The shoulders of deer or elk can be used in this delectable recipe. Although the process requires some time, it is absolutely worth it. The venison’s gamey flavor is eliminated by curing. If you want a stronger flavor, you can add 1 tablespoon of pickling spice.
| Prep Time: | 5 mins |
| Cook Time: | 4 hrs 15 mins |
| Additional Time: | 5 days 30 mins |
| Total Time: | 5 days 4 hrs 50 mins |
| Servings: | 20 |
| Yield: | 5 pounds of venison |
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 6 tablespoons sugar-based curing mixture (such as Morton® Tender Quick®)
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 4 ½ teaspoons pickling spice
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 6 cups cold water
- 5 pounds boneless shoulder venison roast
Instructions
- Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Stir in the curing mixture, brown sugar, pickling spice, and garlic powder; stir until dissolved then remove from the heat. Pour 6 cups of cold water into a 2-gallon container, and stir in the spice mixture. Place the boneless venison into the brine, cover and refrigerate.
- Leave the venison in the refrigerator to brine for 5 days, turning the meat over every day.
- To cook, rinse the meat well, place into a large pot, and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 4 hours. Remove the venison from the pot, and allow to rest for 30 minutes before slicing.
- You may freeze uncooked corned venison by placing the desired amounts in vacuum sealable bags. Do not rinse meat before freezing, but remove excess liquid before sealing.
Reviews
The recipe is OK, and I am a giant fan of cured wild meats. But I object to the “curing gets rid of the gamey flavor of the venison” statement. Except in rare conditions, venison is not “gamey”, and when it is, trickery is not the solution. The #1 cause of objectionable traits on the plate is poor field care. Corned venison or venison pastrami are my favorite ways to celebrate this natural miracle. Holding these methods up as some sort of cover-up or apology for a substandard product is offensive.
I am a hunter and love venison, my wife is not and does not. I used this recipe on some year or so old frozen version roasts. My Irish wife loved it. Loved it more than corned beef. I will triple batch and corn 15 pounds at a time. I then can in pint jars. Makes the best hash ever. Instead of complaining about deer season my wife now joins me.
Tried this recipe with bear meat. It turned out awesome. I cooked it in a crockpot. Added a chopped onion, some salt and pickling spice. It is the best recipe I have tried.
This is a fine way to take venison and create a tastey main course that serves well with cabbage (roasted, braised or boiled) or mashed potatoes.
This is a fantastic way to make venison. I have used it several times and it makes great reuben sandwiches.
I really liked this. I made Rubens with it. Turned out excellent. Will make again
Made it straight from the recipe – it tasted like real corned beef.
I smoke this ,excellent!
I didn’t change any of the recipe other than I used a sturdy plastic bag to line a plastic pail. It made it easy to shake/flip the bag to mix the meat in the solution. With cooking I found a similar recipe for brisket, using a pressure cooker. I just thought boiling the meat took way too long (~4 hours!). I put the 2 pieces of deer shoulder on the circular riser plate in the bottom of the pressure cooker, put water in to cover the meat. I figured 45 minutes should work. It did! Turned out very flavorful, tender and nice reddish color to the meat.
Worked just like the recipe said it would, I did reserve the juice from cooking it to store the leftovers in so it would not dry out, but it lasted several days. Will make it again.
excellent
Ive made this recipe a couple times. Always love it. One other thing ive done also is rinse and pressure can the meat after its out of the brine. Very tasty and lasts forever.
I make this every year and it is a hit! I boil it in beef stock though and it taste very much like corned beef.
I have made this several times and think it is great. Nice and easy to do also. great chopped up with potatoes and onions to make a hash for breakfast. Did two roasts in my last batch and froze one so I can try and make some pastrami when I have the time.
I had to special order the Tender Quick, never heard of it. This was well worth it and a GREAT way to use those shoulder roasts. I will forever more use this recipe for that. Makes great hash in the morning also. Thank you for sharing this recipe!!
Oh my gosh you would swear this was genuine corned beef!!!! Looked, tasted and even cut like corned beef does. Thank you for another recipe I can use with venison!
Followed this recipe exactly although I saw a comment about using slow cooker instead and I may try that next time around. It was a great way to utilize your game meat in a different way. I made Reuben sandwiches and family and friends loved it. Thank’s for the recipe
Excellent!!! I can’t wait to make this recipe again. My family loves it.
I followed this recipe to a T up to the cooking method. I chose to cook mine in a slow cooker instead of the boiling method but only to play it safe. I have never boiled corned beef and didn’t want to risk not liking it that way after I had spent 5 days “babysitting” it. This is an excellent way to use up venison that is taking space in the freezer. I still prefer beef over venison but that goes for all recipes and not just this one. If you are a hunter and you like corned beef, give this one a try. You won’t be disappointed.
This tastes just like corned beef. I made ruebens sandwiches for the family and they thought it was corned beef.
I use the brine recipe and then make venison pastrami. After the 5 days, rinse the meat under cold water, pat dry. Use your hands to smear the roast with whole grain mustard. Shake on an even coating of ground black pepper and then a little granulated onion. Place the roast in a pan and then in a smoker at 275 degrees. I use hickory wood to smoke mine. The juices that gather in the pan will help keep it moist, add a little water if it starts to dry out in the pan while smoking. 4 to 5 hours until the internal temp is 165 degrees pull it out and let it rest 20 minutes. Thinly slice and enjoy