Venison Tenderloin

The biggest thing that people need to remember when cooking venison is the deer itself. Where was the deer from? What was the food plot for that deer? How old was he deer? Was it a male? Shot during the rut? Was the deer processed and field dressed in a timely manner and cleaned properly? Deer harvested way up north(upper Michigan etc...) will have a much stronger game taste due to it's food intake. Deer that feed on corn, soybeans, etc...will have a much less game taste. Bucks taken during the rut will be tough and have a very strng game taste. This is all important in the cooking and the preperation (marinating) of the deer.

I saw this and had to make a note. My husband does something very simliar to this, but will a few nice additions. First you need to "ice" the loin for several days, then you need to soak the deer loin in milk till the milk is clear, you don't want all of that blood in the meat. You need to pour off the milk then add more several times to get the blood out. I generally do it twice a day for 3 days. It helps remove the game tast as well. Then marinate the loin as listed. After that take the loin and slice it down the middle, place green onion and mushrooms(fresh or canned) then wrap in market thick bacon. You may need toothpicks to hold it together. Grill. We serve this up with what you would a steak. This is wonderful! I hope this helps! We are actually fixing this for Sunday Dinner this weekend. I don't add as much vinegar as they suggested, I do it by taste. Some like it tangy others don't it is up to you.

Delicious!!! However, I added an extra step... After reducing marinade, I strained it, discarded the herbs, onions, etc., added the juice back to the saucepan with some salt and pepper, continued to simmer and whisked in some all purpose flour. It made a very flavorful sauce that clung to the meat. Will DEFINITELY make again!!!

I used this recipe with a few modifications, first I soaked the meat in water and a Tbl. of vinegar for 6 hrs. changing the water every couple of hours. I then marinaded the meat as directed except for the vinegar and I added a little soy and worcestershire. I also wrapped the tenderloin in bacon and seared on all sides before putting in the oven on 350 for 20-30 min (depending how rare you like it) I strained the marinade into a pan and added 1 Tbl. of grape jelly,brought to a boil,scraped the foam from the top and serve! yummy!

This recipe for venison was very good. It smells very acidy when you are roasting it, but it turns out great. Another variation is to add some tomato sauce or pieces they taste excellent in it.

I think it tastes better with apple cider not apple cider vinegar. I used the vinegar and it was if I pickled the meat. I then found out my friend used apple CIDER and that is why it was awesome...

The vinegar overpowers the venison. I'd recommend a shorter marinade or less vinegar.

I just have to say, my husband hunts in the Northern part of BC adn our deer is NEVER gamey. We do not soak in milk, or ice it or do anything else. At it eats whatever is out there. If it is properly field dressed and hung, and you handle the meat carefully during the butchering process there is no need to do anything else. No one should be hunting during the rut. Ew. This recipe works wonderfully just the way it is!

The wine took out the gameness, but left the meat a bit bland. Some salt will help. While I enjoy an occasional glass of wine from time to time, cooking the venison in the red wine and vinegar left a pungent odor throughout my house. My 5 year old daughter was crying and holding her nose most of the evening. Do not recommend.

i love vinegar but this was a bit much. i saved the reduction by making it into a gravy w/ some flour and butter. i even had to add some sugar but it was still VERY vinegary. sorry, wont make this one again.

I didn't particularly care for the flavor of this recipe, but my husband and daughter liked it. I could still taste the venison, so that was good, since I enjoy the flavor of venison. I can't pinpoint what exactly it was that I didn't like about the taste, but it just didn't work for me. I think it may have been the beef gravy. I will make it in the future, though, since my family enjoyed it.I'll just have to fix myself a salad instead.

Vinegar and wine flavor was too strong. Not a hit for our family.

I have mixed reviews of this recipe. I had to make a change in cooking method. When I thawed my tenderloin I realized it was sliced into inch thick medallions. I chose to grill the meat instead of roasting as a result. The meat was relatively tender, but still had a more gamey taste than I've had with other marinades I've used with venison. The flavor of the wine was very predominant.

I am reviewing this based on my husbands ratings as I don't care for deer meat. He thought this marinade was a good one and it produced a very tender tenderloin. He slowly grilled it rather than roasting.

wow-- i really dont like writing reviews but when i find a recipe as good as this i have to let people know. thanx for a great lunch.

The flavors in this recipe were good, but the tenderloin was a still little dry.

All I could taste was vinegar and the recipe said med rare is best but listed 165 degree as the internal temp. vinegar completely overwhelmed the palate. I suggest people use the rub wrapped with bacon recipe.

followed the recipe and did it on the grill. the apple cider vinegar is definitely a bit much. would highly recommend reducing the amount of vinegar or using apple cider instead

The vinegar does not do this dish well. BTW, this recipe calls for tenderloin, but I'm relatively certain that the submitter meant for it to be the loin (backstrap). Multiple deer would have to be killed in order to obtain 4 pounds of tenderloin. Even then, it would be in several small strips and couldn't be roasted as one piece. Also, the picture submitted shows the backstrap. I may try this again using venison round steaks, as I have a few of them to mess around with. I think that cut of meat might be better served with this recipe. With the strap and tenderloin, the less you do to the cuts, the better it will tend to be.

Pretty sure the recipe maker is referring to venison backstrap, not tenderloin. Backstrap is what is pictured. Tenderloins are small pieces meat from the chest cavity of a deer that are so tender, they could almost be pulled out by hand. It would take several deer to get 4 lbs of tenderloin.

Didn't care for the wine and vinegar flavor. Agree with the person who described the awful smell in the house! Followed the recipe as written. Would not make it again.

The marinade time should be varied depending on the age of the deer. For example, I usually target younger animals, and they don't need as much marinading time since they are naturally more tender. I would also recommend a slightly lower cooking temperature, especially for younger animals. You will need to follow the temperatures closely (I use a continuous-read probe), as it will start to climb rapidly after 130F or so. Also be aware that the sauce will have a distinctive apple cider vinegar flavor. We happen to like that extra tang when serving the sauce with the meat, but just take your guests' tastes in to consideration when saucing.

We browned the loins and put them in the crockpot with the listed ingredients for about eight hours. Turned out flavorful and tender.

Followed exact recipe. Other cuts from same deer were wonderful. I did not care for this recipe.

Good marinade but a little heavy on the vinegar. I had very mild venison so it was a bit overpowering. Will cut vinegar in half next time.

tasted too much like vinegar.