# Venison Shoulder / Shank



## jbk90 (Nov 1, 2017)

Was fortunate enough to get a buck on opening day (Saturday) and get it butchered, vacuum sealed, and frozen before we lost power Sunday night (looks like it could be up to a week before I get it back). Luckily I have been running a portable generator to keep the freezer running. Not having power has given me lots of time to start thinking about how I want to cook the meat in my now full freezer. 

Does anyone have experience smoking venison shoulder or shank? I did some searching around and saw that most people either used a slow cooker or cooked it to a fairly low IT. I know there is almost no fat itself in the meat but I have to believe there is a decent amount of connective tissue that could break down if cooked low and slow to a high enough IT. 

Ultimately I am trying to end up with pulled venison. Is there an IT I should be shooting for or should I rely on it becoming probe tender? Any advice is welcomed.


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## crazymoon (Nov 2, 2017)

jbk90, Congratz on the deer, check out Realtrees Mike Pendleys youtube on cooking a deer shoulder,it looks excellent.


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## yankee2bbq (Nov 2, 2017)

I’m smoking a deer shoulder this weekend on my WSM.  Have smoked a deer shoulder many times.  (It involves a white bbq sauce!) When I get home today I will send you the recipe.  Send me a message so I don’t forget.


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## yankee2bbq (Nov 2, 2017)

Smoked deer shoulder

Dry rub
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons brown sugar

8 cups white bbq sauce

White bbq sauce recipe
This makes 4 cups
2 cups mayonnaise
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup apple juice
2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

Make sure you trim all the silver skin you can.  Coat the shoulder with a liquid of your choice (olive oil, mustard, lard...etc) Apply the rub all over the shoulder.  You may have to double the rub recipe.  Place on smoker.  Cook for 4 hours, transfer the shoulder to a large roasting pan, pour the white sauce over the meat, cover tightly with aluminum foil.  Cook another 5 hours.  The meat is done at IT of 145 medium rare.  Obviously, you can cook longer for your likeness.

The above recipes follows Chris Lilly and Bib Bob Gibson BBQ cookbook.  The white bbq sauce can be tweaked, but follows the traditional Alabama white sauce.

Cooking a shoulder has a lot more silver skin and connective tissue than the ham of the deer.  The shoulder breaks down a lot with it being cooked in the white bbq sauce.

For it being liked pulled pork, yes it can be. Low and slow temp on your smoker.  Try to keep the smoker at 225 degrees and adjust the above cook times at least 2 hours more.  

Good luck.


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## tallbm (Nov 2, 2017)

jbk90 said:


> Was fortunate enough to get a buck on opening day (Saturday) and get it butchered, vacuum sealed, and frozen before we lost power Sunday night (looks like it could be up to a week before I get it back). Luckily I have been running a portable generator to keep the freezer running. Not having power has given me lots of time to start thinking about how I want to cook the meat in my now full freezer.
> 
> Does anyone have experience smoking venison shoulder or shank? I did some searching around and saw that most people either used a slow cooker or cooked it to a fairly low IT. I know there is almost no fat itself in the meat but I have to believe there is a decent amount of connective tissue that could break down if cooked low and slow to a high enough IT.
> 
> Ultimately I am trying to end up with pulled venison. Is there an IT I should be shooting for or should I rely on it becoming probe tender? Any advice is welcomed.



Hi there and welcome!

Well I attempted to smoke some shanks and it was a failure.  They dried up even in my MES which keeps moisture in very well.  I attempted to wrap the shanks in foil with some fluid but there were a few holes, it didn't matter they were WAY dry.  I tried to take them to 205F so the connective tissue would melt but no luck.

If you attempt to smoke shanks I highly suggest you baste/spray every hour or so and wish for the best.
Also a braised venison shank in the oven is TO DIE FOR!!!

Here is my recipe and post for oven braised venison shanks:
http://smokingmeatforums.com/index.php?threads/braised-venison-shanks.258083/

Here is my post on my failed attempted at smoked venison shanks:
http://smokingmeatforums.com/index.php?threads/smoked-venison-shanks-questions.262318/


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## jbk90 (Nov 3, 2017)

Thanks for the advice, it sounds like a two step process of smoking than braising is the way to go. Will be sure to keep on top of spritzing the meat to avoid drying it out.

The white bbq sauce also sounds like a good compliment for it, given the lack of fat in the meat itself the fat from the mayo should provide a much needed element.


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## archeryrob (Nov 15, 2017)

I used Bearcarvers (on here) recipe for Dried Venison and did a deer shoulder and goose breast. Here is my write up of how I did it.


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