Venison: the Perfect Autumn Sunday Dinner

While I’m not a huge fan of the short days, I do welcome the coziness of winter that comes with them. There is nothing cozier than warm, home cooked meals to really make the dark, cold nights enjoyable. Along with the coming of deep autumn comes soups, chilies, stews and of course, around these parts, venison.

Now that we are a few weeks into deer hunting season, it’s time to start figuring out how to eat all that amazing venison that is filling up your freezer. If you are a seasoned venison cook, you probably have a good number of ways you like to prepare it. In my house, venison meatball subs are a must-have weeknight meal in the fall and a friend of mine swears by her venison gyros recipe.

Steve Purcell from Larry’s Bait and Tackle said he has trouble picking his favorite way to cook venison. “There’s a million different ways you can cook it,” said Purcell who keeps his deer in vacuumed sealed freezer bags. “Six to eight months from now, they taste almost just as good as they day you butcher it,” he said.

Rear-quarter steaks, pan-seared in a cast iron skillet with a little olive oil, garlic and salt and pepper would be a definite contender for favorite for Purcell. He also recommends grilling the back straps and the tenderloin and making chili or stew from the front shoulder. “If you have a good sized deer, you can make a roast from the neck,” he said.

Purcell and a few friends also get together and put meat toward sausages, kielbasas and hot Italian links as well.

What’s your favorite way to cook venison? We know there are a number of you Island cooks out there who can really wow us with your recipes.