Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

The digital revolution has made it easier than ever for nature and wildlife photographers, no matter what their skill level, to take great photographs. Something the cameras cannot provide, however, is a place to take those pictures. Our state park guide, Bryan Frazier, says that’s where Texas Parks and Wildlife can help the beginning or seasoned shutterbug.

36—One of the reasons that state parks are popular places for outdoor photographer—be that for landscapes or for wildlife—is because we have places that are accessible with viewing blinds set up where you can be unobtrusive to the wildlife, but get really close for a great photograph. So, remember that when you’re shaping your photos where you set up. If it’s wildlife viewing blinds at parks, or even on your own ranch near a source of water—or near a feeder—you want to predict the shot as much as you can. That way the guesswork is limited, and you’re able to zoom in on an area and get that great shot you’ve been looking for.

Thanks Bryan.

Share your wildlife photographs on our Facebook page at Facebook.com/texasparksandwildlife.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet…building dependable, reliable trucks for more than 90 years. For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is Passport to Texas

Once deer season arrives freezers will be full of venison. That’s why I attended a Venison Do-It-Yourself class taught by Chef Jesse Griffiths, a hunter and chef from Austin. He says use the correct cooking method when preparing this perfect protein.

18—Either you’re going to cook it a very short amount of time or not even cook it at all—raw in the form of tartar—which is excellent. Or you’re going to cook it where it’s just got a nice brow crust on the outside, and it’s still rare or medium rare on the inside; or, you’re going to cook it at a very slow rate for a long time like a braise or a very slow roast.

Chef Griffiths says slow cooking allows fat, sinew and collagen to melt, which makes the meat juicy and tender.

15—So, braising is a good way, because it’s a moist cooking. You brown it off first, develop flavor, and then cook it in liquid. And so that keeps the moisture in there. Then cook it gently—don’t boil it—you have to get a nice simmer. Keep it in the oven. The secret is just to have patience.

Chef Griffiths also does all his own processing, because prefers to use all parts of the animal, including liver, kidneys, bones and more.

07—I think it’s just a shame to waste anything off of any animal. Especially when we put so much work into hunting.

Read about my experience in Chef Griffiths Venison DIY class—with pictures—in the October issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine.

That’s our show…with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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The following recipes are not from Chef Griffiths, but tasty just the same, and a great way to use the perfect protein known as venison.

Venison Jerky Recipe
Venison Tamales

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Jesse Griffiths working with wild game on the grill

Do-It-Yourself Venison Processing Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

I love to cook and I love venison. So I attended a Venison Do-It-Yourself class taught by Jesse Griffiths, a hunter and professional chef in Austin, who says it pays to process your own deer.

:29—You know, there’s just a lot of reasons why doing it yourself is so much better… because, you don’t know what they’re mixing it with. Maybe you’re not even getting your own deer back. Maybe the people that they’re mixing your deer with –they didn’t take very good care of their deer. Maybe they did the whole, carry it around on the top of their Suburban in some hot weather for awhile. So, you don’t really know. And by putting it in your own hands, it’s really going to do everybody a little more good.

Chef Griffiths advocates using all of this perfect protein cooking.

:12—We’re going to use the liver and the kidneys and the bones, and the neck—everything today. I just want to show people how good that stuff is and if you’re taking the time to kill it, then take the time to enjoy every little bit of it, too.

Throughout the class we watched as Chef carved the venison into familiar cuts of meat: loins, ribs, cutlets, roasts, and flank steaks. After cutting came the cooking.

:05—I want to get people beyond the bacon, jalapeno situation that most game cooking is in.

Tomorrow: how to maximize the flavor of venison. You can also read about, and see pictures from, my Venison Do-It-Yourself experience in the October issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine.

That’s our show…with support from the Sport fish and Wildlife Restoration program…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

This is Passport to Texas

It’s true for many team and individual sports that unless you have a certain level of physical agility and strength you’re not going to excel…except if that sport is archery.

13—If you were a petite little fourth grader, you could shoot at the same time as the high school jock and you may win. So, it’s said that it is the only sport where boys and girls can compete at the same time on the same team.

Burnie Kessner is archery coordinator for Texas Parks and Wildlife. He says archery levels the playing field.

13—Physical ability doesn’t even matter. A young man at [one of] our state tournaments had Down’s Syndrome; he was on the shooting line with everybody else. At the national tournament, there was a young man who was visually impaired on the shooting line with everyone else who was not visually impaired. And, the only difference was, he had a sighted person standing a little behind him, giving him the cues, “a little higher, a little lower, left, right, shoot.” So, it’s an even playing field, and that’s one of the fundamentals of this program, is that the equipment is standardized. Everybody has the same equipment.

The Texas National Archery in the Schools program certifies teachers in one-day intensive workshops to teach the sport to students of all ages and abilities. Find details on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

That’s our show… our series receives support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program Program…working to increase fishing, hunting, shooting and boating opportunities in Texas…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is Passport to Texas

Archery—the original shooting sport—fell out of favor as a component of physical education in public schools some years ago. But, now, thanks to the National Archery in the Schools program, interest in the sport is growing.

The National Archery in the Schools program certifies teachers as instructors. Educators learn the program just as they will teach it to their students.

06—It’s an all day workshop to become a certified instructor. They learn with the same equipment and the same method.

Burnie Kessner is archery coordinator for Texas Parks and Wildlife.

10—We use international style archery. It’s bulls-eye target faces, Olympic size. We use Olympic whistle commands, and they learn the same way worldwide.

Kessner says while certified instructors prepare students for tournaments, the successes a child experiences extend beyond the bulls-eye.

13—So, when a kid is shooting archery, and they’re on the shooting line—they’re all the same. So, it doesn’t matter what kind of home they go home to after the tournament, when they’re at the tournament, they’re the same as everyone else. So, that’s the self-esteem building piece; it’s standardized.

Archery is a sport where anyone of nearly any ability can participate…and we have more about that tomorrow.

That’s our show… our series receives support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…working to increase fishing, hunting, shooting and boating opportunities in Texas…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Hitting the Mark: Archery in Schools Play Now | Play in Popup | Download