Eco friendly venison

[Terrierman]

31 minutes ago, tjm said:

Not really a process, but guide lines. (works for goat too)

Because deer don't always bleed out, the taste can often be improved with a soak in salt water prior to cooking to remove that blood, fat or tallow can taste off and a cup of apple or wine vinegar in that salt soak can kill or off set that taste. An hour or two in the "marinade"  should get most of the blood out, but over night is fine too.But back to processing, never let the hair touch the meat, cut out any torn up or dirty meat from wound area and cavity, bone out,  remove as much fat as possible, remove all the silverskin, take out as many tendons as you can, avoid using a bone saw as bone dust is not tasty. Because the silverskin is  inedible,  nasty tasting and it surrounds every muscle, the final cuts will often be rather small, perhaps bite size, I "fry" these but they make great stew also. The back straps and tender lion are most prized simply because they don't require as much care with fat, silverskin or tendons, they'll also make the biggest pieces

The actual cooking is best done slowly imo. but a flour/salt/black pepper dredge  and a frying pan/skillet is a good start, just don't actually fry it.

Domestic animals are usually bled out in the killing/butchering process, it's why you stick a pig for  example.  Or decapitating a chicken. Beef have such large muscles that the silverskin is negligible.

Excellent point regarding bone dust.  My rule with deer is exactly the opposite of the fish rule.  Deer = if it's not red you don't want it.   Fish = if it's not white it's not right.  NO red (on freshwater fish - the ocean makes it's own rules that vary by species)

[tjm]

Properly bled meat will be more brown than red. I reckon the copper taste someone mentioned is blood. And cutting the throat of a dead animal does little or nothing about bleeding out, because the heart is stopped. But you are correct anything white isn't right in venison.

[jdmidwest]

Alot has to do with what the deer has been eating.  Years that they are feeding primarily on acorns, I think they taste like crap.  But when they are feeding in the fields on grass due to poor acorn crop, they are as good as beef.

Rutting bucks never turn me on as good food.  But a young doe or button buck when feeding on grass is like lean beef.

Sliced thin and deep fried is good appetizer.  Mushrooms and onions over rice is another favorite of mine also.  Backstraps make good steaks.

Since the telecheck, my deer get processed in the first hour after the kill.  No dragging into town like the old days.  Cleaned and cool quickly.

[Dutch]

8 minutes ago, jdmidwest said:

Alot has to do with what the deer has been eating.  Years that they are feeding primarily on acorns, I think they taste like crap.  But when they are feeding in the fields on grass due to poor acorn crop, they are as good as beef.

Rutting bucks never turn me on as good food.  But a young doe or button buck when feeding on grass is like lean beef.

Sliced thin and deep fried is good appetizer.  Mushrooms and onions over rice is another favorite of mine also.  Backstraps make good steaks.

Since the telecheck, my deer get processed in the first hour after the kill.  No dragging into town like the old days.  Cleaned and cool quickly.

Maybe that acorn thing is why I don’t care for venison.  Acorns and rocks are all they have to eat in Stone County.

[Krazo]

54 minutes ago, jdmidwest said:

Alot has to do with what the deer has been eating.  ... a young doe or button buck when feeding on grass is like lean beef...my deer get processed in the first hour after the kill.....Cleaned and cool quickly.

These points right here make all the difference.  all of mine are field to freezer asap.  Hind quarters are turned into roasts and back straps into steaks and these are all in the freezer within a couple hours of killing.  Occasionally I'll let the shoulders sit in the fridge for up to a couple days until i have time to trim and prep for grinding.   No issues with taste.  Cooked on the grill, in the pan, crockpot, pressure cooker, instapot,  oven, you name it I've tried it.  but lets be honest, its like beef, but its not beef.  no substitute for a ribeye just as there's no substitute for venison backstrap.  

 

This is making me hungry...we need a new thread for favorite venison recipes.  we've got a good new one that's a take on Mississippi pot roast.  

[jdmidwest]

9 hours ago, Dutch said:

Maybe that acorn thing is why I don’t care for venison.  Acorns and rocks are all they have to eat in Stone County.

Acorns poison livestock.  We kept grazers out of timber in fall.  Probably why squirrels taste like they do, all they eat is nuts.

This will be the second year of poor acorn crop, they are in the fields eating grass.  But the meat was good last year and should be this year also.

[MrGiggles]

18 minutes ago, jdmidwest said:

Acorns poison livestock.  We kept grazers out of timber in fall.  Probably why squirrels taste like they do, all they eat is nuts.

This will be the second year of poor acorn crop, they are in the fields eating grass.  But the meat was good last year and should be this year also.

During years like this when you find that 100 year old swamp oak loaded with acorns, while everything else is bare, you've got a honey hole on your hands. 

[snagged in outlet 3]

9 hours ago, Krazo said:

but lets be honest, its like beef, but its not beef.  no substitute for a ribeye 

Thanks!

[Dutch]

6 hours ago, jdmidwest said:

Acorns poison livestock.  We kept grazers out of timber in fall.  Probably why squirrels taste like they do, all they eat is nuts.

This will be the second year of poor acorn crop, they are in the fields eating grass.  But the meat was good last year and should be this year also.

I keep my timber fenced off from the cattle except for a few savannas so they can have shade.

[Seth]

I've ate a lot of grain fed NOMO deer and plenty that have lived on acorns and I can't see where there is much difference in taste. Of the hundreds of deer that we've messed with over the years, I can think of three that tasted funky. Two were 4.5-5.5 year old bucks and one was a stunted doe (long nose but small body and had a fawn). Not sure what was up with them, but they had a "wang" to them.

Dad and I usually harvest 10-15 deer between us each year so we've dealt with A LOT of deer over the years. We always process them ourselves. I've seen how several other people handle deer after they are killed and I'm not sure I'd ever take a deer from them if they offered. I think I'd be eating more hair than meat!

I could eat the following venison treats/dishes every day of my life and die happy
1) jalapeno pepperjack sweet bologna from 5H Meats in Hermann
2) our homemade jalapeno cheddar deer brats
3) a hind quarter roast crock potted on low for 8-10 hours in Louie's Italian Beef seasoning, shredded and put on a bun with banana peppers and provolone cheese
4) a backstrap seasoned liberally with Greek seasoning and grilled rare-medium rare
5) thinly sliced backstrap stir fry with peppers, onions, mushrooms and broccoli
6) venison jalapeno poppers (sliced backstrap, chive and onion cream cheese, jalapeno slice, bacon,)
7) spicy chili with ground venison, shredded cheddar, hot sauce and sour cream
8) carne asada tacos