This smoked venison heart recipe is hands down the best deer heart recipe I’ve ever eaten. Venison hearts are known as the gateway offal, and for good reason. The texture is somewhat reminiscent of a “normal” cut of meat, unless you overcook it. And the flavor is very mild, unlike its offal cousins, liver and kidney.
If you’re new to working with offal, check out my guide on how to prepare deer heart. This covers processing and cooking techniques that I have personally used for years.
The best piece of advice that I can give you is to not overcook the heart. When it comes to cooking the hearts to the proper internal temperature, things are a little subjective. It comes down to what you like in the texture department. If you like a tender piece of meat with a mild taste, then medium rare is for you.
If you like a little bounce in the chew and stronger flavors, medium to well done is your ticket. For this heart recipe, I like to cook mine to around 140 degrees F. The texture is tender, yet firm enough to resemble something like a perfectly cooked pork ham.
I’d be willing to bet that this recipe will convert almost anyone who claims that they don’t like venison hearts into a believer. The color is gorgeous, the flavor is sweet, smoky and delicious, and the texture rivals your highest quality pork ham. And to top it off, venison hearts are healthy!
HOW TO PREPARE VENISON HEARTS FOR SMOKING
Trim the Heart
Filet the deer heart open creating a flat piece of meat so that it resembles a “steak”. Deer hearts don’t have any silver skin as with backstraps (loins), but they do contain other connective tissues and veins. With a knife remove all visible veins, webbing and connective tissue from inside the heart.
Brine the Heart
Prepare and chill the brine. Fully submerge the heart into the brine for 5 days. This will significantly enhance the flavor, moisture, and color of the smoked deer heart.
ROLL THE HEART TIGHTLY AND TIE
Remove the heart from the brine, rinse under cold water, and dry with paper towels. Roll the heart tightly into one solid piece and tie with butcher’s twine. A tightly rolled heart allows for a more evenly cooked piece of meat and makes for better slicing. Tie the heart tightly in 2-inch sections with butcher’s twine. This will give you one solid mass. This solid structure is what you want so that the heart can stay on the smoker for as long as possible before reaching the recommended internal temperature.
Air Dry the Heart
Place the tied heart on a wire rack set in your refrigerator. This will create a tackiness to the meat, which will create better smoke adherence.
More Venison Heart Recipes
Below are some of my favorite deer heart recipes. If you’re wanted to branch out to other cuts, check out my entire venison recipes guide.
Lastly, if you make this smoked venison heart, be sure to leave a rating and a comment below! Also, tag me on Instagram with some of your creations. I thoroughly enjoy hearing feedback and checking out the photos of recipes that you’ve made.
Smoked Venison Heart
Ingredients
For The Heart
- 1 venison heart (deer, elk, moose or antelope)
For The Heart Brine
- 2 quarts water
- 3/4 cup kosher salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup maple syrup or sorghum
- 2 teaspoons pink salt (Instacure # 1 Optional Ingredient)
- 1 bunch fresh thyme
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon juniper berries, crushed
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
STEP ONE: PROCESS THE HEART
- Filet the heart open down the center into one long piece. Trim all connective tissue and stringy bits.
STEP TWO: BRINE THE HEART
- Combine all of the the above ingredients into a pot and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Stir to make sure the sugar and salt have dissolved. Remove from the heat, let cool to room temperature and then place in the refrigerator until thoroughly chilled.
- Submerge the heart into the brine weighing down with a dinner plate if necessary.
- Cover and refrigerate for five days.
- Remove the deer heart from the brine. Rinse the heart under cold water and completely dry off with paper-towels.
STEP 3: TIE AND DRY THE HEART
- Roll the heart into a very tight cylinder. Tie with butcher's twine at around 2-inch intervals to create one solid, tightly rolled mass.
- Place on a wire rack with a drip pan underneath in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours. This allows heart to completely dry off and to develop a pellicle. The pellicle is that the smoke adherers to during the smoking process.
Step 4: SMOKE THE HEART (CHOOSE A METHOD)
A) Cold Smoke, then Hot Smoke (Preferred Way)
- Preheat your smoker to 100°F or lower. Add a pan of ice on a lower rack under the heart to cool the chamber. Crack the smoker door slightly to vent heat as needed.
- Cold smoke the heart at or below 100℉ for 4 hours.
- Raise the smoker temperature to 180°F. and continue smoking until the internal temp reaches 140–150°F (I prefer 140°F for texture). This typically takes 1 to 1½ hours. Remove the heart and rest 15 minutes at room temperature.
B) Hot Smoke Only (if you can’t cold smoke)
- Heat the smoker between 150°F and 200°F. Smoke the heart until the internal temp reaches 140–150°F (your preference).
NOTES
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Why two methods:
You can cold smoke then hot smoke for maximum smoke flavor, or hot smoke only if you can’t hold true cold-smoke temps. The goal is the longest time in smoke before the meat approaches your target internal temperature (140–150°F). A longer time on the smoker without going over on the internal temperature means a smokier and juicier heart.
2 thoughts on “How To Smoke Venison Hearts | An Easy To Follow Guide”
Unreal!
This is a must try!!!! Wow!!!! I pulled at 135 and pain stakingly Waited Till the next day to try
Chili next….stocking up for hunt camp meals. Thank you for sharing these amazing recipes!!!!