The “Other” Venison

What to make when you are sick of steaks.

I shot my first whitetail forty-two years ago and with that rather unlucky and much perforated doe I was also indoctrinated into the art of home processing venison. (Although, I will admit to some help back then from my father and uncle.)

I have not passed a year since without dulling a knife on deer meat. For much of that time it was simple, I made steaks, roast and stew meat, which was easy, proven and boring. I grew restless and decided to branch out. I started exploring the world of jerky and sausage and now it’s getting hard to find a steak in my freezer.

Jerky is always a crowd pleaser and everybody in my family from the dog on up the chain of command loves it. It’s fun and easy to make. Simply cut the lean meat with the grain into quarter-inch thick strips, season and dry. Well at least that’s the short version. If you like your meat less chewy, try grinding it and using a jerky gun to make the tender version.

There are tools to help cut the meat evenly and mixes to season and cure the meat, along with trays to dry it in the oven and smokers and dehydrators that will also turn meat into jerky. High Mountain Seasonings and Cabela’s together have more flavors of mixes than you could try with an entire herd of deer at your disposal. Drying is easy in your kitchen oven or in a commercial dehydrator. But, I love jerky that’s been dried in my Bradley smoker. This smoker is computer controlled so you can control the heat and the smoke for a perfect outcome.

I am not sure what I enjoy more about sausage, making it or eating it. There are endless varieties and recipes and experimenting is half the fun. To get started you will need a meat grinder and either a sausage stuffer attachment or a separate sausage stuffer. High Mountain Seasonings and Cabela’s both offer lots of pre-packaged mixes and kits for making everything from baloney to snack sticks. Bratwurst, summer sausage, hot Italian, breakfast sausage, sausage patties, German sausage, Polish sausage, Chorizo, pepperoni, the list goes on. Just about any type of sausage can be made with venison. By the time you try them all, you would think that whitetails would be extinct, but we all know that’s not going to happen. (Like Leno said, “Go ahead, eat all you want, we’ll make more.”) Best of all you control how it’s made. (The sausage, not the deer.) I have to watch my cholesterol, so I keep the fat content low in my sausage. I am also experimenting with other ingredients that allow me to use little or no added fat and still keep the sausage moist and full of flavor. This approach keeps me eating good and my heart pumping. Only do it yourself sausage allows that versatility.

Most of the sausage kits have complete instructions. There are also lots of books and videos on the subject. Soon, I will be adding my own book on venison to the options.

All this and everything else you need for processing venison are available from Cabela’s.

Cabela's
One Cabela Drive
Sidney, NE 69160
1-800-237-4444
www.cabelas.com