Hunting/Cooking: Low and Slow to Cook Game
Chef Lou Lambert and his trusty kitchen helper.
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Cooking venison for the first time can be intimidating, but Lou Lambert, chef-proprietor of Lamberts Downtown Barbecue in Austin and Lambert’s Steaks and Seafood in Fort Worth, is here to help.
60— I grew up hunting and fishing and still do today. But I think most of the lessons I learned about cooking game were more failures than things that worked out well when my mother was cooking.
Because I had two brothers, father – we all hunted. So, we always had quail, dove, ducks and deer. And I remember my mother struggling to cook deer, because (and the biggest mistake she made) was not realizing because game is, if you will, grass-fed, all-natural – it does not have the fat content. And, because it is more in motion – the muscles tend to be a little bit tighter, which means tougher.
So, lack of fat and more movement tells you that you have to do a slow, moist heat cooking method, unless you have it ground into sausage, or pounded for chicken fried [steaks], most of that deer – 80% — you need to either do a braise or a very slow barbeque smoke method.
Find wild game recipes on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series.
For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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