The growing popularity of venison is testament to its well-documented health-giving properties, with many nutritional experts praising it for its low fat content and abundance of minerals and vitamins. But this ultra-lean meat is also beloved for its flavor, often very distinct from beef and other red meats.
What Does Venison Taste Like?
When people describe venison taste and texture, they often use words like rich or earthy; this is a festive-tasting meat, often imbued with hints of the acorns, sage and herbs that the deer enjoyed during its life. It's also considered to be less juicy and succulent than beef, but also smoother and firmer. Like lamb, it lends itself well to minty, spicy and autumnal flavors in a way that beef doesn't.
The "Gamey" Flavor
Another word commonly attributed to venison is gamey: this refers to the musky, pungent flavor of an animal raised in the untamed wilderness instead of on a farm. Some folks appreciate gaminess in their meat, but many who are used to farm-raised meat find it off-putting. You can easily disguise that gamey taste with seasons and marinades, but fortunately, you don't even have to do that. The venison for sale here at Steaks and Game comes from farm-raised deer, and therefore has zero gamey taste!
Red Deer Flavor:
Our venison is derived from New Zealand pasture-raised red deer, which has a more flavorful profile than Axis deer, but less pronounced flavor than Sika or Fallow Deer. In other words, this venison is easy for all to palates to enjoy, and is unlikely to polarize your guests, especially as it lacks the gamey flavor of wild-caught deer.
But there's only so much we can convey about taste and texture with the written word. At some point, you're going to have to try some venison for yourself. So check out our venison products by clicking here, or click on the links to the left and right of this article.