Cooking Venison

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Andy M.

Certified Pretend Chef
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A friend gave me a piece of venison steak. It's about 12 ounces.

I'm looking for advice on how to cook it to its best advantage. Obviously, it's very lean and I don't want to mess it up.

Any advice and/or recipes are appreciated.
 
What cut of meat is it? When we have had venison, we have just cooked it the same way we would cook a similar piece of beef. But, the venison we have had was never "gamey tasting". The venison was bled immediately after killing and guts removed. No driving hundreds of miles with the deer strapped to the outside of the car.
 
No clue as to the cut of meat. It’s dark red and LEAN.

If you had mystery beef that lean, how would you cook it? I would consider making something like chicken fried steak. I might cut off a small piece and fry it to see if it's gamey tasting and how tough or tender it is. That might help you decide.
 
If you had mystery beef that lean, how would you cook it? I would consider making something like chicken fried steak. I might cut off a small piece and fry it to see if it's gamey tasting and how tough or tender it is. That might help you decide.

Good thought, thanks.
 
Having grown up eating venison as often as beef, I am with TL, cook it as if it were beef. We always eat our venison on the rare side of medium-rare. Because we butcher our own deer, we usually have venison stock on hand. I will make a gravy to serve on roasted potatoes. The gravy is made with the stock, lingonberry jelly, grated gjetost cheese, and cream. You can use beef stock in place of the venison stock. Pincherry, red currant, chokecherry or high bush cranberry can be substituted for the lingonberry jelly.
 
Having grown up eating venison as often as beef, I am with TL, cook it as if it were beef. We always eat our venison on the rare side of medium-rare. Because we butcher our own deer, we usually have venison stock on hand. I will make a gravy to serve on roasted potatoes. The gravy is made with the stock, lingonberry jelly, grated gjetost cheese, and cream. You can use beef stock in place of the venison stock. Pincherry, red currant, chokecherry or high bush cranberry can be substituted for the lingonberry jelly.

Thanks.
 
The gravy is what we call reindeer gravy...don't know why, just know my Grandma made it, my Mom made it, and I make it. I keep a blend of juniper berry-coarse salt-freshly ground pepper (white-pink-black-green) in a jar for seasoning the venison "from up high." A typical blend of salt to pepper with about 1/3 as much ground dry juniper berries...I have been wanting to try grilling the steak with juniper branches in the bottom...haven't tried that yet.
 
I think you'll love it, Andy.
I've had deer steaks many times over the years - Just simply fry it quickly with lots of butter on high heat to medium-rare - no gamey taste, and you'll enjoy sopping up the sauce with bread of your choice. It's a treat.
 
Butter is good, but bacon fat is better. I do a reverse sear...CI griddle pan...about 8-9 minutes total time, if not less, and let it rest 5-6 minutes.
 
Venidon can be gamey and or tough. Cut a small chunk off and fry it. If it's tender and great tasting, you can pan fry, or grill it over charcoal. If it's tough, throw it into a pressure cooker with potatoes, cabbage, carrot, onion, and garlic to make boilrd dinner
If it's overly gamey, cooking it in a rich tomato sauce will tame it. Venison also is great for carne asada, or slow roasted (braised) or pressure cooked, then shredded, with cumin and peppers added for taco, burrito, a tamale filling. All that being said, i had venison steaks from the tenderloin.
This was corn fed venison that was harvested by farmers protecting their crops. It was better than beef, with no gamey flavor, and very tender. You just need to see what you have. I hope you have a very taty piece of meat. Me, I like a little ganiness.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
 
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Venidon can be gamey and or tough. Cut a small chunk off and fry it. If it's tender and great tasting, you can pan fry, or grill it over charcoal. If it's tough, throw it into a pressure cooker with potatoes, cabbage, carrot, onion, and garlic to make boilrd dinner
If it's overly gamey, cooking it in a rich tomato sauce will tame it. Venison also is great for carne asada, or slow roasted (braised) or pressure cooked, then shredded, with cumin and peppers added for taco, burrito, a tamale filling. All that being said, i had venison steaks from the tenderloin.
This was corn fed venison that was harvested by farmers protecting their crops. It was better than beef, with no gamey flavor, and very tender. You just need to see what you have. I hope you have a very taty piece of meat. Me, I like a little ganiness.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
In all the years I have eaten venison, I can't say I have ever found it to be gamey. I "think" a buck might be, but we always went after the does. Friends did marinate venison in bottled Italian dressing to tame the gamey taste. Others soaked it overnight in milk, we never did either.
 
Depending on where the deer was harvested, it can be bery gamey, if they have been eating the cedar. I had a neck roast that was so gamey, it was inedible. I had to throw the whole roast out.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
 
Depending on where the deer was harvested, it can be bery gamey, if they have been eating the cedar. I had a neck roast that was so gamey, it was inedible. I had to throw the whole roast out.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
Interesting. We always hunt the Tamarack swamp and the deer do eat cedar, too. Mind you, we didn't get a deer this year, but last year's was a young doe and shot in the Tamarack swamp...never had that experience.
 
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