slo’s TUESDAY 11/4 poll - Venison (Deer Meat)

[lovesmurfs]

I said it's okay, but there's backstory. My grandfather was a HUGE hunter and often gave us venison from the deer he shot.

My mother was NOT (and is still not) any kind of a cook (think hockey puck pork chops, veggies cooked beyond recognition, etc.). She would always try to hide the venison, but she didn't do anything to make the meat less gamey. We could always tell, and if asked as a kid, I would say I hated venison. Even as an adult, I had some venison in chili and didn't like it (and I could tell it was venison).

That said, in 2017 when DH and I went to Scotland, the restaurant in the B&B we were at had a game casserole with partridge, pheasant, and venison on the menu, and it sounded intriguing, so I ordered it. I could eat that all day, every day -- it was AMAZING.

But I don't know that I'd be brave enough to try venison alone. Picture doesn't do it justice.

 

[BrianL]

I said it's okay, but there's backstory. My grandfather was a HUGE hunter and often gave us venison from the deer he shot.

My mother was NOT (and is still not) any kind of a cook (think hockey puck pork chops, veggies cooked beyond recognition, etc.). She would always try to hide the venison, but she didn't do anything to make the meat less gamey. We could always tell, and if asked as a kid, I would say I hated venison. Even as an adult, I had some venison in chili and didn't like it (and I could tell it was venison).

That said, in 2017 when DH and I went to Scotland, the restaurant in the B&B we were at had a game casserole with partridge, pheasant, and venison on the menu, and it sounded intriguing, so I ordered it. I could eat that all day, every day -- it was AMAZING.

But I don't know that I'd be brave enough to try venison alone. Picture doesn't do it justice.

View attachment 1021979

No, that picture definitely doesn't do it justice! It's kind of amazing that there is all this other pretty presentation and then just...that! I guess there's not much you can do with something like that. Glad it was tasty though.

 

[fla4fun]

I had it a couple of times as a teenager, and it was good. I don’t know what cut it was. A relative who was a hunter gave us some to take home.

 

[HopperFan]

Tried once, small nibble
Did not like it
Gamey
Never again
I also feed my neighbor deer
I can't imagine eating them

 

[BlueStarryHat]

I had it a few times, because my dad's best friend was a hunter and when we'd go to visit them his wife was always cooking with it. None of us liked it, even though we tried to be polite about it. I remember specifically venison meatballs in her spaghetti. I just remember it having an 'off' flavor where you could tell it wasn't ground beef.

Of course, it could have been all in our minds because he always had a few dead deer hanging on a line in his backyard ready to be whatever it is you do to them. If there had been dead cows hanging there, I might have been put off by beef. I'm a hypocrite-I eat meat, but if you show me how it gets to my table I can't. I can't even pick a lobster out of a tank.

 

[easyas123]

I didn't grow up with a father who hunts but I married a man who does, and both of my sons (and a few nephews & nieces) are rabid hunters & fishers. Fast forward being married 30+ years and we (well mostly my husband and sons, but I help on occasion) process a majority of our own meat. My freezer has deer, turkey, duck, goose, squirrel & rabbit in it. Also turtle, which was bought although he used to trap those. And lamb & pork (we buy a lamb & pig from a kid at the local 4H fair auction and they send them to the butcher for us).
The only thing I eat is the deer, I draw the line at rabbit or squirrel although I'll cook anything. I'm known for my turtle stew but na...won't eat it! On the years he gets a wild boar I don't eat that either.
Over the years we have invested in better tools to more efficiently butcher the deer, and it's not so much of chore now that we have a system down...but we didn't always have a system that included a chamber sealer and a walk in cooler to hang deer!
After he butchers the deer I'll roast some of the bones and make batches of stock w/ them.
I will say I think its criminal when people pretend or hide something is wild game to fool people into eating it. I would be livid if someone did that to me. People should be able to freely choose if they want to eat it, not tricked into it by someone trying to prove a point.

 

[firefly_ris]

My husband doesn't hunt, but we know lots of people that do and sometimes are generously gifted venison.

When my big dogs were still alive, they ate a prey model raw diet so I really loved hunting season because our friends would give me deer heart, trachea, offal and legs for them, which really gave lots of nutrition and cut down on the dogs food bill those months. Plus our friends liked doing it for me because hardly any of the animal went to waste.

I like venison sausage and ground venison when I can get it. It is very lean so I am careful not to over-cook. Some years our friends don't bag more than a single deer (or none!) so we don't get it too frequently, unless we are a guest and being served for dinner or something.

I like being able to have some meat that wasn't raised in a gross factory farm. Even better when it's free!

Not hunting, but my husband helps his friend process their meat chickens a couple times per year and so sometimes are gifted with fresh yard-raised chicken. Or at least some eggs!

 

[tvguy]

I didn't think it was legally for wild deer to be sold commercially. It could vary from state to state.
I have had it, it's fine. We have friends who hunt and most of their venison gets turned into sausage.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

I've had it a number of times. As with many meats, especially more wild game, it's all about the cut and how it's prepared. Venison sausage is pretty common here and some of them are excellent.

 

[Moliphino]

I will say I think its criminal when people pretend or hide something is wild game to fool people into eating it. I would be livid if someone did that to me. People should be able to freely choose if they want to eat it, not tricked into it by someone trying to prove a point.

Yeah, I think lying about any food you serve to others is wrong and will probably have the opposite of the intended effect when it doesn't taste like what you lied that it was. When I was a kid, one Easter our parents served us lamb and told us it was beef. We all thought there must be something really wrong for the beef to taste like that and most of us won't eat lamb to this day.

 

[clappyclaps]

I've tried venison, enjoyed it and liked but it's not something I eat often. Depending on the cut or what else is on the menu, I'd definitely be interested in eating it again.

 

[AppleDumpling]

Never had it, but wouldn’t be opposed to trying it. I’ve had elk and bison burgers and both weren’t bad.

 

[BrianL]

I had it a few times, because my dad's best friend was a hunter and when we'd go to visit them his wife was always cooking with it. None of us liked it, even though we tried to be polite about it. I remember specifically venison meatballs in her spaghetti. I just remember it having an 'off' flavor where you could tell it wasn't ground beef.

Of course, it could have been all in our minds because he always had a few dead deer hanging on a line in his backyard ready to be whatever it is you do to them. If there had been dead cows hanging there, I might have been put off by beef. I'm a hypocrite-I eat meat, but if you show me how it gets to my table I can't. I can't even pick a lobster out of a tank.

Yeah, me too. Meat comes from a supermarket, right? That's as far as I wanna know about it.

 

[MamaMermaid]

I've tried it once and it didn't really care for it.

 

[RedAngie]

I tried venison meatballs and meatloaf a few times close to 40 years. Yeah, it had a “different” taste, not bad, but not really all that good either. A friend of exH hunted and served venison at some gatherings. He gave us some “steaks” and “roasts” but I threw them out.