wild game recipe

A lot of people don’t realize that you can make great bone-in rib recipes with your venison ribs if you just apply a little low, slow heat first and then go to the grill. Give this recipe a try. You’ll never look at venison ribs the same way again. Brought to you by Weston
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Venison Ribs

BBQ Rub

salt

garlic

tbsp. black pepper

chili powder

tbsp. cumin

tbsp. Hungarian paprika

tbsp. smoked paprika

onion powder

mustard

cayenne

oregano

brown sugar

BBQ Sauce

ketchup

tbsp. BBQ rub (see above)

apple cider vinegar

Worcestershire sauce

molasses

Dijon mustard

lemon juice

liquid smoke

tbsp. kosher salt

Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will last for about a week in the fridge, longer if you omit the lemon juice.

Using a hacksaw or bone saw, cut a rack of game ribs perpendicular to the bones, so to get a 4-6 inch strip of connected rib bones.

Then cut these strips into pieces containing 3 or 4 ribs apiece.

Place the ribs into a pressure cooker or crock pot and add just enough stock or water to cover them.

Cook at full pressure for 30 minutes. If using a slow cooker, cook on high for 2 to 3 hours or low for 6 to 8 hours. By then, the ribs should be fairly tender. The measure of a perfectly cooked venison rib will be if the meat hangs on to the bone when picked up, but if you shook the bone the meat would start to fall off. A little resistance is not a bad thing.

Prepare a grill (gas or charcoal) at medium-high heat.

Remove the ribs from the slow cooker, let them cool, and then give them a generous rub-down with the rub.

Since they’re already cooked, you’re simply reheating the meat and charring the outside a bit.

Once the ribs have crisped, about 10 minutes, coat them generously with the barbeque sauce, and continue cooking for 1 to 2 minutes to allow the sauce to caramelize and thicken.

It’s damn hard to beat a crispy buffalo turkey sandwich. Like poutine or a Sloppy Joe pizza, this dish is where wild game intersects bar food perfection. Brined in buttermilk and fried until golden brown, I’m convinced that pairing this pub grub with a cold drink is the best way to celebrate a dead...

Buffalo Turkey Sandwiches

turkey breast

Salt and pepper

buttermilk

kosher salt

Buffalo sauce, store-bought

flour, plus extra if needed

Buns, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, pickles,

Buffalo Sauce:

butter (1 stick)

garlic powder

tbsp. white wine or apple cider vinegar

Cut the turkey breast into four cutlets for four sandwiches. I like to use the thin, lower portion of the breast lobe. If you use the thick, upper part of the meat, cut it into ½-inch slices. Pound each cutlet with a meat mallet to roughly ¼-inch thick or less.

Mix the buttermilk, salt, and 2 tablespoons of buffalo sauce. Pour the mixture over the cutlets and marinate for at least one hour and up to 24 hours. While marinating, heat the oil in a deep fryer or a large cast iron skillet with 1 inch of oil to 350 degrees.

Spread flour across a plate. Remove the cutlets from the marinade and squeeze out the excess liquid. Dredge each cutlet across the flour, shake it, dip it back into the buttermilk, and then dredge in flour again. Do this to each piece.

When the oil is hot, drop in each piece of meat and fry until golden brown, or about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack.

Pour enough buffalo sauce over the fried turkey breast to thoroughly coat.

Assemble the sandwiches with the fried turkey cutlet and desired toppings.

Combine the hot sauce, butter, garlic powder, vinegar, in a small pot over medium-low heat. Bring to a simmer and whisk to combine. Turn the heat off and add 1-2 dashes of Worcestershire to taste. Remove from heat and set aside.

This hearty soup is the classic flavor you know and love, but with protein from limb chickens rather than real chickens. Squirrel meat is a little darker than most poultry, creating a richer, more savory broth. This is a delicious recipe that the whole family will love.

Squirrel Noodle Soup

squirrels

onion,

carrots, sliced

celery sticks, sliced

head of garlic, chopped (6-8 cloves)

Bouquet garni: sprigs of fresh thyme, rosemary, and parsley

lemon, juiced

black pepper

poultry stock (16 cups), plus more if needed

egg noodles

Break the skinned squirrels down into 6 serving pieces by cutting off all four legs at the hip and shoulder joints, then cutting the body in half. Season each piece with salt and pepper.

Heat a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add a tablespoon of cooking fat and brown the squirrel pieces, making sure to not over-crowd the pan. Work in batches and add more oil or clarified butter if needed. After each piece has browned, remove and set aside.

Add another tablespoon of cooking oil to the pan. Once the fat shimmers, add the onion and sauté until translucent. Add the celery, carrots, and garlic. Continue to sauté until they begin to soften.

Return the squirrel to the pot and squeeze lemon juice over the top. Drop in the bouquet garni and season with black pepper. Pour in all of the stock and stir to combine.

Increase the heat until the liquid just barely begins to bubble, then reduce it to low and maintain a gentle simmer. You can skim scum off the top as it cooks. Cook for roughly 3 hours, or longer, until the meat is fork-tender. Don’t cover the stock pot while cooking so that the liquid reduces into a rich and flavorful broth.

Use tongs to fish out each piece of squirrel and the bouquet garni. Use your fingers or a fork to shred the meat off the bones. Discard the bones and place the shredded meat back in the pot.

Increase the heat so that the soup comes to a boil. Add the egg noodles, one handful at a time until you reach the desired amount. Gently simmer the soup until the egg noodles are soft, about 10 minutes. Add more stock if the soup reduced too much, or if the ratio of noodles-to-liquid is off.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped celery or parsley leaves if desired.

This wild game recipe turns plucked mallard breasts into crisp-skinned, juicy duck grilled hot and fast, then topped with a creamy, bacon-jalapeño popper sauce. Perfect for summer gatherings or field-to-table meals.

Grilled Duck Breast with Popper Sauce

mallard breasts (skin on, plucked)

bird brine (such as Malcom’s Bird Brine)

water

Worcestershire sauce (W Sauce preferred)

tbsp AP seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic blend)

block softened cream cheese

pre-cooked bacon, chopped

jalapeños

1½ tbsp AP seasoning

Mexican crema (or milk to thin)

In a large bowl or zip-top bag, combine water, bird brine, and brown sugar. Add duck breasts and refrigerate overnight.

Remove duck from the brine and rinse. Pat dry. Cross-hatch the skin using a sharp knife to help render the fat and prevent curling.

Toss duck with Worcestershire sauce and AP seasoning. Let sit while grill heats.

Set up a two-zone fire (hot direct heat and a cooler indirect side). Aim for medium-high heat.

Place duck skin-side down over direct heat for 1–2 minutes until crispy. Then move to indirect heat.

Continue cooking until internal temp reaches 125–130°F. Do not exceed 135°F to keep the duck tender.

Let duck rest 5–10 minutes. Slice against the grain at a slight angle.

In a saucepan, combine all popper sauce ingredients over medium-low heat until warm and smooth. Thin with crema or milk if needed.

Serve sliced duck with sauce drizzled on top or on the side for dipping.

Fresh sausage making is my favorite category of wild game cookery, as it turns low-grade cuts of meat into high-grade food. My favorite sausages are fresh, meaning not cured or dried-and stuffed into hog middle casings.
I like to view fresh sausages as a sort of blank slate since you can flavor them...

Fresh Wild Game Sausage

Basic Meat Mixture

Italian Seasoning

fennel seeds

iced red wine

flat-leaf parsley

red pepper flakes

Bratwurst Seasoning

tbsp. white pepper

ginger

tbsp. nutmeg

cloves

Vietnamese Style Seasoning

lime juice

tbsp. fish sauce

carrot,

serrano peppers

sugar

ice water

cilantro (add after grinding)

basil

scallions, thinly sliced (add after grinding)

When I make sausage or grind meat, I work out of the freezer in order to make sure that everything is super cold. Another option is to work out of a cooler filled with ice. The meat is easier to work with when it’s on the verge of freezing, and it’s much safer. If your meat is so cold that your hands get an arthritic ache when mixing it, you’re doing it right.

Combine the meat and fat from the basic recipe. Then add whichever style seasoning you choose to the cubed meat mixture. Toss to combine.

With a bowl placed at the output of the grinder, run the combined mixture of meat, fat, and seasonings through a 1/4-inch grinder plate.

For a coarser sausage, pass the blend through that same plate again. For a finer-grained sausage (recommended for tougher meat) pass the sausage mixture through a 3/16-inch grinder plate.

If making the Vietnamese-style sausage, add the chopped herbs and scallions and mix well.

Remove a golf-ball-sized sample of the mixture and re­frigerate the rest. In a hot skillet, cook up the sample to be sure you like the seasoning. Adjust the seasoning of the larger batch as needed. At this point, the sausage mixture can be used (or wrapped and frozen) as bulk sausage. Or you can proceed to stuff the sausages into casings.

Plan on using about 20 feet of 32-35 millimeter natural hog casings for 10 pounds of sausage. Start by soaking the hog casings in lukewarm water then set them to soak in clean water at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes. When the casing is pliable and clean, rinse the inside of the casing by fitting an end over the faucet in your sink and running water through the entire length of the casing.

Fill the hopper of your sausage stuffer with meat and lit the tube with a length of the washed and rinsed casing. Tie the end of the casing in a simple granny knot, so that the knot is tight against the end of the tube of casing.

Working slowly, stuff the sausage into the casings. Be careful to avoid overstuffing the casings, and don’t allow air to build up inside the casings.

When you are finished with a length of casing, tie off the end with a granny knot.

Twist the sausage into links measuring 5-6 inches long. There are several ways to do this, but the following is easy and works quite well. For the first sausage, measure the desired length of your link and press with a finger to form a crease. Spin this link about eight times. Then measure ahead another 5-6 inch and press a crease there. Spin this link about eight times. Then move ahead to the next sausage.

When done twisting links, cut the center of each twist. Refrigerate or freeze immediately.

Preheat your grill for direct heat on medium-high. If using charcoal, make a slightly cooler section of the grill so that you can remove the sausages from the heat if they are cooking too quickly.

Lightly brush the sausages with oil and set them on the grill. Grill them gently, reducing the heat if necessary; high heat will cause the casings to burst.

Cook them all the way through, until they reach 150° internally.

Serve immediately with crusty bread and grilled veggies on the side. Invite some friends over. These sausages go great with beer.

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Venison Ribs

Buffalo Turkey Sandwiches

Squirrel Noodle Soup

Grilled Duck Breast with Popper Sau...

Fresh Wild Game Sausage

Top 5 wild game recipe recipes from across the web

The most viewed wild game recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Venison Ribs

Buffalo Turkey Sandwiches

Squirrel Noodle Soup

Grilled Duck Breast with Popper Sau...

Fresh Wild Game Sausage

The most viewed wild game recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine