Posted by Suzanne McMinn on April 21, 2008 @ 5:05 am
Daily Farmhouse Journal
So somebody gave me a deer last fall. I didn’t shoot it! I’d shoot myself before I’d shoot a deer. Or I’d feel like it. Cuz I don’t think I could shoot myself. I couldn’t shoot a deer, either, but I couldn’t resist the culinary experience of accepting the deer. And then making something out of it. But then I stuffed the packages in the freezer and forgot about them until I accidentally took a package out yesterday, thinking it was something else, and when it defrosted, I found out it was jerky strips…. Deer jerky strips. Not that I’ve ever made jerky before, but I bought a seasoning package for it last fall. So I dug the package out and decided it must be Fate, it was time for the Great Deer Jerky Experiment.
The directions were….extensive. Let’s just say it started with a discussion about pioneers. It had lots of headings that said things like IMPORTANT!! READ CAREFULLY!! Somewhere in the BOOK of directions, it said to TASTE THE JERKY OFTEN during cooking. And REMEMBER TO TASTE THE JERKY OFTEN during cooking. And TEST FREQUENTLY during cooking. And WHEN THE JERKY IS COOKED TO YOUR LIKING, STOP COOKING. (They like capital letters in these directions.) And something else about pioneers.
I said to 52, “How am I supposed to know when it’s cooked to my liking? I’ve never tasted jerky before!”
52: You’ve never eaten jerky?”
Me: “When would I eat jerky? I grew up in the suburbs! When I was a kid, my mother bought me Gerber’s Chocolate Pudding for snacks! (Okay, and that was all the way up till I was 14. Why my mother bought me baby pudding for snacks when I was 14 is too deep to discuss in a post about jerky.) I’d never even heard of jerky!”
52: “How could you never hear of jerky? It’s what you put in your pocket when you go for a walk in the woods.”
Me: “I thought that was granola.”
I’d tell you what he said then, but it mostly involved laughing.
But look! I did make some jerky!
I’m, like, a pioneer.
Except if I’d been there? They would have had some granola. With raisins. And chocolate chips. And some Gerber’s Chocolate Pudding. Oh jeez, just forget it, as long as we’re going back in time, let’s bring some Doritos and Girl Scout Thin Mints.
Anybody want some deer jerky that I’m afraid to taste? (I COOKED IT WITHOUT TASTE-TESTING IT! THE DIRECTIONS ARE MAD AT ME! AND WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO WITH IT? I CAN’T EAT BAMBI!)
**Update: I decided I couldn’t do a culinary experiment and not try the result. So, I tried a tiny piece of the jerky. After, you know, 14 ate some first. 14 thought it was good, but not tough/dry enough. Still, he liked it and said he would eat the rest. He took some of it to school and his friends said it tasted gamey. (What?! It’s deer jerky! Of course it’s gamey! LOL.) I thought it tasted good, but it is SO salty! Maybe jerky is just too salty for my taste? Any of you who have jerky recipes that you love, if you email them to me, I’ll try it next time. 14 loves jerky, so I’ll make it again, maybe with beef, though……
7:10
am
I think I am going to join 52 in the laughter. But, you can send it to my house, we all love jerky. And I am glad you posted this. We haven’t made any in a long time, think I will break out the dehydrator today.
7:23
am
I think you should pack it all up, put a bow on it and give it to 52.
7:32
am
Is the weather nice there???
7:37
am
That’s okay; I grew up in the country and I’ve never had jerky. Had lots of moose meat, though, and other wild game. But not turned into jerky.
-Kim
7:46
am
I am not a fan of the jerky. Never cared for what looks like dried out meat bleh
And I’m not a fan of venison either, not really my thing.
But I don’t mind grilling it for other folk.
8:06
am
Eat the Jerky! Are you weird about eating your chicken’s children? I was for a little while. Then I paid for eggs and realized I was being dumb. Deer is about as natural as it gets for us to eat. And YOU didn’t kill it.
8:06
am
I love the photo of Diego. He knew you were putting the garden window in just for him.
8:23
am
Eat it - you’ll be glad you did, it’s good stuff. Eating Bambi is no different than eating the cow you buy at the supermarket Bambi just has less preservatives and growth hormones…
8:45
am
Wow, those are really red, like, raw looking red. My Uncle is a great, white, hunter. He has shot bambi and made tasty sausage out of him too. My mom won’t touch the stuff because that’s pretty much the only meat they had growing up was what you could kill yourself. I like my uncle’s venison sausage. He makes it spicy. I guess that is the secret to eating game. Make it spicy enough so that you can’t tell what you are eating.
8:48
am
Melissa, I did cook them some more after I took that photo. I should have noted that the photo was taken before they were completely done. (It was getting late.)
9:15
am
The best jerky I ever had was when a bunch of my dh’s friends got together and made some. They got a big old crock and filled it with worchestershire, tabasco, liquid smoke and other unknown things. I’m not 100% sure they didn’t add tobacco. Anyhow, it soaked for two days and then I put it in the oven to dry.
There must have been a secret ingredient. Mine never tastes that good.
9:29
am
Deer jerkey is some of the best, healthiest snack food there is. And if seasoned right is ummmmmmmm good. My son makes it every year and never buys a store package of seaoning. He combines his own spices and then dehydrates the meat. I am not a big venison eater, but there is nothing better than jerky in my opinion.
9:53
am
That looks really tasty.
Venison, by the way, along with buffalo and other gamey meats, makes delicious soup bones. Try it sometime with a root vegetable stew. The flavor is incredible.
10:11
am
Apparently this post compels me to confess the following. *deep breath* I ate roadkill deer! A couple Thanksgivings ago, my uncle forced his “deer jerky” upon me. It looked quite a bit like charcoal. He looked so proud, I couldn’t say no. I took a crunchy bite out of it, and it tasted like charcoal - not that I totally know what that tastes like. Anyway, I couldn’t openly gag, so I said “mmmm, how’d you cook this?” He informed me he’d baked it in the oven at a ridiculously high temp for a ridiculously long time. Hence the charcoal-ness! I saw my Dad and made a beeline over to him exclaiming (through a forced smile) how great my uncle’s jerky was. To which my Dad asked if it was his roadkill deer. After I picked myself up off the floor, I was able to sneak the remaining jerky in my pocket.
Come to think of it, that probably doesn’t help with your desire to sample the deer jerky. But let me tell you, yours looks a thousands times more appetizing! And I’m sure it’s quite tasty.
10:16
am
Suzanne,
I am, along with my family an dedicated deer hunting family. I actually taught my husband how to hunt when we first got married 21 years ago. We have two daughter and they both hunt as well. We love deer meat and have a great receipe for deer jerkey. If you would like I can email you the recipe later. We mix the seasoning to make a moist sorta dry rub. Let mirante in the frige overnight then we put our in a dehydrator but you can also use on oven. It’s the best stuff. My family would kill over jerkey. Just kiddin but they love the stuff.
Letha
10:17
am
It’s not Bambi anymore. My Sweetie and both my sons love deer jerky. My husband has his own recipe also. I’m not to fond of any kind of jerky. Atleast try it, then if you don’t like it you can honestly say so!
10:20
am
10:20
am
Oh, BTW, does the Diego window face your field? If so, can you look at the cow at the right angle and make it look like it’s dotting your field? (tee hee)
10:34
am
Venison is wonderful! Don’t think of it as Bambi. Grown up male deer are not nice creatures! Personally I can’t hunt a deer, but if my dad, husband or son brings one home, I’ll happily cook it for them.
10:39
am
I grew up in the suburbs. Because of that, my parents forced me to go to camp. Where I learned about jerky. I make jerky from time to time (well, before we went mostly vegetarian) for my kids. They still like to go to camp, but I wanted to make sure they didn’t miss the jerky experience (because I send them to camp with granola). I usually use flank steak to make jerky. And pepper, and ’shire sauce and…sometime else. I’d have to go look. Not sure about the “jerky seasoning”.
Have you tasted it yet?
11:10
am
Grew up in the suburbs and still live in the suburbs, though I’m planning my escape!
I have a friend who bow hunts with her husband and I’m sure she’d say deer jerky is delicious. I, on the other hand, would say “no thanks”. I would definitely picture Bambi…and Thumper. I wouldn’t be able to eat rabbit either.
Linda~
11:38
am
I love Diego in the window. My dog, Harry Potter sits in the window too. Where we use to live in the country I had a large very low dinning room window where he slept. He loved it. People would call me at work and say I saw Harry asleep in the window. Where I live now, I have a smaller window for him so he sits in it and falls asleep with his had haning down to the floor. He is like your little dog, cant spell that name. they have great personalities. I rescued him from a shelter where he was abused. He is the happiest dog ever.
sara
11:43
am
I couldn’t kill a deer either, but I couldn’t kill a cow or a chicken either. That is not going to stop me from enjoying them once someone else does the dirty work.
11:47
am
Don’t feel too bad, I love jerky, and I’ve eaten plenty of venison, but venison jerky I’m not so sure about. Maybe teryaki style? Or not…
12:17
pm
Oh EUUUWWWWW. Cant help you on this one. Completely applaud your efforts. There must be a “jerky” afficianado in your area, sounds like “52″? Anyway, as a “gatherer” in a family of “hunters” you have reminded me of the time when I had your adventurous attitude about accepting “edibles” from the family. And…. how that over the years my attitude went from “ohhhh thank you, to “dont even think about it” to “are you people all crazy, I dont eat this” to finally
“Thank you for thinking of me, but there is someone who will appreciate this much more than I will”
Truly I applaud your efforts! Let us know who eats it!
1:48
pm
I’ve never had venison jerky. But I grew up having venison because my dad was hunter. Beef jerky from the New Braunfels Smokehouse in New Braunfels TX is the BEST peppered beef jerky. And as a girl scout we smoked some jerky in a special smoker… but the Smokehouse makes the best jerky. Good luck with yours. I vote that you should taste it or at least get 52 and your sons to taste it. I’ll bet it turned out great.
2:23
pm
I vote for you tasting the jerky…or promise your kids or 52 you’ll fix their favorite supper if THEY taste it first!
I WOULD DO IT IF I WERE THERE!! I love jerky.
Deer meat is SO good…so is buffalo. We have an elk farm just a mile from our home. About twice a year they slaughter some of the herd and sell it to the public…I just noticed that their sign was up again last week! We missed getting some last time, I hope we can get some this time. YUM!
Blessings from Ohio…
2:25
pm
I am with 52 on this one. I grew up eating deer meat, better known as venison in these parts. And jerky is for what 52 said!
3:14
pm
Hmmm….I think I’ll skip the jerky. Especially if it’s deer. I’ll stick to bread. And, speaking of bread. I made some of your grandmother bread the other day and blogged about my success. LOL.
3:41
pm
I grew up in the country and te a lot of venison. If the deeer was killed legally it is not a Bambi, more like a full grown stag.
I don’t care for jerky either—too salty.
4:02
pm
Um, sorry. No jerky here and I couldn’t eat Bambi either. Good luck!
4:06
pm
I’m with you–don’t eat Bambi. When I was a kid my family’s favorite vacation activity was looking for deer and elk in Rocky Mtn. Natl. Park. I accidentally tasted elk once and have never forgiven myself. Stick to your guns!
4:51
pm
Love jerky, like venison. Done right it should be great. I’m sure my sister & her family would love some venison jerky if you want to send it soemwhere.
She hunts deer and eats it too. ;)
5:51
pm
Tried venison and didn’t like it but I do make beef jerky w/o seasonings for my dog’s treats..they get excited when they see me get the dehydrator out!!
7:14
pm
We call it venison here in these parts as well…Its very tasty. I recommend trying it since you’ve got it and all… Also, dont think of it as bambi. Those deer will gladly eat those vegetables and trees and flowers you are planting.
11:32
pm
LOL - jerky is the best and I am a city girl too. All the models eat it for high protein and low fat snacks. Granola is good too and I have some recipes to make sugar-free homemade granola. DH is Type II diabetes so sugar free is the way to go around here.
Hey, check out my first blog about my birdgrove aka chickens out of the road!
9:10
am
Now that you’ve made it you have to try it. My husband is a deer hunter and makes fantastic jerky. I never liked venision until I met him-its all in the way you clean it and cook it. I loved Bambi-but have you ever really looked in a sweet Cows eyes- they are so trusting-and they can’t run fast like the deer can. I hope you let us know what you decide about the jerky.
9:14
am
Dig deeper into your freezer and thaw some of those venison steaks! Flour and fry them in olive oil with lots and lots of onion and garlic. To quote Rachael Ray — YUMM-O!
Jerky is great…enjoy.If you are going to raise chickens you are going to eventually eat some of them…..
11:19
am
You are certainly braver than I am, taking on that recipe!
6:53
pm
YUM, I love Venison…I especially enjoy Deer sausage!