Venison: The other (healthier) red meat
Ed, my father-in-law, preparing the venison jerky.
Curt and I are back in his home state of Missouri and hometown of Albany for deer season.
I realize that some of my readers (and friends) don’t eat meat. And I respect that. And I would never try to convince you that you should. (I might try to convince you that protein is important to stay healthy–but there are many ways you can get protein in your diet. Non-meaters just have to work harder to meet their body’s need for protein.)
Last year when we were back here I wrote about a program called Share the Harvest, which states why the organization exists: Many families and individuals have no dependable source of protein in their diets. Red meat can provide that important component. Deer is a valuable source of protein; but, unlike most red meat, it is unusually low in fat. Through Share the Harvest, Missouri hunters can help provide this part of the daily diet.
According to a Livestrong article, a 3-ounce serving of roasted venison contains 140 calories, less than 1 gram of fat and 26 grams of protein, which is 50 percent of the daily value for protein. … A 3-ounce serving of grilled beef tenderloin steak, which has the same amount of protein as the venison, provides 179 calories and 7.6 grams of fat, including 3 grams of saturated fat.
I found a blog post on Outdoor Life titled The Ultimate Red Meat: Venison vs. Beef. You can read the full article here if you want. But in the end Venison was slated the ultimate red meat. It’s healthier, tastes better, and is safer than any meat you can buy in a store. Beef cattle all meet the same destiny, but deer are hunted and killed in their own environment, where the smartest and luckiest animals survive and reproduce. It’s the predator-prey relationship as it has been f0r millions of years.
In this family and many hunters I know hunting is about the meat and respecting the animal. You hunt to eat the meat, not for sport.
The animal was living in its natural environment right before it was killed and was treated with respect. The meat we buy at the grocery we don’t know the history of that meat. And we have all heard the horror stories.
I enjoy venison as jerky, burger, pepperoni sticks, tenderloin and summer sausage. It tastes yummy and is a healthy protein.