Venison is the meat of any antlered animal. By far the venison most commonly eaten is deer, followed by elk and moose. The word venison comes from the Latin venatio, which means game or hunting.
For the best tasting venison, handle the animal properly at the time it is shot. Bleed, eviscerate, and cool the carcass at once. Wipe any bloody or soiled areas with a dry cloth, but do not wash the meat. Wet meat spoils faster than dry meat.
Venison from a freshly killed animal should be aged at 36 degrees for one to two weeks. Older animals usually require longer aging than do the young ones. Ideal aging conditions are found at a meat locker. Under field conditions, use the most convenient icing or chilling procedures.
Antlered animals are butchered into cuts similar to beef cuts. Since the fat of venison is strong flavored, remove as much of it as possible. Shoulder and rib portions are usually cut into roasts or chops, loin into steaks, rump into roasts, and round into steaks or roasts. Other portions are used for stews and ground meats. When grinding venison, mix the meat with a little salt pork.
The most common methods of preserving venison are by freezing or canning. In either case, follow the processing recommendations for beef.
To cook venison, use the same guidelines as you do for beef. Tender cuts such as loin roasts, rib chops, loin steaks, and ground meats may be fried, broiled, or roasted. With these cooking methods, the meat can be cooked to your liking. Because venison is very lean and dry, small amounts of bacon fat or salt pork may be added to the meat by larding. Less tender cuts are cooked slowly in liquid until the meat is tender. A pressure pan can be used to hasten the tenderizing action.
Added seasonings do much to enhance the flavor of venison. Marinades are commonly used in this capacity as well as to aid in tenderizing the meat. Seasonings such as herbs, spices, wines, tomatoes, onion, garlic, ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce are especially good when combined with venison.
