cured venison ham

[TasunkaWitko]

i've never done this, but have two smaller deer hind quarters that might work perfectly for an experiment like this. when i say venison HAM, i am referring more to the hind quarter than comparing it to a ham that you would buy in the store.

has anyone done it? what sort of brine is used? can it be smoked in a little/big chief (preferred) using a cool-box technique or is a hot/charcoal smoker required? how long?

any advice or direction would be helpful. looking for a basic technique that can be improvised as experience grows.

[Alan R. McDaniel, Jr.]

Hey Tas! Check down in this section to a topic called "Venison ham (boned)". That's how I did it.

Alan
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Food is at the core of hunting and fishing.

[TasunkaWitko]

hey, alan - good to see you here!

i took a look at your thread - looks like really good stuff. i too have called hindquarters "hams" as a "nickname" for the hindquarters, so maybe it is a western or regional thing - called them hams but different than traditional pork hams....anyway....

click here to see what i inded up doing with these:

http://www.baitshopboyz.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=15942&PN=1

i always separate all quarters down to each muscle group, then trim them as roasts. next year i might try things with one of the round roasts instead of the hocks. they were good, but no way to get rid of those thick ribbons of gristle. better to trim those (the hocks) out for jerky or grind them, i decided.

suggestion: ALWAYS get rid of any deer fat. it goes bad quicky and adds nothing to flavor, texture or anything else. if you want a fat cap, use bacon or brush with olive oil! i also prefer as i mentioned above to get rid of anything that isn't meat including bones, silverskin membrane etc. it takes a little more time, but in the end am left with nothing but pure meat steaks, roasts, cubes etc. give it a try and if you have any questions i have detailed instructions and illustrations.

in the end, it's all good - as long as it tastes good!