I have had more then one person ask me about cooking with Venison(deer meat) so I will try to answer some of the questions I get asked.
What do you use it in? I will use it just like beef, when we get a deer processed we have them make sausages, hamburger, steaks, and stew meat, so I will use it just like beef. The hamburger we use in everything from chili, hamburgers, spaghetti, tacos, just like reg. hamburger.
Is it hard to cook? No not really you just need to cook it low and slow, tenderize and season it good and it will come out great.
Does it taste weird? I don't think so, it taste like meat, not gamey if that's a word. I like it because it is very very lean(way less fat then beef) Which is sometimes bad because fat is what makes it flavorful and moist, that's why you have to tenderize it or cook it in something, just grilling it kind of makes it dry. I also love it because I can save money by not having to buy a lot of meat. And one deer last us almost one year. And it is better for you because most of them out here are corn fed and the meat is so lean. And my family can't even tell when I use deer or beef, Justin always has to ask! I hope that helped those of you who are always asking me about cooking with deer meat!So go ahead and give it try!
This is what I made last night, Salisbury steak on mashed potatoes, using deer burger. It came out wonderfully! Zander ate two patties! The flavor was just the way I wanted it, nice and comforting!
Salisbury Steak
I saw this over at Southern Plate , again her blog of recipes are awesome!
1 lb Lean Ground Beef, I used deer burger
1/3 Cup Bread Crumbs or Cracker Crumbs
½ tsp Salt
¼ tsp Pepper
1 Egg
Small Onion Sliced (I use half) (Optional)
1 Can Condensed Beef Broth
1 – 4oz Can Sliced Mushrooms (Drained)
I added a couple tablespoons of Non-alcoholic white wine to scrape up the bits on the pan and it punches up the flavor(HEB carries it, you just have to ask the wine guy!)
2 T. Cornstarch
2T Water
1 - Packet Brown Gravy Mix or 1 - Jar/Can Brown Gravy
Mix First 5 ingredients together and shape into ovals about ¾ inches thick. Cook patties in a skillet turning once until brown. Remove patties to a casserole dish and keep warm. Add onion mushroom to the pan, saute for a few minutes and then add the wine and scrape up all the bits on the bottom of the pan, then add beef broth heat to boiling. Reduce heat cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Mix water and cornstarch together to make a paste. Add to boiling mixture with a wire whisk and whisk until gravy begins to thicken. I don’t think the gravy is hearty enough for me so I also add 1 packet of brown or mushroom gravy prepared according to package directions and add to the beef broth gravy. I then pour the gravy over the patties in the casserole dish and bake at 350 until bubbly.
Serve with rice, mashed potatoes or noodles
For later.
