LAST UPDATED: March 28th, 2023
With deer season finally wrapped up and our freezers hopefully being well-stocked with meat, now is the time to start exploring new recipes and ways in which to prepare the game we’ve taken. And what better way to start than bacon?
Everything is better with bacon. Regardless of whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner, most of us need more bacon in our life, right? So when we came across a venison bacon recipe that presents a healthier bacon option, and it’s made with venison, we knew we had one that we needed to give a try.
Here’s a look at how to make venison bacon from, It’s a Wild Life with Ryan and Glorianne Boyd, in the video below…
Venison Bacon - What's In It?
Here’s a breakdown of the main ingredients for making your own venison bacon. Keep in mind, you can tweak these more or less depending on what you prefer in spice and flavor.
Venison Backstraps
1/4 Cup Kosher Salt
1/4 Cup Himilayan Salt
1/4 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon Honey
1/4 Cup Maple Syrup
1 Tbsp – Cayenne
2 Tbsp Smoke Paprika
1 Tsp Cumin Seed
Getting Started
As mentioned in the video above, venison backstraps are the choice meat for making venison bacon. The ingredients above will make somewhat of a paste that you’ll work into the meat for seasoning and flavor.
After completely covering the meat in the seasoning, place in a Ziploc bag and chill in fridge for 10 days.
After 10 days in the fridge, give the meat an ice bath to remove excess salt before moving to the smoker.
Smoke the seasoned meat at 200 for an hour or until reaching 150 degrees internal temperature. This will put your meat just above medium-rare.
Remember, you’re dealing with venison. It will dry out quicker than other meats you’ve cooked. Don’t let it spend too much time in the smoker.
After smoking the meat, you’re ready to slice the straps into strips.
If you have a meat slicer, you can set it to whatever thickness you want your bacon slices to be. Otherwise, use a sharp knife to cut the backstraps into bacon slices.
A good tip to keep in mind when cutting with a knife is to chill and firm up the meat in the freezer before cutting. This makes the meat much easier to slice consistently and safely.
Once the slicing chores are complete, you are now ready to package the pieces for the freezer, or prepare for the table.
Unlike typical bacon, this venison bacon will not have fat to aid in the frying process. You’ll want to use a lightly oiled skillet to avoid burning up your bacon strips.
Would You Try Making Venison Bacon?
What about you? Have you ever tried to make venison bacon? What have you found that works the best?
Comment below and let us know your favorite way to prepare specialty meats with your venison.
Be sure to follow Ryan and Glorianne at www.wildtechoutdoors.com.
