trying the corned deer thing

[sigpros]

Well we are trying the corned deer thing with the 2 "football" roast off of my boy's doe he shot Saturday. I didn't have everything that Hank Shaw called for but did have pickiling spice on hand so I just used it. Anytips for a first timer? They are in the brine and weigh about 2.25 pounds each. How do you guys cook them when they are done brining? And any other tips?

Thank you

 

[WildWill]

Leave them in for 10 days. I grew impatient with my first one this year and pulled it after 5-6 days and the brine hadn't fully done its job yet. For cooking I always just lightly boil the roast(dont over do it or it'll become tough) with potatoes,carrots, and cabbage added. It's also great sliced thin and used on sandwiches.

 

[vanish]

Same as Will here.

For me, its way better than anything store bought.

 

[Trial153]

figure for 5 pounds of roasts, double it if you need more.

1 gallon of water, 1-1/2 cups kosher salt, ½ cup sugar, 3 teaspoons pink salt
3 cloves garlic smashed, pickling spice

dont go much longer then 5 to 7 days or it will be overly salty.

 

[Jerky]

If you toss it onto the smoker, bam you've basically made pastrami. As others said, boiled is traditional.

I'd say 10 days would leave you with a way too salty piece of meat. I didn't plan well earlier this year and had brined a piece of meat for only 3.5 days before I needed to leave for a trip. It wasn't enough, because the salt hadn't made its way to the center of the meat yet. It still tasted great.

 

[NYSKIER]

I think you are really going to like it and I don't think that 10 days is over salty. I did mine ten days for the first time this year and I thought it was amazing. We don't really need more meat for the rest of the year but I think I'd like to get a nice doe to try it again it was so good

 

[BuzzH]

Well we are trying the corned deer thing with the 2 "football" roast off of my boy's doe he shot Saturday. I didn't have everything that Hank Shaw called for but did have pickiling spice on hand so I just used it. Anytips for a first timer? They are in the brine and weigh about 2.25 pounds each. How do you guys cook them when they are done brining? And any other tips?

Thank you

I cut the "football" roasts in half length wise, the brine works better on a bit thinner pieces.

I usually cook mine in a pressure cooker, come out a bit more tender than the traditional simmering.

Also, and I'm not sure why, but the ones I freeze seem to be better than the ones that come right out of the brine...

 

[sigpros]

Thanks guys. For those smoking the corned deer do you soak the roast in water for a day or so? Or just rinse it off and put it in the smoker? Also what temp do you get the roast too? Either going to smoke or put it in the insta pot.

Thanks

 

[Hunting Wife]

Thanks guys. For those smoking the corned deer do you soak the roast in water for a day or so? Or just rinse it off and put it in the smoker? Also what temp do you get the roast too? Either going to smoke or put it in the insta pot.

Thanks

If you soak it, the water is basically going to suck the brine back out of the roast. If you want to smoke it, either rinse and go straight to the smoker, or seal it up and put it in the fridge overnight if you need to. Otherwise, you can boil it in just enough water to cover it, or freeze it.

 

[zpooch]

Here is mine I smoked on Sunday. It was in the brine for 5 days. You can see in the bottom right piece it could have used one more day as there is a tiny area that didn't get the red coloring. These were the "football" roasts from an antelope.

I washed them off and put them in water for about 5 minutes after the brine. Dried them off, then put a thin layer of yellow mustard with dried coriander, onion powder, salt and lots of pepper for the crust. Into the smoker at 225 until internal temp of 150. Cooled and sliced

 

[sigpros]

Thank you Zpooch that looks great! I will probably pull them out Sunday morning and put them in the smoker. That will be 6 1/2 days in the brine.

 

[jtm307]

Like Hank Shaw says, err on the side of leaving it in the brine longer. You can always soak it if it's too salty. I've left round cuts in the brine for longer than Hank recommends and the center was still not cured. I do 10 days minimum. I have a batch of corned antelope just finishing up in the fridge now. I will make corned jerky out of it tonight.

 

[HSi-ESi]

I've got a doe hanging in the garage - and haven't corned anything in a while. So.... I'll just add some of the meat into a brine after I trim it up.

If there isn't any pink salt in the brine (which I don't recall you using) - don't be surprised when the meat is a little grey. It'll still taste great, just not have the color.

 

[sbhooper]

I hope that this shows ok. It is a fantastic recipe

 

[sigpros]

Ok guys I will leave them in the brine for a few days longer. I want to error on the side of being cured all the way through

 

[sigpros]

Well update on this adventure. I ended up getting the flu and had to put the corned deer in the freezer. I let it brine for 10 days and had a couple spots where the brine didn't get all the way in. But man this stuff is amazing. My wife and kids loved it. I smoked one just how it was and the other i rubbed with spicy brown mustard and covered in black pepper and garlic powder. Will be doing this again. Thanks for all the help guys

 

[sigpros]

Here is some pics of the finished product

 

[WildWill]

Looks amazing. How long and at what temp did you smoke it at?

 

[sigpros]

I smoked it at 225 I think it took like 3 hrs. I let it go to 160 internal temp then pulled it tented it and let it rest.

 

[ImBillT]

I’m going to have to try Corning some meat some time.

This has nothing to do with corning meat. I’ve never actually done that and don’t have anything to add on that front. Something to try with the “football” roasts is to actually make steaks. I know it sounds off. They look chock full of connective tissue. Only the thick parts of the outer layer is tough. Trim it off the outside, then slice it into 1” slices across the way the muscles run. You should end up with steaks that are sort of kidney shaped. I don’t remember if it’s the kneecap end or the hip end that’s most tender, but it’s somewhat obvious when you’re handling it that one end has thicker connective tissue than the other. I believe on cattle that they only make steaks from the half with less connective tissue. I find the whole thing quite a bit more tender than inside round, and maybe even outside round. Just something worth trying.


Because I’m not the best at describing things, these pictures might help clarify the direction of cut and lack trimming on the inside parts if there’s any confusion.