Heavenly Pulled Venison
While I believe searing meat is the ultimate in manly cuisine, I also know good BBQ doesn't always require grilling. Check out this pulled venison recipe Saturday, June 02, 2018
Ever experienced the mouthwatering treat known as pulled venison? Have you ever even heard of it? Well, if you've had pulled pork in the past, you probably get the idea. Like pulled pork (the best thing to come out of Memphis besides Elvis), pulled venison is culinary excellence defined.
Whether you eat it with a fork or stuffed between the two halves of a hamburger bun, it's gonna make your mouth and stomach happy. And it's one of the rare BBQ varieties you can produce without a BBQ grill, if it happens to be wintertime or your pit's out of commission.
Deer vs. Pig
If you've never eaten much in the way of wild game, realize two things: first, that venison is remarkably leaner than pork, having almost no fat at all; and second, the flavor varies from place to place, depending on what the deer have been eating. It can be rather gamy and stronger-tasting than you might expect.
Pig is pigs, as the old story by Ellis Parker Butler would have it (though ironically, that tale involved guinea pigs... but I digress). Anyhow, commercially produced pork comes from pigs fed essentially the same high-quality feed to ensure they have sweet, tasty meat.
Wild deer, by contrast, often eat things like bitter wild persimmons, which does have an effect on the flavor of their flesh. But as all true carnivores know, the right sauce and spices can jazz up any meat.
Picky, Picky
The essence of pulled meat, be it pork, beef, venison, or gator, is rendering it so tender you can pick it apart with (gloved) hands, ending up with nice slender strings of meat, easy to eat and memorable in taste. A good way to make it super tender is to put it into a slow cooker for hours and hours.
Here's what you need ingredients-wise:
One venison roast (haunch, neck, whatever you prefer) that fits your Crock Pot
One jar of your favorite BBQ sauce (homemade or store-bought)
Five or six drops of liquid smoke
Water
Here's how you cook it up: put the roast in the slow cooker, and fill the cooker up with enough water to submerge the entire roast an inch deep. Add your liquid smoke, set the cooker on low for 8-12 hours depending on the roast's size, and let 'er rip.
The Proof is in the Eating
When the meat's falling off the bone, your roast is ready to be pulled. Start picking, putting the strings of meat in a big bowl. Once you're done, just pour in the barbecue sauce, mix it up, and you're ready to eat. Coleslaw is optional... but with or without, you're sure to love your pulled venison.
|
