Oregon Archives - Mule Deer Foundation

Christmas Roast with the Blacktail Deer Foundation

For some, Blacktail deer hunting is over for the season and now it is time to serve up that bounty. There is nothing like warming yourself up with a fun and lively dinner shared with family and friends in the middle of winter. I have had the opportunity to dine with our Alaskan legend, Jim Baichtal and his wife Karen, several times over the past few years and the first thing I thought of was reaching out to these two blacktail aficionados. So, I asked Jim what was one of his favorite black-tail recipes, and oh “Deer” did we get one!!

“Olympic Mountain Blacktail with Blackberry Drizzle”

This Olympic Mountain Blacktail with Blackberry Drizzle recipe is amazing when smoking venison with a fruit or nut-based wood like apple, cherry, oak, or pecan. Searing to medium in a cast iron skillet in butter with garlic and fresh rosemary sprigs is a great alternative if you prefer not to smoke. When smoking, my go to for blacktail is a 50/50 mix of apple and pecan, and here’s how I do it:

MDF VOLUNTEERS IN THE FIELD

The wildfire smoke cleared and the sky was blue along the Crooked River drainage for the Eagle Rock/Sanford Creek mule deer winter range protection volunteer work day. Thanks and congratulations go out to all of you, the Prineville BLM staff/volunteers, the Mule Deer Foundation and Oregon Hunters Association – Ochoco Chapter volunteers that were on hand to accomplish the long-awaited project intended to protect our wintering mule deer in the region.