# Deer Loin with q-view



## smoke_chef (May 20, 2008)

First of all, thanks to everyone that gave me advice on my related post "Deer Loin Help..." 

I would say on a scale of 1 - 10, tonight's smoke was about a 7. I'll take that for my first attempt at venison. My biggest mistake was thinking that since my family pretty much won't eat pink meat that I should take my loins to 160 despite all the warnings about over cooking. It wasn't tough per say... But I think it would have been even better had I done what I was told and pulled it at 150. 

My other mistake was figuring out how long it would take. WOW.... it cooked fast! One hour and fifteen minutes from room temperature to 160. I guess it helps that I'm getting better managing my fire but it really helps that the outside temp was in the mid to upper 90's. I had a steady temp of 250 for the whole cook. Any way, it was done way too soon! I thought, oh well, I'll wrap it and let it rest for an extra long time. Sounded like a good idea but it got cold. Even though I double foiled it and double toweled it and put it in a cooler in the sun, it still got cold. *sigh* 

Not so cold that we didn't go ahead and eat it just like it was though. I didn't want to risk drying it out. I felt lucky as it was. 

Here is the meat thawed and ready



I'm not sure what that silver stuff was. Tendon maybe? It looked tough so I trimmed it off. I hope that was the right thing to do? Here's what it looked like right before the marinade. I hope from these two picks some of you experts will be able to identify which loin it is? Maybe it's both? Maybe they are all one in the same? There was a lot of conversation about this in my "Deer loin help..." post. 



The marinade:



ready to serve:



ready to eat: 



It was really good but I'm already looking forward to my next try at it. 

Thanks again to all those who talked me through this. I would have hated to screw it up real bad. I mean, it's not like I can just run to the store and buy some more. Let's see... how many days until deer season???


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## earache_my_eye (May 20, 2008)

looks delicious!........
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






Ya, I never, ever, ever intentionally cook deer loin beyond "medium".....I prefer it Med.Rare.  Too lean of a meat to try to cook much farther.

Your qview sure looked tasty tho......hmm...I think I still have one deer loin left......
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





L8r,
Eric


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## ronp (May 20, 2008)

[QUOTEI'm not sure what that silver stuff was.][/quote]


That's called silver skin and is on any tenderloin and needs to be removed.


Good call, and they look great


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## smoke_chef (May 20, 2008)

Ron, 

   I read in a post one time "if it don't look good to eat... cut it off". I think that post was about ribs but figured to applied to any meat. I've learned a ton from this site.


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## bassman (May 20, 2008)

Sure looks good, Smoke chef!  Think maybe I'll save a backstrap from the elk this hunting season!  Never thought about doing a whole one, but I will now


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## smoke_chef (May 20, 2008)

Texas Hunter, 

   The marinade was also supposed to have beer in it. Unfortunately, I forgot about that before I finished off the last one I had. I live in a dry county so a beer run means about a 30 minute drive. I decided to go without the beer. It was still a good marinade but would have been better had it had that one missing ingredient. 

Bassman, 

    It was very good. However, my nephew who considers himself quite the venison connoisseur said that it still doesn't beat fried deer in the fall. I disagree but each to their own. I just like anything smoked.


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## mrh (May 25, 2008)

Looks real good!  

MRH


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## dirtman775 (Jun 13, 2008)

cooked in an hr and a half??????


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## coyote (Jun 13, 2008)

good job..and the worry about drying out.was a good worry..brings back good times..


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## cowgirl (Jun 13, 2008)

I must have been gone when you posted this! 

Looks great Smoke Chef!


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## rtom (Jun 13, 2008)

it does look very good I might have to try that next fall. Good job!


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## seboke (Jun 13, 2008)

Good post chef!  Love the q-view!!!


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## dingle (Jun 13, 2008)

Here's one that I love for the whole back strap(tenderloin). I have yet to try this smoked, maybe next fall. I'm sure some, if not most, have heard of "gravy master". I mix equal parts of olive oil and gravy master. A bit of salt, pepper and a lot of garlic(fresh or powder). Marinade in this mixture overnight. At this point I sear the strap(s) on a super hot grill. Once seared turn the heat way down and cook to desired doneness. I know some will disagree, but I prefer my venison cooked like my steaks....barely! When cooked and rested, cut into slices or chunks and finish by pouring a stick of melted butter over slices. A very silky smooth sauce if made when the butter mixes with the gravy master. ENJOY!


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## smoke_chef (Jun 13, 2008)

Dingle... that sounds GREAT. I will try that next time! I did over cook these a bit because I cooked them like I like my steaks... medium well. I read post after post that said you can't take the deer that long but I was stupid and did it any way. They were all right! Note to self... "self... if everyone is saying the same thing... everyone can't be wrong" As it was, it was a little tough and not as much flavor as I would have liked. Next time... less done and your marinade and I think I'll have a hit. 

Dirtman... I know right. An hour and half. One of my digital probes was broken so I started out with my only other one checking the temp of the fire. At about an hour an half I thought I would switch it over just to see how things were coming along with the meat. I found out they weren't coming along. They came and went. I left it on for maybe 10 more minutes while I contemplated if this were possible or if I had drank to many beers already and I wasn't reading the dang thing right. Well, I figured since I had only had 2 beers I must be reading it right. When I got it to the kitchen and sliced it up, sure enough. Medium well. (maybe closer to well done) 

Everyone ate it up. There were no leftovers. But I was disappointed. 


Thanks all for the kind words though. I'll hunt with renewed passion this year so I can try it again.


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## mrh (Jun 13, 2008)

Smoke_Chef,

Here is a link to a post when I did a Deer loin,  I took it to 138-140 internal temp and it was great!

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ad.php?t=14781


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## smoke_chef (Jun 13, 2008)

Yes... I bet yours was better than mine. Your q-view looked awesome! I'll do better next time.


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## buck wheezer (Jun 13, 2008)

Lookin' good! I miss venison....

Looks like I'm going to have to "step up" my workout schedule so I can slim down enough to get back out in the woods. I'd hate to have someone find me, gut me, drag me home, and smoke me. Of course, if they do, I hope they do it half as well as you guys would!


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## downstatesmoker (Jun 13, 2008)

Good God man, a dry county?  What fresh hell is this?  You need a Uhaul and new place to live!


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## erain (Jun 13, 2008)

great to see some venison smoked, i got to go thru the freezers but i prettty sure i dont have any backstrap left. the silver stuff is called siverskin, and is a tendon of sorts. i always leave mine on when freezing as well. it just provides an additional layer of protection from freezer burn. thaw and remove like you did the way to go. allso the other member talking about overcooking is also correct, venison is very delicate meat,and overcooking(any thing past med tops) and it starts to get tough and not enjoyable. a good piece of venison is hard to beat, it is not an accident that most of the famous french chefs when preparing a meat use venison. lots of people say they dont like venison but i bet its the cooking process that was used is what made it unedible for them. great job on the loin, if i find any gonna try smoking one myself. might have to wait a few months tho.


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## dingle (Jun 13, 2008)

When I was growing up my grandfather is who got me into hunting and eating venison. For years I had been eating dried out, overcooked venison because someone had told him that venison MUST be cooked through. It's a wonder I continued to eat it! I also agree with Erain that if it's cooked correctly, non-venison eating folk could never tell the difference!!


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## smoke_chef (Jun 14, 2008)

It is pretty rough... In a lot places around the country, if you care about someone you call them up every now and then to see how they are doing. People around here don't call to see how you are doing or ask "whatcha up to?" They call to say... "Hey... I'm making a beer run. You need any thing?" That's redneck for "I luv you"


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## waysideranch (Jun 14, 2008)

Nice SmokeChef.  You can't beat the loin.


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## thebattman (Dec 10, 2009)

I'm a year-and-a-half late to the thread... but for anyone (like myself) who had never heard of "gravy master" - here is the nutrition and ingredient label:







Looks pretty easy to fabricate - carmelized sugar (wouldn't that basically be brown sugar?), water, who needs soy and corn protien - just a thickener, apple cider vinegar, salt, onion powerd, celery seed, parsley, and garlic.  Not too far off what many people use as a marinade base anyway!


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## marvin (Dec 10, 2009)

I've got a backstrap in my fridge now, i might try that. For those that are interested I usually just cut into "medallions" season with salt and pepper (and whatever else I feel like at the time), then sear each side on a cast-iron skillet that has gotten as hot as possible.


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## nickelmore (Dec 10, 2009)

Good looking smoke, Try it medium rare.   I use to only eat medium well/well until I got a taste of a real good steak, 

The chef refused to cook it the way I wanted it and told me so.  He fixed it his way and I never looked back.  Especially on venation.

I does cook real quick.  

My place in  Kentucky is dry, something granddad help do 100 yrs ago, don't know what he was thinkin.


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## big game cook (Dec 12, 2009)

yep. med rare is the way i go with my venison as well. looks good.

ya ron id correct. the silver skin especially on larger animals can be real tough. slice it off.

had one of these just a few weeks back.


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