Venison Sausage/Burger
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: MA-PAdeerslayer
20-Oct-21
What is your go to ratio of pork/beef to venison for sausage and burger? Any good seasoning recipes? Looking to try a few new ones this year.
From: APauls
20-Oct-21
For my ground I have found that grinding frozen meat has produced nicer ground. For specifically hamburgers I have found that mixing some bacon fat in has really made the burgers next level. I just generally add a bunch of salt/pepper, garlic powder, an egg or two and some breadcrumbs, worcestershire and a splash of bbq sauce. Family loves em. They've gotten a lot better from where my wild burgers were at a few years ago.
From: Habitat
20-Oct-21
I don't like when they use beef tallow,alot better when we chop up pork butt,figure about 10% pork for burger
From: timex
20-Oct-21
I buy pork butts (shoulders) when on sale usually around .90 a lb We do roughly 10 lb pork to 40 lb deer or 20% keep in mind that pork shoulder does have some fat to them but a lot of meat as well this is actually a lean mixture with just enough fat to give the meat sizzle when cooked.
From: midwest
20-Oct-21
I like 50/50 ground pork to venison for sausage and sticks.
Check out Hank Shaw's chorizo recipe. It's da bomb dot com.
From: elkmtngear
20-Oct-21
I just use 10 percent pork fat in my burger, but, I am not grinding any silverskin, tendons, or game fat. Just clean red meat.
Takes a lot of time, but well worth it.
From: HDE
20-Oct-21
50/50 pork to wild game.
From: bentstick54
20-Oct-21
For just venison burger, I mix 10% beef tallow to very lean venison. All gets used for chili’s, spaghetti sauce, meatloafs, or future summer sausage. We don’t eat many burger patties.
From: MA-PAdeerslayer
20-Oct-21
Sounds good. Pretty much on par with what I’ve been doing. I usually do 60/40 venison to pork for sausage and 80/20 for burger.
From: WapitiBob
20-Oct-21
I don't add anything to Elk, Antelope, or Deer when doing burger.
From: tobywon
20-Oct-21
Same here, I don't add anything myself to burger, but I do add to sausage, usually 20-30% pork.
From: Lawdog
20-Oct-21
I don't add anything to my burger. I prefer to do it in the cooking process where it may or may not be necessary/desirable. I add 30% pork fat to sausage-usually pork belly. I've found that ratio to be the best for me.
From: Jethro
20-Oct-21
Jethro's Link
Here's an old bowsite thread where a few recipes were given out. I use the one that Ike suggested. We really like it. I don't add anything to my burger.
From: Brotsky
20-Oct-21
For burger I add 10% pork butt, for sausage I mix almost 50-50.
From: milnrick
20-Oct-21
For burger we typically add 10-20% beef fat.
For sausage we mix venison and pork butt at a 60:40 ratio. We're going to try hot dogs and brats this year and will use a 80:20 mix.
We get our spices from the Doug Jeffords Spice Company website. They sell in bulk to restaurants and processors as well as small batches for hunters and DIY folks.
Burger and sausage both get a double pass thru the LEM.
From: benzy
21-Oct-21
For sausage I do 50/50 ground venison and bulk (unseasoned ground pork that my local butcher would use to make his sausage) ground pork. Add the seasonings I want for the type of sausage I'm making and start mixing. I just finished about 65 #s of Italian. Extra tip... I got the seasonings from the dollar store. Cost me about $12 for all the seasonings I used to make the sausage.
From: sticksender
21-Oct-21
Personally I don't add any other meat or fat to ground venison that I intend to use as burger. Great stuff.
From: Ermine
21-Oct-21
For elk, deer , and pronghorn I go strait grind for burger
If I’m making brats or some sausage then I add in fat. 40 or 50%
From: Cornpone
21-Oct-21
I add 10% beef suet to my venison for burger. Suet...not "regular" fat...there is a difference...drier/harder.
From: Jeff Durnell
21-Oct-21
I grind all the burger plain. Most of the things it gets used for here doesn't need added meat or fat. For sausages, hot stick, bologna and such, it depends on the recipe, what version of fat or trimmings are used, and my mood, but sometimes 20-30%. I actually like the taste and texture of lean deer meat.
From: esean
24-Oct-21
100% lean, well-trimmed venison for burger. Nice and juicy as long as I don't overcook them. You can add fat if you want it for flavor, but it isn't needed to keep the meat moist, that's a function of cooking technique. I can always throw a few strips of bacon on the top when I want to!
From: Bou'bound
24-Oct-21
Grind a bit of bacon in
From: SIP
24-Oct-21
Just made some deer sausage today, turned put pretty good. Used 4-1/2lbs deer and 1-1/2lbs pork belly. Seasoned the chunks, ground and stuffed. Believe i coulda went another pound or pound n half more deer meat with that amount of pork and been fine on flavor and fat for sizzle given how much fat was in that 1-1/2 lb of pork belly. Will adjust next time
From: btnbuck
24-Oct-21
I only use about 4-5lbs per 20-23 lbs of super lean venison. I buy whatever is on sale for cheap and freeze it, shoulder roast/country ribs or whatever, not just fat/trimmings. When I make venison sausage or meat sticks I want them to be venison. As said above “its all in the cooking of them” as to how good they are.
From: timex
25-Oct-21
I have a question ? Several posts have referred to only using lean cuts of venison in their burger - sausage blends. Now I've killed deer from wva to fla & with the exception of rib & belly meat there is no fat in the cuts of meat themselves. Yes in the late season there is fat on the outside of the meat but never marbled in the meat as in beef or pork. Perhaps northern deer are different but I don't think so. Been butchering my own deer for 40 years some cuts have less tendon legemon silver skin etc and certain cuts have different grain to the meat than others but none are any leaner than the other. Just curious or perhaps im missing something ???
From: Altitude Sickness
26-Oct-21
Who sells the best tasting premixed seasoning
From: Huntskifishcook
26-Oct-21
I get straight up pork fatback from a local farm. Ground gets 85/15 venison to fat. Sausage depends on type being made, usually 15-20%, occasionally more.
From: timex
26-Oct-21
This is what the local deer processors in my area use. I'm not sure about the ratio they use but for venison sausage they use legs seasoning plus sage & I believe beef suet. I know they add beef fat to the venison burger not sure if they have pork fat for the sausage. If they do I haven't been told. Friends of mine work there for extra cash in the winter.
From: timex
26-Oct-21
The best tasting mixture I've ever done was a combination of legs seasoning & bacon . 40# venison 10# bacon & one bag legs made for 25# of pork. This mixture will blow your socks off. But back then I could get 10#s bacon ends for $15.00 at the iga now its more like $45 if ya can get it at all. But most important is after a heart attack almost killed me I've changed my ways. Venison is some of the best almost cholesterol free lean protein one can eat. And to corrupt something so good for ya with a bunch of nitrates, sodium, & fat just really doesn't make sense.
From: midwest
26-Oct-21
Actually, venison is higher in cholesterol than beef.
From: arlone
26-Oct-21
My brother-in-law uses pork butt and mixes 50/50 for his breakfast and Italian sausage and for burger he does 30pork/70venison. Can't help with the seasoning, he has it written in a notebook.
From: Fuzzy
28-Oct-21
Pork/venison ratio 0/100. Seasoning 1/2 package directions. Voila!
From: dnovo
31-Oct-21
How do you guys mix your pork or hamburger in with your ground deer to get a consistent blend?
From: dnovo
31-Oct-21
How do you guys mix your pork or hamburger in with your ground deer to get a consistent blend?
From: midwest
31-Oct-21
I cut up the venison into cubes, do the same with the fat or pork, weigh out the percentages I want of each, and toss them together. Run through the grinder with a coarse plate, then run through again with a finer plate. Works like a charm.
From: Boreal
31-Oct-21
I do the exact same as Midwest. Burgers I go 10% beef fat, Sausage is 20 % pork shoulder.
From: JL
31-Oct-21
JL's Link
A FWIW for anyone down south. I dropped off a couple of hogs at this place and got back the best smoked sausage I've ever had! It's in Robertsdale, AL. My BIL in Florida told me about it. I got 125+ pounds of this sausage and shared with friends and family. Everyone loved it. I tried to get their recipe mix but they were tight lipped. You drop off your cooler with the meat in it and they'll call you when it's done. What you drop off is what you get back. They don't mix customer's meats. Cook this stuff on the BBQ and you'll love it. BTW...they do process wild game.
From: grizzly63
31-Oct-21
6 lbs venison, 3 lbs 73/27 beef hamburger, 1 lb pork loin excellent burgers. If using bacon or bacon end pieces while making sausages, it will add significant salt levels vs pork butts or loin.
From: Cut2Kill
31-Oct-21
25 percent pork shoulder ground with well trimmed venison for burger. Up to 50 percent for sausage.
From: btnbuck
01-Nov-21
Timex... When I refer to "lean venison" I'm referring to the fact that I trim off as much of the fat and tendon/silver skin from the grind meat as possible. Some people like some of the deer fat in their grind meat but I don't. And yes, the rib and belly and neck meat is the hardest to separate the fat from.
From: DL
01-Nov-21
WARNING!!!! You could be looking to gain a lot of weight. It’s sooooo good. Saturday I made snack sticks and summer sausage. All they had at the store was a large package of pork. So I had a higher percentage of pork to venison and the sausage came out fantastic.
