I have two main ways I do mine, but both end up as fajitas or stir fry. The youngest of deer trimming the exterior isn't even sometimes needed...however a few of my older bucks and does you will notice the exterior layer becomes VERY tough. If you don't desire to peel that similar to an apple, soak it in apple cider vinegar for a time to loosen and soften it up...just know if you don't use any sauce or seasonings there will be a ACV taste to it. I like to cross cut mine so you end up with circle/medallion type pieces...clean those up of the interior junk left and any sinewy bits/connection pieces that isn't meat. From there honestly I treat mine like any strips of uncooked steak....season as you want, and treat it as you want - just know it will overcook faster than steak of same thickness. I really like getting peppers and onions in a pan of either EVO or a wine or even a busch lattee...get those going nice and good and when about half to two thirds cooked to where you like for fajitas or tacos...slam the heart in and in mere minutes you'll have a freaking dynamite mix for a tortilla shell (hard or soft), burrito roll....slam even on a bed of greens for a dynamite salad...I love hot so either siracha or a ghost pepper sauce is usually involved as well.
I just fry it up. I cut it into quarters to make sure I get all the blood-shot out of it, basically expose all the chambers. I remove the outer "skeen" and also the thicker material that is on the inside of the chambers. Trim all of the fat off the top. Season, roll in flour, fry it. Very rich, I can't eat very much of it anymore, but do like the flavor.
I soak it in cold water and salt for a couple of days to draw all the blood out. Even dead, there is a lot of blood in the heart. I typically get a a cast iron skillet hot, cut the heart into circle slices like a tomato and the then sear it in the hot skillet, usually just 1-2 minutes per side. Put a light coat of olive oil on the skillet once it is hot. Salt and pepper the heart meat to taste before searing.
I prep it like cantexian, but have used it like Ty, ground it into a sausage (think liver mush or scrapple). Fajitas a good option, as you can season as much/little as you like, for my kids who weren’t as fond of the minerally flavor you get from organ meats. Related, I’ve also used a moose heart for jerky.
Yep, I agree with the salt water bath after trimming. It all but entirely removes the mineral / blood / liver taste that turns most people off.
So I used mod-it recipe. Turned out pretty good. I ate the whole thing no surprise there. Thanks for everyones input.
That looks pretty tasty! I did forget to mention that I also soak it for a couple days in salt water, like Cantexion and several others mentioned. I went right to how I cook it and forgot to mention the prep before cooking.
Man I tell you what if you haven’t tried it in a while give it another try. I was never a fan of it either. I was maybe buying a 12 pack a year of it just to change it up. Either my taste buds changed or they did something to it but that’s my go to now or maybe all I can afford .FJB.
We have a brewery that opened up 5 miles down the road from me called Beer Tree. I hammer the sours down there pretty hard. You should check out there web site. They are having a anniversary event this weekend. That place is a gold mine.
I'll have to swing through the Binghamton location, next trip to upstate, I don't get over to the finger lakes, oswego areas anymore.
Back when I was a kid my great uncle would slice it, dredge it through egg and seasoned flour and fry it. We ate it with eggs and toast the next morning. These days, dad takes the hearts and tongues. Boils them, removes the nasty stuff and makes a big shepherds pie. Grinds the rest into a pate/spread. Brings it over on Xmas eve. Delicious. None left! I've butterflied them, stuffed them with various things, wrapped them with bacon and baked, smoked or grilled them. All were good and fun experiments. But, I keep coming back to the simple seasoned flour, fried with butter in a cast iron pan. I'm sure most of you have never heard of Gary Roach. Mr. Walleye. He was big before Al Lindner. My dad met him many year ago and they hit it off. He developed his own fish batter. Long story. It's CRAZY good on venison. We fry our tenderloins (not the backstraps) coated with it. A treat to us while processing. Dad has a direct line and orders 25 Lbs. at a time. We all show up with mason jars and bring some home. Available on-line. It's really good on fish or any wild game in general. Lol. Google is always another source of recipes. Venison heart isn't for everyone. I get that. Grind it. Mix it in with the other scraps. Never know it's there. But, I still prefer to do something special with it.
