Venison Burger?

[mabr]

Alright im hooked now using the grinder and making my own stuff out of venison.

So now my next attempt is going to be making ground burger. Ive had it made for myself in the past and I never got a batch I would attempt to make a burger patty out of. It was always to dry which I was ok with, i'd just use it in spagetti and such. I think this will be the case with whatever I put in it on my own now unless others say differently on here.

So what % trim do you use in ground meat? And what type do you find the best, Pork or Beef? I like the idea of keeeping it as lean as possible, but i realize there needs to be some fat added or it is to dry. Thoughts? I forgot to ask if I need to use trim or just plain old fat again if so pork or beef?

[TylerS]

I prefer pork, as I think it gives it a cleaner flavor. As far as what ratio, it depends on how fatty the trimmings are. If you have a lot more fat than lean, try something closer to 20:80 or 30:70. But if the trimmings are more lean, I'll go as high as 50:50. That's just personal preference. I've experimented quite a bit and this is what I typically stick to. I'd also say that if you shot a big, rutting buck or weren't able to take care of the meat for a bit after harvesting, go with a ratio closer to 50:50 to mask some of the off taste.

[Crow Hunter]

I am very picky about what goes into the trim container- you want as little game fat as possible. I grind it with 10% beef fat. It is lean, but you can patty a burger and it should not fall apart. Meat loaf is my favorite with deer burger.. CH

[pureinsanity]

Pork for sure!

Ive seen pure pork fat even used

[reinhard1]

in my opinion pork trim is the best for mixing with venison for burgers. good luck.

[westb]

I mix 50/50 with pork shoulder and it works great!

[KEN W]

I always use beef.To me it doesn't taste like a good burger with pork.Pork is much softer than beef.I use 80-20 regular from the grocery store.With no fat from the venison.....that gives you close to 90-10.90-10 makes excellent grilled burgers.Doesn't have all the flair-ups when on the grill.

One thing......grind the venison once.Mix the beef and venison together by hand and grind it again.You can't tell it has venison if you double grind it.

[eyeguy 54]

I've done it with beef pork and bacon. All good but my favorite for burger that all like is using 20/80 beef and mixing it 50-50. I also like using Italian ground sausage and mix that about 70-30. I just use the red deer meat and basically nill on the white stuf but a little is fine.

[reinhard1]

it is all about personal preferance. i think everyone should try pork or beef as posted above and see what they prefer. sounds like everyone is enjoying their venison, and that is all that matters. i like it when there is all this information for people who have never tried any method. this is why these threads are informative to all. good luck.

[mabr]

I think Im going to try the pork first and see how It tastes. Thanks for the info folks

[Dark Cloud]

There are a about 14,345 ways to do it and the same number of opinions.

Sausages and stuff like that I grind 50/50 with pork butt. I also do a bunch each year that I grind with beef fat(nice steak fat) at about 10% percent. This gets used for stuffed cabbage, meat sauce for pasta, tacos, sloppy joes, stuffed peppers, ect.

Then I do a bunch each year for burgers. I double grind it through a med plate at a 1 pd bacon to about 5 pounds of venison. Sometimes a little richer but if you go leaner it will head towards dry. Right after I grind it I mix in a tablespoon or two of MCormic burger seasoning. We patty them up and vac-pack in various size packages...

[reinhard1]

i do like the idea with bacon mixed with burger. i have also used pre-fried bacon that i fried myself until brown and let cool and then mix it with my breakfast sausage before stuffing it. just crumble it up and toss it in and mix it up with the sausage mix and stuff or do bulk. i already have the proper fat mixture [pork] in the venison and the fried bacon adds good flavor. regardless what you use bacon for, the next time you go to the grocery store ask a person in the meat dept. for bulk or "ends and pieces" bacon. it usualy comes in 3 or 5 pound pacs and is much cheaper than the one pound pacs. good luck.

[Hd Wtr Hillbilly]

Dark Cloud

I use a similar deal for venison burgers- 1 pound bacon to 3 pounds venison, grind together add seasonings, patty them and freeze...great on the grill

[pureinsanity]

I think Im going to try the pork first and see how It tastes. Thanks for the info folks

Another thing you could do is add some spices in there along with the pork and boom you got yourself a breakfast sausage.

[pureinsanity]

Last year my friend made a batch that tasted identical to Jimmy Deans sausage. It was delicious. Also had eggs in it. Anyone put eggs in their meat?

[DonBo]

I use either beef fat 10% (Beef freezes better than pork.), or 20% bacon ends. The bacon mix is a favorite at our house for making burger patties.

[BobT]

Quote:

I like the idea of keeeping it as lean as possible, but i realize there needs to be some fat added or it is to dry.

Used to believe that but not any more. I no longer mix my venison with any other meat or fat additives.

First, I age my venison for about a week before processing. I have found that this does in fact improve the quality, texture, and taste of the meat. I age it in a controlled environment to reduce the potential for problems. To do this I put the meat (covered to protect from drying out) into a second refrigerator (usually my beer and bait fridge).

My venison is trimmed of all tallow and silver skin as best I can within reason.

For meat that is ground I add water. Enough that the meat is somewhat sticky and has a mushy feel. If spices are added such as for sausage, I let it cure in the refrigerator overnight before packing and freezing.

Take a little and try this sometime. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how moist it will remain - provided you do not over-cook it!!!!!

[eyeguy 54]

Ground up 12 pounds yesturday. 6 for jerky (2 pounds cured overnight with Hi Mountain on the dehydrator as I type, man it smells good in here). The other 6 pounds I mixed 50/50 with 80/20 ground beef for patties. 12 pounds all together. Had 2 for supper last night. Mmmmmmmmm. I used to just make straight venny burgers years ago but tooo dry for me. These are very good and easy to mix up thru the grinder.

[reinhard1]

looks gook. also it looks as we have the same deydrader. doing up 15 pounds of venison jerkey today. i will do some in the oven but have never used the dehydrader. i also have high mountain original and about 4 pounds of it i added hot pepper flakes. i cured it sliced venison for 24 hours and get started at 3pm. good luck.

[eyeguy 54]

mmm, tastes as good as it looks. :>) I started using a dehydrator about 10 years ago. Easier and the Mrs doesn't get mad at me for using fie stove, :>). I usually do 2 pounds at a time and get about 40 jerkys on 4 trays. Cure for 4 hours to overnight with the ground. Once in a while I do slices and gotta cure that for 24 hours. Both dry in about 5 to 6 hours. I bet that hot pepper batch is a good one! I use mesquite mostly and add some black pepper. Had another burger on the grill for lunch today. If I am what I eat I wonder how big my rack is?? LOL

[reinhard1]

this is my first time at jerky. like you probably know by now, butcher for 35 years and have made a variety of fresh sausage, this is new territory for me. high mountain instructions were 200 degrees for one hour and a quarter. well they have been in there [oven] since 4pm and just about done. of course maby i sliced them as thin as they say but they are thin in my eyes. anyway i tasted a couple of slices and they taste good . the ones i have in the dehydrader have been in there since 3 pm on the meat setting and just about done also. i still have about 5 pounds to go but i put them sealed in the garage till tommorow. like i said, next time smaller batches like you have done. good luck.

[reinhard1]

well if i have any suggestions on jerky, it is make small batches at a time. i have a nesco harvest mountain dehydrader with 6 stacks and i had to fill them twice, the oven with jerkey all over the racks once and the little leftover in a toaster oven so i could get it all done. i'll be vacume sealing them later when the kids come over for our thanksgiving dinner today. kitchen's been a busy place this weekend. next week i'll start making sausage. good luck.

[eyeguy 54]

Fresh jerky, diet cherry coke, Warren Miller on the TV with sound track on the stereo. Lifes pretty good for this guy with the bum leg. :>)