If you take a deer this season, don’t miss out on some of the most-delicious meat ever. Researchers have proved that venison, a heart-friendly meat, contains fewer calories than the same size serving of chicken or turkey and one-half the calories of ham or ground chuck. Venison also has more protein than freshwater or saltwater fish and one-tenth as many fat grams as ground chuck. A rich source of trace minerals, including calcium, magnesium, zinc, potassium, phosphorus and iron, venison has a cholesterol content comparable to chicken and turkey.

Knives: If you plan to process your venison yourself, you’ll need the best knives available. One year my family bagged and butchered 13 deer and prepared the meat to eat, because I had a crop depredation permit. So, I consider myself a connoisseur of sharp, dependable knives and particularly enjoy those from Pro Tool Industries, including the Deer Hunter Knife, the Outdoor Cook’s Knife, the Pro Tool Camp Utility Knife and the Pro Tool Hunt Utility Knife. Too, I like the Pro Tool Rectangular Electro-Silicone Honing Stone to keep my knives sharp.

Saw: Cabela’s Stainless-Steel Butcher Saw – Available in 16- and 25-inch sizes, these stainless-steel saws each have a trigger mechanism that controls the blade tension, a durable plastic handle for comfortable cutting and dishwasher-safe, contamination-resistant blades. You also can purchase replacement blades.

Meat Grinders: The Cabela’s catalogue offers three styles of manually-operated, heavy-duty, cast-iron meat grinders that feature double-tin plating to resist stains and corrosion. The No. 10 meat grinder grinds 2 to 3 pounds of meat per minute, the No. 22 grinds 3 to 4 pounds of meat per minute, and the No. 32 grinds 5 pounds of meat per minute. If you butcher more than one deer each year, you’ll enjoy the convenience of Cabela’s Commercial-Grade Electric Grinders. Built to handle large quantities of meat, these electric grinders feature large-capacity meat trays with enlarged throats to ensure optimal performance, maintenance-free, sealed, lubricated, air-cooled motors, sausage-stuffing tubes, massive AISI 1045 steel gears, a patented head design that increases meat-grinding capacity and stainless-steel necks, augers, blade, plates and trays. Each grinder, available in 1/2 hp, 1 hp, 1-1/2 hp and 1-3/4 hp, comes with a grinder dust cover to protect it and keep it clean. You may want to consider buying a quality electric meat grinder with some friends or members of your hunting club. My family enjoys getting together with friends and having a venison-grinding party.

Jerky Cookbook: Every hunter enjoys taking jerky into the woods with him for long stays in a tree stand, and kids like to take venison jerky they’ve made to school for their snacks. You can learn more about various ways to prepare jerky from both wild and store-bought meat with J. Wayne Fears’ book, “How to Make Jerky and Pemmican,” available from Pro Tool Industries at http://www.protoolindustries.net/products/how-to-make-jerky-and-pemmican.

Meat Sealers: FoodSaver’s GamerSaver Turbo vacuum sealer has a digital display, an extra-wide sealing strip for added assurance of a properly-sealed package, an upgraded PulseVac feature and a touch-pad control panel that makes the sealer easy to control and friendly to use. This turbo sealer also offers a dishwasher-safe drip tray that you easily can remove for easy cleaning, a built-in roll storage and a cutter that will hold 11-inch-wide FoodSaver Vacuum Packaging Rolls, enabling customers to make custom bags of any length and a five-level Seal Control, which allows the user to adjust the length of the sealing process, ensuring all foods are completely sealed.
Cabela’s CG-15 Vacuum Sealer, a high-powered vacuum sealer constructed of stainless-steel and a double-piston pump, keeps food fresh up to five-times longer than traditional storage methods. This sealer can draw a 28-1/2-inch vacuum with 450 watts of power to ensure an airtight seal and comes with an assortment of 21 pre-cut bags. The spacious 15-inch sealing bar and patent-pending sealing bar window makes no job too big or small. You also can buy replacement bags from Cabela’s.

How to Prepare Ground Venison:

Here are the recipes my friends and family use for grinding and preparing our venison to cook. The deer’s shoulders and neck contain delicious meat that can be ground-up.

1. Mix cooled deer meat (partially frozen works well) with beef trimmings available at the butcher’s, and grind together in the following proportions:
   • 50 pounds of venison – cut into pieces;
   • 40 pounds of beef trimmings;
   • 10 pounds of pork trimmings;
2. Grind the mixture at least twice for a fine texture. Be sure to mix the ground meat and trimmings thoroughly with your hands.
3. Treat this ground meat the same way you do ground beef. Substitute this ground venison in any of your recipes calling for ground beef.

How to Prepare Ground Venison Sausage (not in casings):

1. Mix cooled or partially-frozen deer meat with trimmings available at the butcher’s and grind together in the following proportions:
   • 50 pounds of venison – cut into pieces;
   • 40 pounds of pork trimmings;
   • 10 pounds of beef trimmings;
2. Grind the mixture at least twice for a fine texture. Be certain to mix the ground meat and trimmings thoroughly with your hands.
3. Add a mixture of sausage-seasoning mix to the ground mixture, being sure to mix well. Read the package for instructions, as the amount you add depends on your personal taste. You can substitute this venison sausage in any recipes made with sausage or use as a breakfast food.

Some of My Family’s Favorite Venison Recipes:

Venison Sausage Casserole

Ingredients:
1 pound (hot or mild) venison sausage, browned well
1/2-cup chopped celery
1 large onion, chopped
1 can golden mushroom soup
1 cup minute rice – cook by directions on box or 1 cup cooked brown rice
4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2-cup green pepper
4 ounces chopped pimientos
1 can cream of chicken soup
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients together, and cook for 1 hour at 300 degrees, stirring twice.

Venison Cheese Enchiladas

Ingredients:
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 small can evaporated milk
1 cup chopped onions
1/2-pound Velveeta cheese
1 pound ground venison
1 4-ounce can green chilies
1 package (1 dozen) flour tortillas
1 small jar pimientos
1/2-pound Longhorn Colby cheese, grated
Preparation:
Heat soup, evaporated milk, and Velveeta cheese in the top of double boiler until cheese is melted. Add green chilies and pimientos to the sauce. Combine grated Colby cheese with the onions and ground venison after lightly browning them and draining on paper towels. Lightly fry flour tortillas according to package instructions, and then fill each tortilla with meat mixture. Once filled, secure with a toothpick, and place in rectangular baking dish. Pour cheese sauce over the top. Cover with foil, and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. (This dish also is delicious reheated.)