Father's Day Venison Recipes - Fajitas and Kabobs

Yes, it's scorching outside, but summer is all about grilling. And it's Dad's Day Sunday, the U.S. Open is in full swing (ha!) - the whole afternoon lends itself to family banter, perhaps a couple coldies, and chowing down. Assuming you have any venison left in the fridge - which if you do, it's time to start making room for this upcoming season - I think I have a couple recipes that'll let you enjoy your day instead of slaving away in the kitchen or sweating in this stifling heat for too long.

Easy Venison Fajitas

I love fajitas. I played for years with different mixes and marinades for venison steaks. Never could hit the right combo of spices until I tripped across this simple recipe.

Take your steaks or backstrap and hit a couple times with a meat mallet. Sprinkle Lawry’s Seasoned Salt and Garlic Salt on the meat (some would think adding chili powder would make this more fajita-y, but anything I add chili powder to, I ruin). Put in Ziploc bag with enough lime juice to cover the cuts, pour a little olive oil in, and marinate for 2-4 hours.

As your grill is heating up, cook the peppers and onions in a little olive oil in a skillet – I skip this part since I’m not much of a veggie eater.

I cook venison hot and fast on the gas grill. When I’ve hit around 400 or so, I put the steaks on, cooking for no more than a minute or two per side. (Minute and a half for medium rare usually).

When finished, cut the steaks across the grain fajita-style and assemble in warm flour tortilla with cheddar or Monterrey Jack cheese, cooked onions and pepper, or whatever else you want. I personally top these off with healthy shakes out of the Cholula Hot Sauce bottle.

Florida Venison Kabobs

I found a honey-based marinade recipe online one day, and with subtle adjustments to my tastes and a creative nod towards the Sunshine State, this formula is pretty darned good.

Now, let me preface this – I hate finding recipes online without exact measurements of how much of what goes into the meal. But now I’m gonna do it since I usually just taste test it in the kitchen. And it’s a marinade anyway, most of which is going down the drain when you’re done.

I’ll go ahead and try to measure it out for you, but you may want to adjust.

2 cups veg. oil
1 cup Leighton’s Orange Blossom Honey
½ cup vinegar
½ cup soy sauce (I like to use less – as with the chili powder above, I tend to ruin recipes with soy sauce)
½ tbs. salt
½ tbs Everglades Seasoning
½ tbs ginger (again, see soy sauce warning)
½ tbs minced garlic

Stir these ingredients well. Cut ham steaks or backstrap into pieces appropriate for the skewers and marinate for 4-6 hours. With all the oil in this recipe, the grill is probably going to flare up, so keep a watchful eye, but cook 4-5 minutes per side. Serve with rice, and while I’ve not tried it yet, cozied up in warm French bread would make a pretty awesome sandwich.



Again, just a couple of suggestions. Enjoy and have a great Father’s Day!