Best for: The hunter’s first supper — the day’s venison over the camp fire, cooked plain and eaten proud.
The record says Theodore Roosevelt hunted his whole life — Dakota Territory badlands, the Rockies, the African plains — and wrote about it better than any president before or since. At the center of every one of those hunts was the camp, and at the center of the camp was a fire, and over that fire the camp cook grilled the day’s game for men too hungry for ceremony. Roosevelt believed a man should know where his meat came from; his camps made sure of it nightly.
Our grilled take is camp venison the way those cooks made it: simply seasoned steaks seared over high heat, rested, and served without a sauce in sight.
Grill: Direct high heat. Equipment: Grill or grate over a campfire, cast-iron skillet for the butter finish, instant-read thermometer. Course: Main dish.
Ingredients
Rest: 10 minutes Total: 30 minutes
- 4 venison steaks (loin or leg), about 6 ounces each and 1 inch thick
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil or bacon fat
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme or sage (camp cook’s choice)
Directions
Bring the steaks to the fire ready. Pat the venison very dry — wild meat sears only when its surface is dry — and season with the salt and pepper. Let the steaks stand at room temperature 30 minutes.
Fat them lightly. Brush each steak with the thinnest coat of oil or bacon fat. Venison is the leanest meat on this site; the fat is there to help the sear, not to flavor.
Sear over high heat. Grill 4 to 5 minutes per side over direct high heat, one flip, until a deep crust forms. Work quickly and confidently — venison punishes hesitation and rewards decisiveness.
Pull at the number. Take the steaks off at 145°F for our recommended doneness and a rested, juicy result. (Personal-preference note: many hunters swear by 130 to 135°F for medium-rare venison — if that’s your camp’s tradition, pull there and rest the same.) Either way, never let venison wander past medium; lean meat dries in a hurry.
Rest with the butter. Set the butter and herbs on the hot steaks and rest them 10 minutes, tented, while the butter melts down over the crust.
Serve the hunter’s way. Slice or serve whole, with fried potatoes and strong coffee — and, if the day went well, the story of the hunt told at full length.
Grilling tip: The two camp rules for venison are dry surface and hot grate. Get those right and plain salt-and-pepper venison will out-eat half the dressed-up steaks in the world.
