What to do with venison

By Staff
Feb. 1, 2002
Mississippi's deer season is finally over and freezers are stocked with venison- literally tons of it. How do I know? Because our deer herd is bursting at the seams, deer processing businesses are springing up all over and every hunter I meet has a successful deer story to tell. It has been a good year if my take on the season is tenable.
So now we can look forward to 6 or 8 months of grilled sausage links and burgers, fried tenderized steaks or venison stew, right? Wrong. At least for me, I am going to diversify. We will cook all the traditional dishes alright, but we will also try a host of new venison recipes because I have a new venison cook book; actually two new venison cook books.
Marketing success
The first book, in its 7th printing, has sold over 20,000 copies, and "Quality Venison II", published in 2000, has sold half that many already. "Doors opened, windows opened and help came from everybody," said Steve, who is disabled with severe environmental allergies. The books are the result of Steve's preoccupation with staying healthy when his health began to decline in the early 1990s. He and his wife, Gale, appreciate venison's freedom from growth enhancing chemicals and its relatively low fat and cholesterol.
The 180 page "Quality Venison" book has a recipe for "Mississippi Marinated Venison" on page 110. "Quality Venison II" has recipes from Mississippi scattered throughout. "Mississippi Barbeque Sauce" is on page 154, Mississippi Barbequed Venison Steak for Two" is there as well as "Meridian Venison Barbeque" on page 65.
Meridian friend
While in Meridian, Loder hunted with a friend who owned a sporting goods store and bait shop. "J.D. had lived in Meridian all his life and he spent most of it hunting and fishing so he was certainly in the right line of work," writes Loder in one of his outdoor stories in the front of "Quality Venison II." Several of the 150 recipes in each book are titled with J.D.'s initials. Loder's own hunting stories appear in each book, as well as stories by well known outdoor writers, that address aspects of venison care, sportsmanship and hunting strategy. About anything one needs to know about handling venison is in these two volumes.
Each book has a hard cover and is spiral bound so it lies flat on the kitchen table. The color covers are inspiring art work by artist Jack Paluh. The painting on book one captures the reverence which Native Americans display upon retrieving a fallen deer. The Loders write in their books about the spiritual aspects of hunting and bagging this wonderful game animal. A portion of all book profits go to Christian charities.
Order the books for $14.95 each plus $3.50 shipping each from: Loder's Game Publications, Inc., P.O. Box 1615, Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania 16066. Phone (724) 779-8320.
Outdoors Editor: Otha Barham
Telephone: (601) 482-4440
Fax: (601) 485-1275
E-mail: olbarham1@aol.com