

 

Fill the freezers!

 

[Rooster Ron Wayne]

The number One thing to remember about cooking Venison is , 

Take your time ! 

Slow cook it with low to medium heat .

Venison is very lean you need to add your own fat !

Oil , Baken grease  , Pork , Lard , 

What ever you choose. 

So Saith the Rooster 

[Kid Rich]

I used to use one of the vacuum sealers to package my venison then I came up with the idea of packing it in a freezer bag and pouring water in the bag until all the air was out. Then seal the bag and freeze it. Never had a bag get air in it and freezer burn like used to happen with the vacuum bags.

 We would hunt during the day and cut and package the meat at night in the garage that was set up for processing. We had a wood stove and always had a cast iron skillet on top for cooking small pieces of meat while we butchered.

kR

PS any aging I did was in a cooler set at 34 degrees, just above freezing and only done until meat could be packaged and frozen

[Alpo]

3 hours ago, Kid Rich said:

packing it in a freezer bag and pouring water in the bag until all the air was out. Then seal the bag and freeze it.

I must be missing something here.

 

You put the meat in the bag. You fill the bag up with water, which gets rid of all the air in the bag. Now you seal the bag and put it in the freezer.

 

The water in the bag freezes. It expands, tearing the bag or popping the seal or both.

 

You see my confusion.

[Last Call Saul]

23 minutes ago, Alpo said:

I must be missing something here.

 

You put the meat in the bag. You fill the bag up with water, which gets rid of all the air in the bag. Now you seal the bag and put it in the freezer.

 

The water in the bag freezes. It expands, tearing the bag or popping the seal or both.

 

You see my confusion.

Maybe pouring water ON the bag? Submerging the open bag will displace air inside...

[Okie Sawbones, SASS #77381]

Cook the venison at 350F on a cedar plank until the venison reaches 150F. Slide the venison into the trash and eat the plank.

[Chickasaw Bill SASS #70001]

as you seal the zipper bags , you push some of the water out to allow room for expansion 

 

  I have packed fish like this for years , I was told if ya put the ziplocks in a brown paper bag , after freezing , it will further protect what is in the bag 

 

I only keep fish and game in the freezer for around a year , if that long before it becomes table fare 

 

  CB 

[Sarge]

1 hour ago, Alpo said:

I must be missing something here.

 

You put the meat in the bag. You fill the bag up with water, which gets rid of all the air in the bag. Now you seal the bag and put it in the freezer.

 

The water in the bag freezes. It expands, tearing the bag or popping the seal or both.

 

You see my confusion.

I've always processed my pheasants like this. Using ziplock bags, I've never had a problem with the bags tearing.