Venison Cheesesteak

by almost_rosey // 9Jun2022 // No Comments

It’s rare for us to eat steak in our house. I certainly would never buy it to make cheesesteaks. Not that we cannot afford it (although the price has gone up), but I honestly find it’s so tender and delicious with venison steak instead. We are fortunate enough to have harvested deer and to be able to go outside to our freezer and pull out some venison steaks to make dishes such as this.

Venison Cheesesteak (serves 2)

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil, plus more for the pan
1/2 onion thinly sliced
1/2 bell pepper thinly sliced (color of your choice)
2 venison steaks
worcestershire sauce
jalapeno salsa
Mrs Dash Table Blend seasoning
salt
1/2 cup plus more to taste shredded gouda cheese (or cheddar) (I used a combo of both)
choice of bread (I used hotdog buns in my pantry), toasted
whole grain mustard
horseradish sauce
horseradish (optional on the side for extra zing)

Directions

Thinly slice the steak into thin strips. Place in a medium bowl and sprinkle generously with salt and seasoning. Add the oil, numerous dashes of worcestershire sauce, and 1-2 tbsp on salsa and mix well. Let sit for 60 minutes.
Heat a small amount of olive oil in a skillet. Sauté the onions and bell pepper until soft and caramelized. Remove from pan. Add the meat and cook over medium high to high heat for 1-2 minutes each side. Add the peppers and cheese on top and cover to allow cheese to melt
Coat the toasted bread with mustard and horseradish sauce. Place meat over bread and serve with side of your choice

Venison Helper

by almost_rosey // 20Jan2018 // No Comments

One of the many benefits of deer hunting is getting to eat your harvested animal until the next deer hunting season. We always process our deer so that we have steaks & roasts on hand. We’ve learned through trial and error though that we are not fans of certain cuts of meat. I turn my front quarters into jerky and this year my guy turned his deer’s front quarters into brats. He got jalapeño cheddar brats as well as kielbasa brats. The kielbasa ones are fine but the jalapeño cheddar brats are amazing!! There was some extra filling that wasn’t enough to make a pack of brats so the guys at the meat market just wrapped it up for us. I figured it would be good for some skillet dishes.

Many of us grew up eating hamburger helper but it is so easy & much better for you to just make it on your own. You can use any ground meat you like or even make it meatless if that’s your thing. I’ve made this dish before with regular ground venison as well as a ground venison/ground bacon blend and it is delicious. The jalapeño cheddar gives it a nice depth of flavor though so I imagine I’ll be making this again in the future. Bonus…it’s super quick & easy to make with ingredients you already have in your pantry and you can doctor it up any way you desire.

Venison Helper (serves 2)

1/2 lb ground venison (I used the filling from jalapeño cheddar brats)
1.5 cups dry shell pasta
1.25 cups beef broth
1 cup milk
salt, pepper, onion & garlic powder, paprika to taste (I just sprinkle a bit of each over the skillet)
1/2 cup drained whole kernel canned corn
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 tbsp flour mixed with small amount of water.

Brown the ground venison until cooked through in a large skillet. Add the pasta, broth, milk, seasonings, and corn. Stir gently. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer covered for 10-20 minutes depending on size of noodles until most of the liquid is absorbed and the noodles are al dente. Depending on how much liquid is left in skillet add small amount of flour mixed with water to the skillet and stir until sauce is thickened. Stir in cheese and serve immediately.

Venison Fajitas

by almost_rosey // 7Sep2017 // No Comments

Last year we counted 13 deer in our front yard. We both had a feeling that our garden was going to be in trouble. Surprisingly it wasn’t really in trouble from the deer too badly. It wasn’t doing as well as we hoped but the deer seemed to leave it alone.

Until they found it. I’m not sure where they were all season but they destroyed our garden once it was getting close to harvest. They dug up the beets. We got 2 beets! 2! That’s it.

They dug up the carrots. We had about 10 total. They ate all my grape tomatoes, early girls, and romas. It’s super frustrating. I love fresh produce and we had a minuscule harvest. Next year we will have to beef up our garden protection. Until then I will keep practicing with my bow and hopefully harvest one of them this year.

I’ve been fortunate enough to harvest a deer the last 2 years of hunting. This year with a bow opportunity and rifle season being hunter’s choice I am hoping the streak will continue. If it does I will enjoy all the benefits that come from hunting which includes putting meat on the table.

One of my new favorite ways to cook venison is venison fajitas. It is so easy & of course you don’t get that gamey flavor. The venison steak is also way more tender than breakfast steak which is what I normally use for fajitas. Give this a try & it might convert you to actually loving venison.

Venison Fajitas

8oz venison steak
1 oz lime juice
worcestshire sauce
olive oil
salt & pepper
taco seasoning, salt free (note I just add roughly these amounts in a dish & keep on hand. Amounts are estimates. Sometimes more or less of each depending on my mood)
- 2-3 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper or cayenne
- 1/4 tsp oregano

Brine 8 oz venison steak in 3 cups of water & 1 tbsp table salt for about 6 hrs
Rinse off the brine & cut into thin strips
Marinade the venison for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hrs in oil, lime juice, worcestershire, taco seasoning, salt, & pepper (note I am not sure how much of everything I added. I drizzled the steak with oil, gave a few splashes of worcestshire sauce, smidge salt & pepper, and 2-3 tsp salt free taco seasoning
Cook over medium high heat for about 30 seconds per side

Serve with tortillas, sautéed peppers & onions, lettuce, cheese, salsa, & sour cream

Bear Kielbasa, White Bean, & Spinach Skillet

by almost_rosey // 12Jun2017 // No Comments

Summer is here even if the season hasn’t technically started on the calendar. While it might not get as hot as some places most of the time here in Almost Canada, we do not have air conditioning. Once the weather heats up I try to make mainly skillet dishes or those which can strictly be made on the stove so I can avoid running the oven for long periods of time.

Seeing as how my guy provided us with a bear this year from his last hunting season, we have lots of kielbasa to work with. This dish is super yummy. It’s so quick & easy but unbelievably flavorful. This could serve 2 if you both a very hungry but otherwise I’d say it serves 2 for dinner and one lucky person gets left-overs for lunch the next day!

Bear Kielbasa, White Bean, & Spinach Skillet (serves 2-3)

2 bear kielbasa (or regular if you aren’t a hunter) about 6in long fully cooked & cut into 1/4 inch slices
small amount olive oil
5 oz spinach
1 can white beans (cannellini, navy, etc) drained & rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes
1 cup beef broth
1/2 tsp each basil, oregano, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder
pepper & crushed red pepper to taste
grated parmesan

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook, stirring, until nicely browned. Add beef broth, cannellini beans, diced tomatoes, seasonings, and pepper/crushed red pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and let it simmer, uncovered for 15 minutes to allow broth to reduce a little.
Stir in spinach until wilted. Garnish with Parmesan. Ladle into bowls and serve with garlic bread.

Korean Venison & Broccoli

by almost_rosey // 23May2017 // No Comments

I’m embarrassed to say that my guy has done the majority of cooking with our venison. He has made chicken fried venison, various steaks, and every roast we have had in the past two years. It’s not that I can’t try cooking the roasts, that’s just how it has worked out. He perfected the roast recipe so I have just let him cook all of them. I have made a few dishes with the venison. Most of which I have yet to post.

One of the very first meals I made with my first deer was Asian Venison & Broccoli (which I did actually blog about). That deer is long gone but I was fortunate enough to harvest another deer last season. When I was trying to figure out what to make for dinner I figured I would try something similar. One of the only vegetables I can easily get in my grocery store is broccoli.

I also always have the other ingredients for the marinade in my pantry so figured it would be quick and easy.

The marinade I found was from bon appetite. It’s called bulgogi which is Korean. I’ve used in on chicken and am absolutely in love with the flavors (I do cut out a few of the ingredients for convenience but I like the way it turns out my way). Normally when you cook it you grill it or pan fry it without adding additional sauce to it so that it has a nice char on the outside. I wanted a sauce for the rice & broccoli though.

Korean Venison & Broccoli (serves 2)

small amount of sesame & olive oil
8 oz venison steak*sliced into thin strips
1/2 to 3/4 head broccoli, cut into florets and blanched or lightly steamed.
1/2 cup white rice, cook according to package directions

*I did also brine my steaks (before slicing them) in 4 cups water and 2 tsp salt which is a very mild brine but so much salt is being added in the marinade & sauce I didn’t want the salt to be over powering. Rinse the brine off and pat dry before slicing.

Marinade

2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1-2 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp crushed red pepper
few dashes ground ginger
1 tsp corn starch
few dashes salt

Sauce

1 tbsp each hoisin, oyster, soy sauce, and water
1-2 tsp rice vinegar
dash or two ground ginger & garlic powder

Add marinade to venison (except for corn starch & salt) and allow to stand for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix sauce ingredients together.

Heat a small amount of sesame oil or sesame & olive oil in a skillet (I find too much sesame oil is overwhelming so usually do a blend for stir-fries). Add the corn starch & salt to the venison and stir. Add the marinaded venison and cook briefly over medium to medium high heat (about 30 seconds per side). Add the broccoli and the sauce and allow to come to a boil. Cook for another 2 minutes or so. Add a smidge more corn starch if needed to thicken sauce. Serve over rice.

Poutine

by almost_rosey // 29Mar2016 // No Comments

I have never had real Poutine. I don’t know how this is possible considering I live in Minnesota or Almost Canada. I had poutine at the MN State Fair but it wasn’t real Poutine. It was more like a fast food version. This recipe might not be traditional but it is delicious. Maybe one day I will have a traditional version but until I do this will suit me just fine.

Poutine (serves 2)

1-1.5 cups shredded cooked duck
1 cup duck gravy
2 cups diced potatoes
2 tbsp lard
salt & pepper to taste
shredded swiss cheese

Fry the potatoes in the lard with salt & pepper until crispy. Place in a pie plate.

Top with shredded duck and then gravy. Bake for 15-20 minutes until duck is heated through. Top with swiss cheese. Bake for 5 minutes more until cheese is melted. Serve & enjoy

Asian Venison & Broccoli

by almost_rosey // 6Jan2016 // No Comments

I harvested my first deer this last deer season. My guide cooked the tenderloin & made chicken fried venison steaks thus far, but one of the reasons I wanted to harvest a deer was to learn how to cook with venison. It’s hard for me to justify hunting unless you have good reasons, i.e. putting food on the table, conservation, using the hide, gaining skills & perspective on life, etc. I don’t understand people who hunt for antlers. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t turn down a nice buck to put on the wall, but that cannot be my only reason to hunt.

One of the times my guide and I went to check out my hunting grounds I brought my shotgun with me to see if I could get some grouse or other small game. My guide said, “There is a squirrel, shoot him.” This is what he saw…

I, however, saw this…

Needless to say I didn’t shoot him. I saw a squirrel and he was eating something. He was small. There was not enough meat on him to feed one, let alone two. I looked back at my guide and I said, “He’s eating breakfast.” I kid you not. Hunting happens in split seconds and in that moment I didn’t see something worth shooting. I saw an animal enjoying the morning like my guide and I were doing.

Maybe that is part of the reason why I was able to harvest a deer. Maybe the world smiled upon me for making a good hunting choice on when to shoot. My deer was not so lucky in that aspect. I decided to pull the trigger. Now I have provided my guide and myself with a freezer full of venison.

I decided to cook with one of the choice cuts of meat for my first attempt at cooking venison. It actually turned out really good. I will definitely be making this again in the future.

Asian Venison & Broccoli (serves 2)

small amount of sesame & olive oil
1 lb deer steak sliced into thin bite-sized strips or pieces
heaping tsp minced garlic
12 oz bag broccoli florets, blanched or lightly steamed.
1/2 cup white rice cooked according to package directions

Marinade

1 tsp corn starch
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/8 tsp each onion & garlic powder
pinch each salt & pepper

Sauce

1.5 tbsp each hoisin, oyster, & soy sauce
2 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp each chili sauce & honey
1/4 tsp ground mustard
dash or two ground ginger

Add marinade to venison and allow to stand for 15-30 minutes. Meanwhile, mix sauce ingredients together.

Heat a small amount of sesame oil or sesame & olive oil in a skillet (I find too much sesame oil is overwhelming so usually do a blend for stir-fries). Add the marinaded venison and garlic and cook briefly (about 1-2 minutes depending on how thin your pieces are). Add the sauce and allow to come to a boil. Cook for another 2 minutes or so. Stir in the broccoli and serve over rice with additional soy sauce.

Wild Turkey Chowder

by almost_rosey // 27Dec2015 // No Comments

This year I shot my first turkey. I made thai turkey noodles for my first dish and have kept the rest in the freezer. As I am participating in a thing called the 12 Soups of Christmas I decided to use up my turkey breasts and make a chowder. Delicious.

Wild Turkey Chowder (serves 3)

1 yellow onion, diced
1 cup diced carrots
2 potatoes, diced
1/8 tsp each garlic & onion powder
1/4tsp salt plus more to taste
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp oregano
black pepper to taste
12 oz vegetable broth
12 oz milk
2 tbsp flour
8oz wild turkey breast, silver skin removed, cut into 1in pieces seasoned with small amount of salt, pepper, onion, & garlic powder
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp shaky parmesan

Heat butter in large stock pot. Brown turkey on all sides, remove, & set aside. Add onion, potatoes, & carrots and cook until potatoes begin to become softened, about 10 minutes. Add turkey back to pot. Add vegetable stock & seasonings and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, & simmer for about 20 minutes until vegetables are tender. Add the milk to the flour to create a slurry & then add to the pot. Bring to a boil while stirring. Reduce heat to a simmer for about 15 minutes or until thickened to desired consistency. Serve with bread & enjoy.

Thai Turkey Noodles

by almost_rosey // 28May2015 // No Comments

I went turkey hunting for the first time this year and ended up with a turkey! Now the fun of getting to cook with it begins. I had two bags of breast meat and one of dark meat.

My plan is to turn the dark meat into sausage or jerky. The breast meat was very pink so I decided to actually make a dish with it as I didn’t think it would be too gamey. I came up with Thai Turkey Noodles. It is delicious and if you didn’t know it was made with wild game you would think it was chicken.

Thai Turkey Noodles (serves 2)

4 oz spaghetti noodles, cooked and drained
sesame oil
1 turkey breast, cubed
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup water chestnuts, sliced
1 tsp garlic, minced
pinch each ginger & red pepper flakes
1 tbsp flour
1.5-2 cups chicken stock
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
green onions, optional

Heat a small amount of sesame oil in a large skillet. Add turkey and cook & stir until just cooked through. Remove from turkey from skillet & set aside.

Add onion, red bell pepper, water chestnuts, garlic, ginger, & red pepper flakes. Sauté for about five minutes until slightly softened. Stir in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Whisk in chicken stock. Stir in soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and oyster sauce. Add turkey back to skillet.

Heat to boiling and then cover & reduce heat to simmer. Stir occasionally until mixture is thick and bubbly (add more chicken stock if needed to thin sauce or more seasonings if desired). Stir in noodles.

Garnish with chopped green onions if desired. Feel proud that you provided this meal.

My First Turkey Hunt

by almost_rosey // 27May2015 // 2 Comments

I’ve mentioned before that I did not grow up hunting, so the fact that I started when I was 30 is quite surprising. It started with deer hunting. I did not harvest a deer but I ended up with some grouse which was fantastic. After that experience I knew I could at least hunt birds (I am still unsure about the furry critters), so my guy/guide and I decided to apply for turkeys in the spring.

We applied as a group for the ‘A’ season for turkeys in an area he knew well and we got pulled! The first step was a success. Now we just had to hope we would see some turkeys and get them close enough to ‘shoot em in the lips’ as my guide says. He set up a ground blind the night before so we could arrive bright and early and wait for the turkeys.

We walked in on the first morning and got situated. We waited a little bit for the woods to quiet back down after we disturbed it and then he started calling.

Can I just say that he is so good to me! He was willing to sit with me and call for the turkeys as I had never done it before and couldn’t work the mouth call for the life of me.

Anyhow, he called out for a turkey and one gobbled right back! It sounded like he was right on top of us. It turned out that he basically was. I looked out the blind and saw a tom sitting in a tree about 30 yards away.

I couldn’t believe it. My first morning out, the first call out, and there is a trophy tom right there. My guy kept calling and he kept gobbling back. He was fluffing out his feathers looking like he was doing some morning stretches.

He evemtually jumped down from the tree and started walking right towards our decoys. I was struck in awe. This was not happening. My heart was pounding and my hands were shaking. I tried to quietly and slowly maneuver myself in the ground blind to take aim. I shot and the turkey just stood there. I kept waiting for him to fall over but he then turned around and ran. I tried to get off another shot but it was awkward leaning out of the blind. I tried to get out of the blind as quickly as I could, but by the time I did the turkey was gone.

I was dumbfounded. I hit him! I knew I did. We tried looking for him and found blood & feathers but no turkey. I felt terrible. Was he nicked or was he dying somewhere. I had no idea. I felt bad for the turkey and bad for me. I was super grumpy. I knew it was all my fault that I had not sealed the deal. He was handed over on a silver platter and I screwed it up. A trophy tom no less.

I knew exactly what I did wrong. I didn’t have a very good angle to take the shot with how I had maneuvered in the blind. I didn’t take enough breaths to calm myself. I’m not sure I took a breath at all. I definitely didn’t breathe with my shot. My inexperience showed when I didn’t try to take another shot immediately when he just stood there. We went back to the blind and tried to call in some more turkeys.

We saw lots of turkeys that day. We saw another trophy tom. We saw some jakes and some hens. It was incredible seeing all of these birds but none were close enough to take aim at.

The next day we tried moving the blind to where they seemed to be walking but they didn’t come near us. After looking at the blind and the woods it was painfully obvious why. Our blind was bright green and the woods were still very brown.

All I could think about was how I had screwed up my turkey hunt. My guide was a bit frustrated with me.

‘This is what hunting is dear. Most of the time you don’t see anything. Then when you do they have to be close enough to shoot. Then you have a chance of missing. You have to take away the good things.”

He was right. I needed to take away the good things. We had seen lots of birds. Even though I messed up and the turkey ran away, how cool was it that we walked right under him and he jumped down right in front of us. The weather was amazing: sunny, 50-70 degrees. You couldn’t have asked for a better hunting season. Plus, there was this squirrel that was running all over the place. He dug in the ground and looked like he discovered the jackpot because he quickly covered the hole back up and patted it in with his paws while looking around to make sure no one was watching him. Too funny.

I had finally come to terms with this experience and had told myself it would be OK if we didn’t get on any more turkeys.

We decided that for the last day we would hunt off of the ground with our backs to the trees, which is how I always envisioned turkey hunting in the first place, since our blind stood out like a sore thumb.

We were covered from head to toe in camo. We walked into the woods. We sat about 20 feet apart so he could call in the turkeys and we waited. We heard some far away so decided to move.

We set up against some different trees and started calling again. We were in a clearing at the top of a hill. I was sitting there & enjoying the great outdoors when a turkey walked up over the hill. My heart jumped into my throat and my stomach turned upside down.

Was I really going to get another shot? The turkey walked towards our decoy. I couldn’t tell if it was a jake or hen. I looked to my hunting guide and he shook his head signifying he couldn’t tell either.

The turkey started chirping at the decoy. I sat still. At the very least this turkey might call in some toms and act as a real live decoy for us. I kept looking for the beard but the angles were terrible as it stayed behind my decoy while walking around.

It looked like it was going to walk away and then it turned around. I saw the beard and I knew I had a jake. I looked to my guide and he was nodding at me.

The turkey puffed up his chest and started walking towards the decoy. Apparently the sweet talking hadn’t worked so now he was going to show her how big & manly he was. I slowly started to raise my gun. I positioned myself so that my gun was resting on my knee. My heart was beating fast & hard. I paused and looked to my guide and he nodded. His expression was telling me I could do this. I took aim. I breathed a couple times. I gripped my gun firmly, pulled the trigger, and he fell down instantly.

My guide yelled out a hunter’s cry of success. He came over to me and I was staring wide-eyed at the turkey who had stopped twitching almost as instantly as it had fallen down. It was a great shot. He asked me how it felt. I don’t even remember what I said. I’m assuming something like, that was crazy, that was amazing. My first big game kill.

I carried my turkey out of the woods. I registered it. The guy asked if it was my first. I’m sure it was painfully obvious I was a novice hunter by my facial expressions. Once we got back to where we were staying, my guide showed me how to clean up the turkey and we vacuum sealed it up. Now I get to cook with the wild game that I had provided. Bonus…I had barely ruined any of the meat! Hardly any of it had to be cut away so the shot really was as perfect as it could have been.

This hunting experience was incredible on so many levels. Yes, I could have had a mountable turkey, but I ended up with so much more. Hunting is more than the harvest. It’s about taking away the little things. It’s learning new skills. I gained a lot of valuable hunting experiences. I gained life insight. I left the woods that day with more than a bird.

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