More venison (and more on the way)

Barbecue Venison
301 Venison Recipes The Ultimate Deer Hunter’s Cookbook Copyright 1992

2 pounds boneless venison
½ pound bacon I used applewood smoked bacon
1 cup onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup ketchup
½ cup red wine vinegar
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup brown sugar
Rice, salt and pepper

I marinated the meat overnight in water, vinegar and salt.

Cut venison into pieces no larger than 1-inch cubes. In the bottom of a Dutch oven or large frying pan, cook bacon until crisp.

Remove bacon, crumble and set aside.

In a bowl or other container, mix all ingredients except venison and rice. Salt and pepper to taste.

I didn't add the vegetables straight to the sauce. I sautéed them with the meat for awhile after it had browned.

Brown venison in bacon drippings. Add bowl of ingredients to venison. Stir well. Cover tightly and simmer about 1 hour or until meat is tender (it took me quite a bit longer becauseI realized my element had come loose during the cooking process so this was actually turned off for who knows how long.). Stir occasionally. Serve over rice.
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I was down to just a couple packages of deer meat left in the freezer and then my husband shot another deer yesterday (archery). This last batch wasn't bad - I hope this next batch is okay. Although, he didn't really mention the size of this deer at all which leads me to believe it wasn't that impressive. There might not be much meat left after the bologna (he always orders a good bit of deer bologna when he gets a deer processed).

Venison is growing on me yet I still approach it with a bit of hesitation each time. I was pleased with this recipe but I think I could have cut the bacon down by at least half. I had applewood smoked bacon which I like but it's stronger than other bacon. The sauce was pretty strong, which is why I chose it. I might get daring and start to pick recipes that don't mask the venison flavor as much. I'm not giving up marinating the meat first. I'm not that brave.

I will add this to my venison recipes round-up.

Question of the Day: Do you have a favorite bacon? Thick? Thin? Maple-flavored? Peppered?