# Venison confit anyone?



## kongfeet (Oct 29, 2008)

Hi. I'm thinking of confit-ing venison shoulder. Got a few questions and they are:

1. Would you cure the meat overnight or no? I usually do with duck. I use salt, pepper, and herbs. But since I'm not a fan of overly salty meat, I'm wondering maybe it's better to season right before cooking. Any thoughts?

2. What kind of fat would you use? I'm thinking of going with a mixture of beef fat and grape seed oil. Thought about using good old duck fat, but personally, I find venison tastes more similar to beef than any poultry. For those of you who have done lamb confit with duck fat, do you taste whole a lot of duck afterwards or does the lamb-ness still come through?

3. At what temperature and for how long would you cook it? I do my duck confit at 190 F for 10 hours, so I thought I should stick to it, or maybe just for a change, try 200 instead. I see a few recipes with suggested temperatures between 300 and 350. Since I've never tried anything that high or hot, would anyone like to share your experiences in case you have?

Thanks, in advance.


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

I would never even think to confit venison, so don't know how it would turn out.

But at 350 (and maybe even 300) you'd be frying it for sure, not poaching it in oil. 

Stay at the lower temps.


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

Never have done venison confit, but I agree 300-350 seems way too high.


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## d.c. (Nov 2, 2008)

You could use pork fat.

You could also use almond oil as an alternative to grapeseed. Almond oil would impart a delicate almond flavor and aroma that would compliment the venison.


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## dmcropper (Mar 30, 2011)

i confit venison quite often, i always use duck fat as it does give very good flavour. we never cure the shoulder as once its cooked its picked down and seasoned with salt and herbs. we then ballotine and panne it. then just dropped in the fryer to order. i have also done this with lamb shoulder and it works very well. as of temperates i cook it on the stove rather than in the oven as you can regulate the heat better.

and you should just be able to see the fat bubble, it should never boil as it will ruin the venison and duck fat. id say about 8 hours should be enough


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