Cooking back strap

[follow maggie]

This week I’m going to cook up some of the back strap from this past fall's deer. I’ve never cooked back strap before. I have a seasoning I’m going to use & I'm going to cook it on the grill. Is 145 a good temp so it’ll be tender but thoroughly cooked?

[brew]

Trim off all the wang (silver skin) season, flour and cook until the juice coming out of it is clear-ish.  I think 145 would be too done for my liking.  More like 135

[bobcat]

If it's "thoroughly cooked," it's ruined in my opinion. I usually pan fry for just a couple minutes per side. But I like it extremely rare.

[Wolfdog2314]

I will either cut up into .5 inch square chunks. Marinate. Wrap in bacon. Grill until bacon is cooked. They cook fast. 5 mins or so.

Or cut into steaks. Cut backstrap in to 1 inch thick steaks. Marinate. Bbq. Starting on high, no more than 2 minutes per side. I’ll reduce a heat a little as I go.

As others mentioned, stay on the rare side. I eat mine still almost purple on the inside. Just a warm center.

Same applies to tenderloins!

[follow maggie]

Some good ideas here. Thanks folks!

[colersu22]

Past couple I have cut the strap into thirds then vac seal them.  I have been taking one out and butterflying them and pounding them flat, proceed to stuff them with grilled onions, garlic, jalapeños and cream cheese/cheddar mixed and roll that up and wrap it with bacon.  Tried it on the grill, smoker and camping on a cast iron and it is my go to way to cook backstrap now.

[Fidelk]

If it's "thoroughly cooked," it's ruined in my opinion. I usually pan fry for just a couple minutes per side. But I like it extremely rare.

Same here. Been cooking some young cow elk. Get the frying pan hot with a bit of olive oil and get it on and off after a few minutes. No flour or spices. Perfect tasting and tender meat all by itself. Just a bit of salt.

[highcountry_hunter]

I cook mine as a whole piece, like a roast. Not the entire backstrap but a big enough piece for the family to have dinner.
Pat dry with a paper towel then season liberally. Get a cast iron with some olive oil or beef tallow scalding hot then sear all sides to a light crisp. Finish in the oven or on the grill at around 300° until I get an internal temp of 125 then foil and towels as mentioned above.
3 year old daughter turns into a wild animal on Buck Meat night lol


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[MADMAX]

I butterfly them with some bacon held on with toothpick on the grill

[KNOPHISH]

I gotta try Colersu recipe, sounds fantastic. I had elk straps yesterday. Driseled with olive oil some johnnys garlic powder pepper on a hot grill, think it was 400 for about 5 minutes. Nailed it so I ate 3.

[High Climber]

120-130 is about right! But that’s only worth checking if you have at least a 1/2 inch thick cuts. Error on the side of less done than more done.. in my experience people who say they don’t care for venison either have had meat that wasn’t care for properly, or was over cooked. I grilled some elk backstrap steaks a few weeks ago that was about 3/4” thick and pulled them at 120 let them rest and it was amazing. Good luck and enjoy!

[High Climber]

Past couple I have cut the strap into thirds then vac seal them.  I have been taking one out and butterflying them and pounding them flat, proceed to stuff them with grilled onions, garlic, jalapeños and cream cheese/cheddar mixed and roll that up and wrap it with bacon.  Tried it on the grill, smoker and camping on a cast iron and it is my go to way to cook backstrap now.

I do something similar, I use raw onion instead of grilled, and when the bacon is done I put a slice of pepper jack on top and pull them when it melts 

[Southpole]

If it's "thoroughly cooked," it's ruined in my opinion. I usually pan fry for just a couple minutes per side. But I like it extremely rare.

  Flash fry in a buttered garlic skillet no more than medium rare. Pure bliss.

[jrebel]

Two ways we do it....

1.  the quick, easy and always a crowd pleaser is 1/2" thick slices dredged in flower that is generously seasoned with salt and pepper.  Hot cast iron pan with oil to sear both sides.  you know when to flip the first time when blood / juices start to bubble out the uncooked side.  Flip and quick sear the other side.  Don't overcook. 

2.  Larger piece....season, bacon wrap and place on a grill or smoker preferably.  Temp 350...cook to internal temp of 120.  Glaze with a blueberry or huckleberry compote and finish to a temp of 125-130.  Take off and let rest for a minimum 10 minutes before cutting and serving.  We cut ours in 1/2" - 3/4" depending on what people like.  Most like thinner.  Make sure you have plenty of extra compote as people love lathering it all over the cut meat. 

#2 is a huge winner with Bear roast / backstrap.  Just make sure that you cook bear to 160 degrees.   

[7mmfan]

Man, a lot of you guys put a lot of effort into making meat that already tastes delicious, taste delicious. I live by the KISS method, (keep it simple stupid). I cut all my backstrap into 6" long sections. I brush with a little olive oil, season liberally with Johnny's, wrap in saran wrap and place in the fridge for 3-4 days. Salt penetrates red meat at a rate of 1/4" per 24 hours. If your backstrap is 2" thick, it will take 4 days for the salt to fully penetrate to the center of your cut. I then put it in a 500 degree convection oven and pull when it gets to 120 IT. Foil tent and towel cover for 10 minutes or so then cut into desired portion sizes. It's perfect every time.