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Frenched venison loin is a great backstrap cut if you get a whole deer back home. Or, you might have a processor who will deliver specialty cuts. I like to leave on the silverskin of this cut when freezing. That’s because, inevitably, the bones poke through the vac sealing or paper wrap. You trim the silverskin off before salting and any freezer burn goes with it. The bones make for “meat lollipops” not unlike lamb. In addition, the bones make eating in camp a breeze. It’s like nature’s meat handle, ready for grabbing. Why succotash? It was always whatever was fresh in the garden with corn, when my mother made it. So have fun, improvise, and eat your dang vegetables.
INGREDIENTS
Bone-in venison loin, 4-8 ribs worth (4 if a mature animal, 8 if a young animal)
4 ears corn
1 onion
3 bell peppers
1/4 lb. cured meat/bacon/sausage
Fresh basil
Green veg (asparagus, lima beans, or zucchini do well here)
1 cup chopped tomato, cherry or large
2 tbsp. salt
1 sprig of fresh rosemary (leave whole), sage, and basil
3 tbsp. butter
Read: Kitchen Knife Sharpeners for Wild Game Cooks
Prepping the centerpiece of this dish: frenched bone-in venison loins.
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Chop vegetables and herbs first.
2. Clean up Frenched bones, salt meat, toss scraps to bird dog.
3. Start a fire with lump charcoal and wood. Briquettes are dusty so if you use them do NOT put your meat on them.
The recipe calls for three bell peppers; assorted colors gives this dish more flavor and eye appeal.
Fresh corn is a key ingredient of the succotash.
4. Get your cast iron hot, add in butter and rosemary. Let melt lightly and add in the venison loin, spooning melted butter over loin for a minute to evenly cook all sides of the meat.
5. Pull the pan off the fire and drop the loin directly onto some big red coals. Flip once browned and set aside to rest. Don’t overcook this cut, it’ll be amazing even rare. The hot coals should brown the edges quickly and add an amazing smoky flavor.
6. Pull out of the coals and knock off any big chunks of wood attached to the meat, setting aside to rest.
The Work Sharp Benchstone Knife Sharpener is handy in any camp.
The three-sided Work Sharp Benchstone offers 20- and 25-degree sharpening angles.
7. Add your cured meat and veg into the buttered pan you cooked the venison in. Stir until it’s JUST cooked; overcooked corn just turns to rubber, and your vegetables will maintain their nutrients and flavor.
8. Add the fresh-chopped basil and sage to the vegetables, slice meat between each bone. Then serve with the meat on top of the bed of succotash.
We ate this in mid September when fresh sweet corn and in-season vegetables were still available. We also used one of the last cuts of venison left from the previous year. This was just as we were starting the new hunting season. I think it’ll be a tradition from here on out, judging from the response in camp.
Don't expect leftovers from this tasty camp dish.
