Bambi on the Grill

A deer friend (groan) brought me two large chunks of venison. He wanted me and my husband to smoke it. I'd heard that deer was too lean to smoke well, so I thought we better do some in a braise (cooking slowly in liquid) to make sure that all of it wasn't dry. Besides, I had only made venison once before and I wanted, like Stephen Colbert, to be able to lose twice.

Some people don't like venison because deer are so pretty. I never had that problem. In fact, when I watched the movie Bambi as a child I was rooting for the hunter (no, not really, but it makes for a good story).

The deer pieces were labeled - one was marked 'shoulder' and the other very descriptively marked 'chunk.' No, that wasn't a misspelling for chuck. Our friend got tired of cutting up the quarter he received and just hacked it into a few pieces.

I brined the parts overnight while I perused the eGullet thread on venison to get some ideas. I trimmed the shoulder and cubed the trimmings along with a chunk of the chunk and browned it in a Dutch oven. I added onion and carrot, then deglazed the pan with some dry sherry. I added some chicken broth and fresh thyme, then stuck the pan in a 300 degree oven with my fingers crossed.

While I was trimming the deer parts, I found that the venison didn't smell all gamey like the previous venison I had cooked. That was a bonus because that previous batch smelled a lot like oil paint. I know food is art, but that's a little too much.

The rest of the deer parts went into the smoker with trepidation. I figured the worst case scenario involved a call to Pizza Hut so what the heck. After struggling to maintain heat levels on a 35 degree day for two hours, I decided that would be enough smoke and transferred the venison to the oven, covered with foil.

Two hours later the moment of truth arrived. Luckily, it was a great success. The stew was flavorful and the meat fall apart tender. The smoked meat had a tremendous flavor and a thick smoke ring even if it was a tad dry. It was pretty tender, though - a lot more tender than I had hoped for. Whew.

After all was said and done, I had a great idea. The next time I do venison on the grill, I'll wrap it or lard it with bacon. That's the only way it could be better.

Comments

[Robert King]

Darcie,
Great blog, especially enjoyed this post. Glad you had a good experiance, Venison is the bomb smoked. It needs alittle loving getting it ready but the results are well worth it. Finely ground clean pork fat, either larding needled in or embedded in slits around the outer surfaces will make the deer taste like the finest filet. Try mixing some Cavenders greek seasoning into the fat befor larding, net the roast and brine as you normally would. Pat dry and liberally rub with spices, as loud as you dare, Smoke as you would beef by hanging the net, when the internal fat has melted out, get it out and let it cool completely.
Looking forward to your reports on the next deer that comes you way.
Robert