Barbecue culture runs deep in the Lone Star State. My ties to this cuisine led me to try replicating Texans’ beloved smoked beef brisket with a venison roast. With a little care and a whole lot of time, you can produce some of the best barbecued meat you’ve ever had.
Quality meat, smoke, and time are the secrets to a successful product. It might sound simple enough, but smoking this cult classic with wild game presents a real challenge. The lack of fat means that it can quickly dry out. So, you have to adapt.
There are three ways to combat moisture loss: The first is to season the meat with salt and pepper well in advance. Second, you should keep the temperature inside the smoker very low. Third, embrace the “Texas crutch” by wrapping the meat.
Traditionally, Texans smoke meat for several hours and then cover it in pink butcher paper or aluminum foil when it starts to sweat, causing evaporative cooling that keeps the internal temperature from rising. In other words, it just stops cooking. I choose to wrap mine pretty early in the process, and it has nothing to do with the stall. Covering helps to mitigate moisture loss.
Set aside a weekend and fill a cooler with some cold ones. Defrost a bunch of roasts from the freezer and smoke them all at once. Enjoy your venison sliced with a side of potato salad and chop the leftovers for tacos. —Danielle Prewett
—Food52
This recipe was originally published on MeatEater and republished with permission. MeatEater is committed to fueling human connection to nature. They educate and inspire folks to connect with the natural world through the lens of hunting, fishing, conservation and preserving wild places for future generations, and harvesting wild foods for use in the kitchen.
Notes:
An optional step is to inject the meat in several places using a syringe filled with venison or beef stock. This helps to combat dehydration when smoked.
Using pink butcher paper will keep some moisture in, but it is breathable, absorbs smoke, and creates a bark. Foil traps steam and is better at keeping the meat juicy, but gives it a subtle braise-like texture.
The smoke times called for in this recipe are based on the cut of meat and the size. I used a 2 ½ pound outside round, or bottom round. It is the large muscle covering the outside of the hind quarter. If using bear, don’t trim any fat. —Food52
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