They say that you should cook your hard earned deer meat like BEEF. They are wrong.
How is venison different than beef?
Beef that you would buy from a butcher is usually well marbled, with fat all throughout the cut. Deer, on the other hand, do not store fat in the meat but on it. If you were to butcher a deer that was killed after it was prepared for winter, you would find large “sheets” of fat all on the outside of the meat.
What is the ideal venison internal temp?
125 degrees is the ideal internal temperature venison. This means that you should remove the venison from the heat at 125 degrees. As the meat rests, the residual heat, will continue to cook the meat an additional 10 degrees.
Important note: According to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture the safest temperature to cook venison is 165 degrees. This may be technically correct but the venison will be overcooked, tough, and livery. Cook and eat at your own risk.
Can venison be pink?
Short answer is yes it should have pink. If you are cooking all the pink out of your venison, you are doing it wrong. Overcooked venison is tough and has a distinct flavor that I can only describe as livery. Medium rare for just about every cut is perfectenschlag.
Ground Venison Internal Temperature
All of the previous opinions are null and void when it comes to ground venison meat. Ground venison should be cooked to 165 degrees. Period. This will result in dry meat but 100% lean ground venison should be used for taco meat and chili so the texture isn’t as important. For something like an 80/20 ratio of lean to fat ground venison, 165 degrees will be fine and will yield a great juicy end-product.
Venison Internal Temperature Chart
Use our venison temperature chart as a handy tool to help you make sure that your venison is cooked perfectly every time.
Yes! The ideal temperature for medium rare venison is between 130 and 135 degrees. This means that you should take the meat off the heat at around 125 degrees and let it rest for about 5 – 10 minutes.
