One thing you know for sure about wild meat is that it hasn’t been loaded with chemicals and growth hormones to get it to market quickly. In general, it has feasted on wild plants and grasses. It’s about the most natural meat you could get. When hunting and harvesting wild game, you know the exact date it was harvested, the type of animal, when it was butchered and put in your freezer. The difference in taste is remarkable. Unfortunately, my hunting days have rather come to a close, so the closest meat we can get is from the Circle D Ranch, just north of the Whitehorse. That’s where we get our Black Angus meat, freshly killed, hung and butchered on the ranch. There are no chemicals added and the animals feed entirely on chemical-free grass fields. What more could a retired hunter ask for?
Of course, in the final analysis, venison is one of the finest meats you could adorn the supper table with. I’ve used the following recipe to cook it. Different big-game animals have specific heats and cooking times, as you’ll see below.
Wild game steak
Ingredients
1/2 cup white onions, chopped very fine
1 tbsp drippings
2-1/2 cups chopped tomatoes.
2-1/2 cups cooked brown mushrooms, chopped
1/4 cup sliced pimento (plus a small portion of liquid)
1 bay leaf
Instructions
Mix and simmer together for about 15 minutes.
Brown enough venison steaks to feed half a dozen hungry family members.
Once browned, cover with above sauce.
Bake at 350 F for about one hour.
One recipe to fit all
Ingredients
1/2 cup chopped white onions
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp white flour
1 cup chopped brown mushrooms
5 steaks
Instructions
Lightly brown your onions in butter. Remove these from the fat and then slowly brown your steaks on both sides.
Spread the browned onions over the steaks and cook very slowly for about 30 minutes on the stovetop until the steaks are tender.
Mix together the sour cream, flour and brown mushrooms to create a sauce.
Add this to the steaks while still hot.
Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes.
Venison chops with garlic
Ingredients
5 to 6 venison chops
2 cups of cooked diced carrots
1 garlic clove
4 tbsp flour
2 tbsp cooking oil
4 tbsp chilli sauce
2 medium white onions, chopped
3/4 cup dry wine
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Rub chops with cut clove garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Sear chops on both sides in cooking oil in a frying pan, then remove to a baking dish.
Sauté onions and carrots in frying pan until the onions are soft.
Add the flour, chill sauce and wine. Cook until thickened.
Place some of the carrot mixture on top of each chop and bake at 300 F for 45 minutes.
Barbeque deer steak in marinade
Ingredients
1 lbs deer meat
Dry red wine
Steak spice to taste
Your favourite barbeque sauce
Garlic powder and pepper to taste
Instructions
Take 1 lbs piece of deer loin or hind. Cut into steaks to about 2 to 3 centimetres thick. Place this in a non-metal marinade dish. Sprinkle with steak spice, garlic powder and pepper. Add a small amount of dry red wine and allow to stand for 2 to 4 hours.
Remove and place on a hot barbeque to sear for 3 to 4 minutes. Turn the heat down to low.
Pour the remainder of the marinade over the steak and then close the barbeque cover.
Allow to set for about 6 minutes.
Turn the barbeque to high heat and flip steaks over. Baste with barbeque sauce. After 4 minutes, turn temperature down to low. Steaks should be ready in about another 7 minutes.
I’ll close this week’s column with some wise words on survival: The best way to make an emergency fire with two sticks is to make sure one of them is a match. And I will say Amen to that brother!
