Venison...

Unknown

Okay, last weekend was buttermilk in tri-tips. This week I am doing venison backstrap or tenderloins (not sure which is in which packet). In days gone by I would flour them up and fry up with some sauted onions but in days gone by I didn't have an egg...[p]I know first hand that venison will dry out if not prepared properly since it so lean. With that being said, does anyone have any ideas on how to prepare 'em, egg-wise? What temps am I gonna be cooking at? What internal temp will I be looking for? Should they be done indirect or direct heat? Marinate, rub or both? Please give as much detail as you can or any recipe you've ever heard of. [p]Experimentation is what it is all about.
Matt.

Unknown

South O,[p]For either of those cuts fire that egg up to maximum temperature. Rub olive oil, kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder...[p]Sear both sides about 2 minutes dwell for 2 minutes per side...let rest and enjoy...lean meats cook them FAST.[p]post how it is.

olblue

Marinate with garlic, soy sauce, tsing tao wine or sherry for 1 to 4 hours, overnight and it will be too salty.
Cook it at least 350 or more. It will over cook very fast. I once tried to cook it low and slow and the outside looked disgusting. [p]Oh yeah cut off all the tough grissle and fat.

Unknown

olblue,
Thanks but it raises a question. I am not familiar with tsing tao wine but do beleive that I have tried a beer with that name or something very similar. Would that work? Or would any wine (or beer for that matter) work as well? Just curious, escpecially since I don't do the wine thing that often.[p]I'm more of a beer dude...
Matt.

Bama Fire

South O,
I've also brined several venison parts with good results on the egg. Just need to be careful with the overcooking. The egg is much more forgiving than other grills, but dry venison is a jaw workout.[p]Good luck -- post your results![p]B~F

Unknown

South O, , The recipe linked below works great for a deer loin (as in BACK-STRAP). I will go one step further and marinate the rolled out loin in straight Italian dressing for a few hours to give the loin a little more moisture. The jelly rolled loin technique is similar to Mr. Toad's but I keep it in one piece.[p]I have adapted Mitch's recipe for pork loins too. I marinate the pork loin just the same only I use Italian sausage instead of regular pork sausage as I use for the deer.
With the pork recipe I also add chopped onions, green/red peppers and mushrooms. I don't use bacon on the pork though.[p]In either recipe, because of the ground meat involved, you should cook the rolled stuffed loin to an internal temperature of 160F. If you can get butcher's webbing
from your local butcher, that works great. I have also tied the jelly rolled stuffed loins with butchers twine instead of using skewers or toothpicks.[p]Because I marinade and/or inject my venison roasts, I can take them to 150-155F. I do know a guy that takes them as high as 160, but that is too done for my tastes. One thing to remember, since there is little fat to render out, once that meat hits 140F keep a close watch. It won't be long before it will hit your target temperature.[p]I cook these indirectly at about 250F grate temperature.[p]I do have a sweet and sour marinade that I use for deer steaks and smaller roasts if you are interested. I hope this helps and if you have any questions post them here or
e-mail me.[p]Beers,[p]Juggy D Beerman

[ul][li]Mitch's recipe[/ul]

Unknown

South O,[p]The horror of marinading backstrap or tenderloin is too much to bear...Please South O if you have good quality venison don't marinade or cover the taste...minimum preparation is necessary. Cook hot and fast. Do fillet off the silverskin on the backstrap so its all meat.[p]Italian dressing and venison should never be in the same sentence...shudder.

Unknown

David Sutera, At the risk of sounding like I am backtracking or talking out of both sides of my mouth, I will post this.[p]I too prefer the full flavored taste of venison, especially the choice cuts of backstrap (loin) and the true tenderloin. However there are times when it may be warranted to marinate these cuts. [p]One of these times in my case is when I am serving this to my kids. They don't like venison that has not had a flavoring agent such as a marinade. They don't like venison at all if it tastes like (straight) deer.[p]A lot of people that don't like deer don't like it because the deer tastes gamey. Now what you are about to read is my personal opinion on why some deer taste better than others.[p]IMHO deer are just like livestock in how they taste. A deer that ate mainly corn and soy beans is going to taste a lot better than deer that was raised on acorns just like a corn fed cow will taste better than a one raised on grass.[p]Harvesting has a LOT to do with how the deer will taste too. Was the deer killed immediately after being shot or did it run through the woods for a mile before dying? The former will taste a lot better as stress on a animal that is slowly dying will affect the taste in any animal whether it be wild game or farm animals raised to be slaughtered.[p]Was the animal dragged a mile or two to camp before it was tagged in? This can affect how the deer will taste. How hot was it that day the animal was harvested? Here in Missouri, the last few years of deer season, it was well above 60F during most of the day. It was too hot to hang a deer outside and even the Conservation Department told the hunters that they should cool their deer as soon as they could BEFORE checking them in. IMHO, improper cooling causes the strong gamey taste in deer that people don't like.[p]These are a few of the things that can affect taste. But here in Missouri the last few years, it has been very hard to get a deer properly cooled without icing it down. The past few seasons have not allowed you to hang a deer outside for a few days before butchering it. [p]Because most of the deer I eat is given to me, I cannot answer as to where the deer came from or how it was harvested or if it was properly cooled before being butchered. When these questions cannot be answered to my satisfaction, I marinate. Also because I cook for my kids now instead of just myself, I do marinate these pieces. I use a marinade when I do the jellyroll recipe because of the higher finish temperature required due to the ground meat. If I were just cooking the loin w/o stuffing it I would go to 140F.[p]But I do agree with you, it is a shame to have to marinade these pieces, but sometimes you got to in order to get your kids to eat Bambi. :-)[p]Beers,[p]Juggy

Unknown

JDB,[p]
If they don't like venison I say cook them chicken! Your points about the afterkill care are on the money...I'm in Texas and it can easily be in the 80's when we're hunting. We have to have the meat gutted and artificially cooled immediately. Its a challenge but we are very careful and always end up with superior product. [p]Since getting an egg I've had the best venison using the above recipe. I got 6 deer this year and my fiance got 1 so were getting a lot of experience cooking the good stuff...[p]:)[p]
Chicken fried backstrap would be another way to get someone little leary to eat venison. Soaked in milk or buttermilk an hour or so before cooking really makes for some good eating...[p][p]

olblue

Matt
You are right Tsingtao is beer. Shao Lin came to mind when I was writing this but I knew that wasn't the name. What I meant was Shao Hsing Wine.
According to Martin Yan a blend of glutenous rice, millet and special yeast aged for 10 years. Dry sherry is an adequate substitute.[p]On dead deer, my friends in South Carolina start their season August 15th. They don't always recover the deer opening day after the afternoon hunt. They swear up and down that a deer recovered the next day has not spoiled and tastes better than deer shot later in the year. [p]