Venison Tenderloin

One of the things I look forward to with the deer hunting season is this tenderloin.

 It's easy and crock pot friendly although you really don't need one if you don't already have one. The oven would suffice.

My husband and the boys usually butcher the deer that they shoot and I'm happy to say that hubby is fastidious about rinsing and rinsing and making sure there is nothing undesirable on the meat.

Start with a piece of tenderloin that is well trimmed. I forgot to weigh it but I had two long pieces.

Trim off any of the silvery membrane that is left, and anything else you don't want on it.

Cut it into 1½-2 inch rounds.

Next prepare a bowl with enough cold water to cover the meat pieces and a ½ cup of red wine vinegar.

Let soak for about twenty minutes. This helps to remove the gamy flavor.

Rinse well. I then like to soak it for about twenty minutes again in clear cold water. This also helps to draw out the blood and rinse off the vinegar flavor. Rinse, soak and drain again until water stays reasonably clear.

Lay out onto several layers of absorbent paper towels.

Pat to dry.

Sprinkle generously with course sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

While the salt and pepper work there magic, take two large yellow onions and slice them thin.

Next take a large iron skillet or saute' pan and melt a stick of butter.

Put the sliced onions in with the butter and stir to coat.

Let cook stirring occasionally until they begin to brown. Transfer with a slotted spoon to another dish or container, in my case another iron skillet because that's what was close and handy, and let the excess butter and juices drain.

To the same skillet that you used to slightly brown the onions add some sliced mushrooms. The ones I used were presliced but I thought they were too thick so I slice them again.

Saute' until they begin to brown but don't let them burn. Remove to another dish.

Take the drained onions and make a bed in the bottom of a crock pot.

In the original skillet add 2 tablespoons olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Sear the tenderloin pieces on one side to seal in the juices. Don't over load the skillet so that each piece browns evenly.

Turn and sear on the other side.

This only take a few minutes on each side. Remove and place on the bed of onions in the crock pot in a single layer.

Cover with sauteed mushrooms.

Place another layer of tenderloin on top.

Put 4 cups of hot water into a bowl and add 1 heaping tablespoon of beef flavored soup base. Stir until dissolved.

Use about 1 cup of liquid to deglaze the skillet. Scraping to remove any bits off the bottom.

Add the rest of the liquid and heat to boiling.

In the same bowl measure 2 tablespoons (serving spoon size) cornstarch. Add enough cold water to dissolve into a thick liquid.

When the broth mixture comes to a boil, add just enough of the cornstarch mixture to make a thin gravy, stirring vigorously as you pour it in to avoid lumps. A small wisk works really well for this.

 Just enough to keep a spoon coated when it is lifted out of the mixture.

Pour the gravy over the yumminess in the crock pot.

Just enough to almost cover the steaks.

Cover and cook on high for 1 hour to 1½ hours. I did mine for 2 hours and I thought it was a little too long.

Serve with baked or mashed potatoes and a fresh garden salad for a yummy satisfying meal.

Fresh Venison Tenderloin

½ cup red wine vinegar
3-4 quarts cold water

Course Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper

1 stick butter
2 large yellow onions, sliced thin

1 small box presliced mushrooms

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 cups hot water
1 heaping tablespoon (serving size) beef flavored soup base

2 tablespoons (serving size) cornstarch
1 cup cold water, approximate

Be Blessed!