How can I like the taste of venison

[Caseknife]

Deer and elk fat is more of a tallow, has a higher melting point and coats the roof of your mouth. Any adverse flavors will be in the fat. I haven't found that silver skin/connective tissue has any adverse flavor, but the fat definitely does.

 

[COLD SMOKE]

Steaks fried in a scorching hot cast iron pan are excellent. Two minutes a side, seasoned with Johnnys and cracked pepper. Should be red in the middle still.

Did this a few nights ago.. used kinders
“The blend” got a cast iron ripping and..
2 mins a side on backstraps

Pulled them and let sit 5 mins
swiped the pan clean

Sliced the straps into “steaks” 1.5” thick..
The inside was blood rare..

In the cast I put 1/2 Stick butter with 2 whole garlic minced, rosemary and 1 oz whiskey.

then sautéd the steaks for 90 seconds. Plated and poured the sauce on

Finished it was smaller bite sized steaks that were MR and tasty. Perfectly red in center.

Did all this because the bbq was outta gas !
Worked well would cook again

 

[maine]

Just scrolled through quick, but didn’t see anyone mention to make sure you don’t keep any of the fat on the deer. Deer fat is not like beef or pork fat. gives a bad taste and really weird mouth feel. I hated venison until I started cutting my own and trimming everything. Dog gets the trim meat so nothing wasted. My wife came from a hunting family and never liked deer meat. After trying mine once, she now loves it. Pressure canning is another way to make it taste good. I always like to keep a few jars around for sauce and stew.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[maine]

Grinder for everything but the backstraps. Cook it into your favorite recipes…tacos, spagheti, shepherds pie etc. You will never know the difference. Sear the backstraps on high heat, 1.5-2 min per side, throw in the oven at 350 for 5 min. Pull out and let rest. Will taste better than any beef steak out there.


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I’m going to give that a try on my next one, thank you!

 

[maine]

Did this a few nights ago.. used kinders
“The blend” got a cast iron ripping and..
2 mins a side on backstraps

Pulled them and let sit 5 mins
swiped the pan clean

Sliced the straps into “steaks” 1.5” thick..
The inside was blood rare..

In the cast I put 1/2 Stick butter with 2 whole garlic minced, rosemary and 1 oz whiskey.

then sautéd the steaks for 90 seconds. Plated and poured the sauce on

Finished it was smaller bite sized steaks that were MR and tasty. Perfectly red in center.

Did all this because the bbq was outta gas !
Worked well would cook again

That sounds great

That which must not be said...venison is nowhere near as tasty as beef...to most people. This applies to we hunters as well.

Lower your expectations and embrace the awesome nutrition of this, one of the most healthy of all foods. Dress it up if your taste buds require it.

i agree, I might just grind most of it except backstraps as others have stated

 

[maine]

• I find cooking style doesn't alter the flavor. It just alters the texture.
• Aging venison can help with both flavor and tenderness as others have mentioned.
• Grind it and don't add fat. Add it yourself when you cook so you get exactly what you want.
• Cook it in tomato based sauces like chili and bolognaise. The acidity in the tomatoes takes the edge off the flavor. Asian sauces and curries can be really good as well.
• Barbacoa in an instapot
• Get it made into brats, pepperoni, summer sausage. Find a good butcher since they all do it differently.

Appreciate the advice. I haven’t aged it before but have been very curious about it, I’m definitely going to try that out

 

[maine]

Mississippi pot roast is the bomb!

Haven’t heard of that before but that looks great

 

[maine]

Cut into 3/4 to 1 inch thick pieces, little bit of dales marinade to coat, Lawry's seasoned salt, garlic salt and Cavendars. Cook in air fryer at 400 for 9 min, flip meat half way through. Quick and easy

How long do you let it marinade?

 

[maine]

I wet age mine for at least 7 days, better with 10. And yes keep meat covered with ice. I put draining racks in bottom of chest, then alternate layer of meat then ice until chest is full. last layer is ice. Always keep layer of ice on top of meat.

I’ve never heard of wet aging before. Does it change the flavor much?

 

[maine]

Lot of good advice here. For my part, I have a deer processor who ages meat in an igloo cooler which the meat is on ice and water allowed to freely drain. He replenishes the ice frequently (at least daily) for 3-4 days.
I get backstrap, tenderloin and rest is ground venison. I prefer 10% beef fat mixed in, but these Georgia boys stick to their pork fat, and it’s quite good. They know what they’re doing.

Besides venison burgers, we do a lot of casseroles like Shepherd’s Pie, especially for those family that are put off by venison.

Finally Hank Shaw has a lot of venison recipes on his site. Good cook books too.

So just keep shooting and experimenting!

Thanks so much!

 

[maine]

Try pressure cooked deer steaks. Put steak/s in the cooker, add an envelope of McCormicks Slow Cooker Pot Roast Seasoning, potatoes, carrots, etc, add water to just cover ingredients. Pressure cook for about 20 minutes after pressure is reached. So tender and tastes just like beef pot roast. Good stuff.

Definitely giving that a try, thank you

 

[maine]

Don’t eat anything at all for about 8 days while learning land nav, sheltercraft, signaling, evasion, fire craft, and water procurement.

Then make your first meal venison steaks. I promise you the rest of your life it will be your favorite food.

I bet you’re right!

 

[maine]

Never have had complaints about venison that I prepare, but I butcher and package all of my own. It takes much longer, but removing all fat and silver skin from venison significantly improves the flavor. It seems that much of the “gamey” flavor resides in the fat

I need to start butchering my own

 

[TaperPin]

I don’t care for deer, never have, even growing up when it was commonly on the menu. Elk yes, moose yes, duck no, sage grouse yes, antelope no. Luckily I have a sister that loves it, and thinks a rutting buck is the best.

Traditionally anything you don’t tend to like as a steak on the plate gets made into jerky - good antelope jerky taste like beef jerky and it’s not until you burp that the goat comes out and says hello.

Then I became friends with a family of good cooks from Texas where deer was all they ate, even for fancy meals. Turns out chicken fried steak after a buttermilk marinade is delicious. Many things are much better after a marinade. Good seasoning goes a long way, as do good tasting sauces, toppings like grilled onions, garlic and peppers. It was, and still is, hard to change from wanting a big thick beef or elk steak - smaller portions help keep deer from overwhelming the other tastes on the plate. Cooking sausage as the main protein in a meal was also foreign, but is just one more way to enjoy it - the type of sausage depends on your taste buds. Asian and TexMex cooking can be good options where small thin meats are marinated and well seasoned and are almost secondary to the rest of the dish.

When you get a go-to marinade figured out, pay a little extra and have deer steaks run through the cube steak tenderizer - it opens up the steak so marinades don’t take as long.

It also helps to stop eating beef so your taste buds don’t have to compare the two. If your kids want burgers when you go out to eat, they won’t like your deer burgers at home. The exception to eliminating cow is using beef fat in burger. Trim the heck of deer - don’t keep any deer fat.

In the end, find a western relative that is tired of eating so damn much elk and moose and wants to trade. *chuckle*

 

[BoilerBowHunter]

If the taste of a pure venison steak isn’t appealing to you then I’d recommend something like tacos, Chilli, etc. With meals like that there is enough flavor coming from other things that it’s hard to tell the difference between beef or venison in my opinion. Gets you a good, healthy meal without maybe as much venison flavor.

I would also agree with a lot of people that overcooking venison could be a culprit. Venison is extremely lean compared to beef. You may need to adjust your cook times if you’re very used to beef.

I hope for your sake that you come to like it. Nothing better in my opinion! But if you don’t, still lots of options out there for you to keep eating it. Definitely don’t stop hunting!

 

[COJoe]

I need to start butchering my own

My buddy and I have butchered our own meat the last two years and we find it is just as much a part of the hunt as actually being in the mountains. It's very fulfilling to see your kill all the way to the freezer knowing how it was handled the entire time, making last minute decisions on what cuts we want and how much sausage, etc.. We can make two pounds of one sausage while making twenty pounds of another, it gives you flexibility. We are not experts by any mean but it's been fun learning the various cuts of meat so that's a bonus for us. When I shot a cow moose in Alaska, my buddy and I butchered it ourselves, it wasn't pretty but it all ate well. It's also a time to laugh, retell stories, and my wife enjoys listening to us, knowing we're home safe finally. Oh, he has two golden retrievers and I have a large lab and smaller dog so there's also a special ingredient of dog hair floating around all the time, lol. It becomes a family affair which should always be an aspect of hunting. Experiment with crazy sounding ethnic recipes as they can enable you to enjoy your deer meat as others have said. One of our new favorites is elk curry, so stinking good.

 

[maine]

Shot placement,the way the animals is gutted ,clean and the way the meat is handled has a lot to do with the meat flavor, I’ve been eating venison all my life and would rather have it any day over beef. But I’ve also had folks make venison that I wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole. Also it’s important to remove the glands in the back hams and front shoulders by the neck. Most people don’t know about them and just grind it up with there hamburger and wonder why it tasted deerish

My buddy and I have butchered our own meat the last two years and we find it is just as much a part of the hunt as actually being in the mountains. It's very fulfilling to see your kill all the way to the freezer knowing how it was handled the entire time, making last minute decisions on what cuts we want and how much sausage, etc.. We can make two pounds of one sausage while making twenty pounds of another, it gives you flexibility. We are not experts by any mean but it's been fun learning the various cuts of meat so that's a bonus for us. When I shot a cow moose in Alaska, my buddy and I butchered it ourselves, it wasn't pretty but it all ate well. It's also a time to laugh, retell stories, and my wife enjoys listening to us, knowing we're home safe finally. Oh, he has two golden retrievers and I have a large lab and smaller dog so there's also a special ingredient of dog hair floating around all the time, lol. It becomes a family affair which should always be an aspect of hunting. Experiment with crazy sounding ethnic recipes as they can enable you to enjoy your deer meat as others have said. One of our new favorites is elk curry, so stinking good.

Seems like a bit part of the experience for sure. Really want to get an elk this year

 

[dr.mooseknuckles]

smash burger style is the way to go for making a hamburger/cheese burger.

I do NOT add beef or pork to my ground venison with the processeor.

I take 2 lbs of ground venison, mix in 3 egg yolks, tablespoon of Worcestershire, salt, pepper, garlic powder. Game changer my neighbor told me about was mixing in a packet of Original Lipton Onion Soup.

Make small meat balls aroudn 1/4 lb or less and smash the hell out of them in cast iron skillet. Can be stove top or grill. Flip after 2-3 minutes and top with cheese of choice.

You can saute onions to smash into for more onion flavor.

Wife and kids love these. Have done with ground elk and antelope as well

 

[Sudsy]

My wife doesn't like venison but she'll always eat it two ways, burger in chili or some other kind of big pot dish, and (my favorite way by far) Philli Cheese Steak.

Chill a roast almost but not quite frozen and drop it onto a slicer and slice as thin as you can get it.
Krup makes a cheap home slicer that works well
Dice and sauté a white onion until it is golden brown, deglaze the pan with cream sherry.
Add the venison and chop and shred it as it cooks
When its just about done, which doesn't take long, drop a few cubes of Velveeta in and stir till it's all melted
Season with salt and pepper
Serve in good Italian bread

If you want to be more authentic Philadelphian, use Cheese Wiz - AKA "Steak with Wiz"
I hate the stuff so I go with Velveeta.

 

[Sudsy]

A sous vide cooker is a game changer for cooking venison. Unlike beef there's no fat in the meat of a deer to bail you out if you overcook it. The sous vide prevents that.

And this for steaks and large cuts !!
Let it rest then give it a crust on a screaming hot cast iron pan