Field and Stream - Venison: America's Meat RSS

A Brief History of Venison (And Why You Should Eat It)

Online Editors — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:44:32 -0500

Forget apple pie. There is no food more fundamental to this nation than a haunch of venison. Read why here.

The Tribute: Behold, The Backstrap

Online Editors — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:39:31 -0500

Thoughts on eating venison from Editor-at-Large T. Edward Nickens.

Sure, the tenderloins are a more immediate delicacy, but they are a fleeting pleasure, really, small and flirtatious and destined to leave you wanting more. It is the longissimus dorsi muscle—the vaunted backstrap—that aids the deer in its soaring bounds, its nitrogen-powered, zero-to-see-ya-later speeds, and its incomparable edibility.

The Plea: Remember the Liver

Online Editors — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:37:55 -0500

Thoughts on eating venison from Editor Anthony Licata.

When my dad was teaching me to hunt deer, he’d run through a checklist before we left the house. License? Got it. Cartridges? Yep. Deer drag? Uh-huh. Empty plastic bread bag? Of course. How else was I to carry home that once-a-year treat: fresh venison liver?

I still pack a bag for liver, but I seem to be the exception judging from the strange looks I get from my hunting companions as I reach into the entrails of their field-dressed deer to pluck that glorious purple slab out of the pile.

The Manifesto: Eat What You Kill

Online Editors — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:36:36 -0500

Thoughts on eating venison from F&S contributor Steven Rinella.

Why should you eat the deer that you kill? For a moment, let’s dismiss the obvious reasons. Forget the nutritional value of venison, which has higher protein levels and less fat than domesticated, grain-fattened beef and pork. Set aside the flavor, which is more substantial and interesting than anything you’ll find at the grocery. Never mind the economic benefits of a pursuit that can reward a day’s work with enough meat to feed you for a year. And toss aside how properly stored venison allows you to relive the memories from a great season around your family’s dinner table.

The Ritual: After Death, Before Venison

Online Editors — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:34:03 -0500

Thoughts on eating venison from author and F&S contributor Rick Bass.

It’s not my place at all to suggest a right way or a wrong way. My own view is that if a post-kill ritual comes naturally, fine. But if it doesn’t, it’s as disrespectful to fake as it is to not even consider one in the first place. I don’t much like hearing other hunters whoop and shout and high-five following the occasions when they are fortunate enough to find an animal—I don’t care for that at all. But I usually hunt far enough into the backcountry that that curious aversion of mine generally takes care of itself—self-selected against such intrusion by distance and terrain.

The Obligation: Feed Deer to Your Kids

Online Editors — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:29:43 -0500

Thoughts on eating venison from Editor-at-Large T. Edward Nickens.

For a long time—almost too long—I made the mistake of treating venison as something special. Backstraps were saved for company. Roasts were relegated to holidays. All that changed when the kids came along.

A Quick Guide to Refrigerating and Freezing Fresh Venison

Online Editors — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:17:47 -0500