How To Grill Venison

After spending the Fall and Winter chasing whitetails over hill and dale you deserve the perfect meal. So follow along as I tell you how to grill venison to perfection!

For this “how to” I will be starting with a piece of venison backstrap. This particular piece came from a young local buck. I happen to live in a place where we are over run by whitetails so there is no shame in popping a spike or 4 pointer for the freezer. We are so over populated that we have an entire extra month of deer hunting that the rest of New York state doesn’t enjoy.

Prep

The venison backstrap that we will be using to show how to grill venison came out of the freezer 3 days prior to cooking. I defrosted it in the refrigerator and took it out to rest on the counter an hour before it went on the grill. I rinsed the venison under cold water and patted it dry with paper towels. Then I applied a liberal coating of Hardcore Carnivore Black Seasoning . I like this seasoning as it is a pretty basic salt, pepper, sugar, garlic, and onion rub but with one exotic ingredient. . . ACTIVATED CHARCOAL. The charcoal kicks up the flavor and the color to another level. I especially like that the charcoal adds that grilled over a wood fire taste while I enjoy the ease of using my Weber Gas Grill!

While the venison is basking in it’s rub for a few minutes, I will go outside and get the grill going. I try to keep my grill pretty clean so usually it is a quick brushing off, a light coat of a high temp oil (I’ve been using avocado oil lately), and crank those burners up to high. To get a good crust, form some grill marks, and look cool for this post on how to grill venison I will let the grill roar for a good 15 minutes before putting the meat on.

To The Grill

I head out to the roaring beast on the patio. I put the “straps” on and stand back. For most of my grilling I grill with the lid down to prevent flare ups but the venison backstrap is so lean that isn’t a worry. I want to build a good crust and that needs direct heat on both sides. I’d love to be able to give you a firm time that a backstrap should be on the grill but this is a labor of love. I always figure that I spent days in pursuit of the deer the least I can do is pay attention to it while it is on the grill.

Ballpark it at 4-6 minutes per side. I am a firm believer in grilling for temp not for time. Having said that I think a good instant read thermometer is essential ( I use this one). When grilling venison my wife and I have settled on medium doneness. The boys and I would eat it rare and the love of my life likes it a bit towards medium well so we split the difference. I find that cooking it to 133 degrees internal temp works for our family.

The Rest

Just because the backstrap is off the grill doesn’t mean that you are ready to rip off hunks! Now comes the hardest part of “how to grill venison” the rest or the longest 10 minutes of your life as I like to call it. The Rest may seem like torture but it actually plays an important part of “how to grill venison” process. When a piece of meat comes off the grill all the juices are still moving around. Giving it a few minutes will let the juices redistribute and you will get a much better piece of meat. Martha gives a much better description than I ever could here.

If you hung around this long you are deserving of my secret ingredient. . . Grass Fed Irish Butter. Now this may seem bougie for a knuckle dragger like me but it really takes it to the next level. I cut a few pats and put it down on the cutting board before I take the backstrap off. Then I let the meat rest right on the butter! When I slice the meat the juices run into the melted butter and they form this heavenly mixture that clings. I also find that butter/juice mixture picks up any rogue seasoning left on the cutting board and just brings more flavor to the party.

How To Grill Venison; The Bullet Points

Find a deer and shoot it.
Have it’s delicious and nutritious carcass butchered (bonus points if you can do it yourself).
Freeze your bounty.
Defrost fully
Rinse, pat dry, and coat with Hardcore Carnivore Black or your favorite seasoning.
Pre heat your grill on high and lightly oil the grates.
Grill it to 133 degrees internal
Let it rest for 10 minutes with BUTTER!
Slice and Enjoy!

I hope you enjoyed my How To Grill Venison post. Please let me know what you think about it and SHARE it far and wide! You might also like my other Easy Venison Recipes!

Affiliate Disclosure: I am grateful to be of service and bring you content free of charge. In order to do this, please note that when you click links and purchase items, in most (not all) cases I will receive a referral commission. Your support in purchasing through these links enables me to keep the content train rolling