Pap got 2 deer last year and we're still trying to go through all the ground venison before the rifle season starts. Venison is lean so it definitely needs the help of some fat, which I got by chopping up fatty bacon and adding it in. From my previous foraging post I used the wild oyster mushrooms in the sauce and they worked very well with all the other flavors. You can use any sauce, but I wanted to try my homemade sauce I canned over the summer and it was so good!
Ingredients:
2 lb ground venison
3/4 cup finely diced bacon
1/2 cup Italian breadcrumbs
1 egg
3 grated garlic cloves
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 T balsamic vinegar (helps with the gamey taste)
Salt/pepper to taste
1 tsp crushed red pepper
Instructions:
1)Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, mix together with your hands until combined. Be sure not to overwork the meat or it will be tough. I let this marinate for a day before forming the meatballs
2) Roll into 1-1.5 inch balls and place on a sheet pan. Place the whole pan in the freezer for 10 minutes. This helps keep them from falling apart while cooking
3) Heat a very large skillet on medium high with enough oil to cover the pan. Place the meatballs in the pan, don't overcrowd them! Cook in batches of you need to.
6) I found that it's probably best to only turn the meatballs once, some of them fell apart when moved around too much. Cook the meatballs for a couple minutes on each side on medium heat and remove
7) I cooked a medium diced onion and 1 cup of diced wild oyster mushrooms in the same pan until softened, added a jar of spaghetti sauce, allowed the sauce to simmer 10 minutes before adding the meat back in.
8) Simmer the meatballs in the sauce for 15 minutes, turning once. Enjoy!
Comments