Cooking venison requires care to retain its tenderness and enhance its rich, gamey flavor. Leaner than beef, venison benefits from quick, high-heat methods like grilling or searing, or low-and-slow braising to prevent dryness. Marinating can tenderize the meat and add depth. Cook steaks medium-rare to medium for the best texture. Ground venison pairs well with fatty cuts like pork for burgers or meatballs. Always rest the meat after cooking to preserve juices. Herbs like rosemary, juniper, and garlic complement its bold taste. Venison’s versatility makes it excellent for stews, roasts, or even jerky when prepared with attention and respect.
Venison Preparation:
This is important as the final product is only as good as what you put into it. I like to hunt and process my own deer (or take it to my cousin who does this for a living) to ensure it is done as cleanly as possible. If doing it at home by yourself, break the deer down into smaller more manageable parts…it helps a lot.
1. Remove any fat (most deer don’t have a lot of fat)
2. Remove bruised pieces (around bullet entry and exit)
3. Remove silver skin (membrane surrounding the meet)
One of my favorite recipes for venison:
Honey Bourbon Venison
• One Venison backstrap (stripped of the silver skin and cut to length…1-1.5 lb. portions)
• Marinade the backstrap in a honey bourbon marinade for two hours in the refrigerator…marinade consists of equal portions of olive oil, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, and garlic
• Make a lot of marinade as it will be used for a glaze latter on
• After marinating…pat dry and season with salt and pepper
• Sear the venison backstrap in a hot skillet
• Finish cooking the backstrap in the oven at 350 degrees until it reaches the desired internal temperature…ideally medium rare
• The reserved marinade id simmered to create a sauce
• Slice and top with the remaining marinade
