Smoked Venison Shanks
General Topic
I came up with this on my own. I tried a test batch last weekend that turned out great so made a bigger batch yesterday. Some of the shank recipes out there are pretty complex with lots of ingredients so I wanted one that was so simple even a Bowsiter could cook it. ;-) Plus, I thought the smoke would add some great flavor and it did!
The shanks are from whitetails....front shanks from a young buck and rear shanks from a doe.
Patted them dry then rubbed olive oil all over to help the rub stick. Seasoned liberally with kosher salt, fresh ground pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Real simple. I left them in the fridge overnight but I don't think it makes much difference if you just season and cook right away.
Next, I set up my Weber for offset heat with a water pan. This is how I smoke all my ribs, butts, and brisket. I'm sure an electric, gas, or pellet would work just fine as well.
I started a small load of charcoal in the chimney then set a couple chunks of hickory on top. Adjusted the vents to smoke at around 225 deg.
I only smoked for a couple hours adding another small chunk of hickory after an hour. I love the color at this stage.
Pretty!
Pretty!
Smoking done, the shanks were moved to a roasting pan. I added about a half inch or so of beef stock to the pan, then sprinkled on some thyme and a little rosemary. Thyme to rosemary about 2 to 1.
Lots of different herbs you could add here or tomatoes, onions, whatever. Like I said....simple.
Oven set to 300 deg. Now just a matter of braising until all that collagen and tendons break down into deliciousness!
I checked it at about 2 hours and basted the meat with the broth in the bottom of the roaster. I don't roll the shanks over because I want some of that meat on top to get dark and a little crusty. The house smelled amazing!
After about 3-1/2 hrs. it was falling off the bone and I could shred it with my fingers. Time to remove from the oven and just let it sit covered on top of the stove until it was cool enough to handle.
FOOD PORN!
FOOD PORN!
After pulling the meat off the bones and shredding, I transferred all the broth out of the roaster pan to a sauce pan and cooked on medium heat while stirring to reduce it down some. I then added some corn starch mixed with a little cold water to thicken it just a little.
You could mix the meat right in with the gravy at this point but I kept it separate because the meat goes great by itself in a tortilla with a little cheese and fresh pico. For this meal, I loaded the meat on a pile of mashed taters with the gravy on top. It was fantastic! My gf is not a venison fan at all but she devoured this dish. The smoke really went well with the unique flavor of the shanks and the smoke flavor went right into the sauce as well. I hope you guys give it a try and put your own twist on it.
Awesome. Thanks for sharing!!
Nice! Thanks for sharing buddy.
Nick Like I said in my text, I just cut up my WT doe from Saturday and saved the shanks.
Perfect timing. Thanks!
Looks so delicious, thank you for sharing!!
Whoa, that looks amazing, definitely on my list to try.
Looks amazing Nick! Some of you guys are real masters in the kitchen! I need to step up my game!
Looks real good. Thanks for posting.
Dangit! I already cut the shanks off the bone from a couple of wt does! May try this for bone-less shanks rather than running them thru the grinder...
Damn that looks awesome. I'm going to have to shoot a few more deer before the end of the season.
Excellent, I love osso bucco.
Looks good. I have some in the freezer that are off of the bone I can't wait to try.
YES! Really glad I came across the Osso Bucco for the front quarters! Turns out, at least IMO, that its the most overlooked portion of venison.
Nice tutorial! I usually put them in the slow cooker but I bet the smoke adds a ton of flavor.
My absolute favorite cut of meat on a deer!
I am doing this with next deer. Looks amazing, thanks!
I am doing this with next deer. Looks amazing, thanks!
Wow, that sounds amazing Nick. Im going to give that a try. I never gave it much thought to smoke it first but I have osso bucco'd a lot of shanks. I would imagine this would be even better.
This would be a great addition to the new "recipe" forum! Thanks
Looks awesome, will have to give it a try and thanks for the detail and photos. I made Osso Bucco last week from rear shanks for the first time in the pressure cooker and was amazed how a piece of meat filled with sinew could come out so delicious. I'm not a big fan of the marrow like some, but that is just me. I have a front shanks whole and still on the bone, so I'll give this a try. I'll never grind them up again.
My absolute favorite cut of meat on a deer!
I saved mine (Off the bone) from my elk this year. I may have to give that a try.
Midwest that looks fantastic! Gotta try it myself, Thanks!
Wow! Yep, going to do that next week with my whitetail shanks!
YES!!!!!!! IKE posted up a braised shank recipe to me. I tried it and I LOVED it!
I talked with my brother today. We are doing Christmas at his house this year. We are hunting Saturday. If we kill, it's gonna be stuffed back strap and braised shank for Christmas dinner!!!!!! We'll try smoking the shanks first after reading this.
That looks great, thanks for sharing.
Right after they came out of the smoker.
Right after they came out of the smoker.
Now into the Dutch oven to finish!
Now into the Dutch oven to finish!
I have this going right now!
Saved the shanks off two white tails this year and an elk. Really interested in how those whopper elk shanks might turn out!
I just tried osso buco rear deer shanks. Amazing! New favourite price of meat.
