The best recipes for deer hearts

When I was growing up, venison was a regular part of the family table. My father stocked the freezer every deer season, and my mother worked through it the rest of the year, feeding us steaks, burgers, pot roast and barbecue. Like many deer hunters, my father always left his heart in a pile of intestines. So while my family would eat almost any piece of meat that came from a deer, I didn't try a deer heart until I was an adult.

Although considered offal, the heart is a muscle, and when prepared properly it can be just as tasty as back ribs and tenderloins.

And since the heart is often considered a symbol of life, carefully breaking it down, preparing and eating it is a great way to fully honor the animal.

There are plenty of ways to prepare a meal with this excellent tasting organ. Here are some of my favorite ways to cook deer hearts. These deer heart recipes also work well for the hearts of any large game animal. Once you taste them, you'll never want to leave a heart in a gut pile again.

How do you clean a deer heart?

The heart is a complicated organ, so you can't just go and chop into it with a knife and expect to get something worth cooking. To clean a deer heart for cooking, you need to disassemble it, separate the chambers and remove the large arteries at the top. Once you have it open, you also need to cut the connecting strands that look like “heart strands” on the inside.

Here you will find a complete step-by-step explanation of how to trim and prepare deer heart.

Once the heart is trimmed and sliced, it is ready to use in your favorite deer hearts recipe.

Recipe for fried deer heart

You can fry anything in the chicken and it becomes an instant comfort food. This one is incredibly kid-friendly and goes well with country gravy.

Ingredients

• 1 deer heart, divided into flat steaks
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons of salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika powder
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• Oil for frying

Instructions

1. Cut shallow, hatched slices into both sides of the heart steaks to help the breadcrumbs stick.
2. Mix flour, salt, pepper and spices in a shallow bowl
3. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and Worcestershire sauce until well combined.
4. Toss the heart into the flour mixture to coat. Then dip into the egg wash and back into the flour, coating the meat well
5. Fry the heart steaks in hot oil until the coating turns golden brown.
6. Serve with mashed potatoes and country gravy.

Deer Heart Fajitas Recipe

This is my all-time favorite way to eat deer heart. It's incredibly flavorful and the meat is prepared in a way that will fool any heart skeptic.

Ingredients

• 1 deer heart, cleaned and cut into ¼ inch slices
• 6 slices of bacon, coarsely chopped
• ½ yellow onion, thinly sliced
• ½ red pepper, thinly sliced
• ½ yellow pepper, thinly sliced
• ½ poblano pepper thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ⅓ cup cornstarch
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika powder
• ¼ teaspoon cumin
• Pinch of brown sugar
• Flour tortillas
• 1 fresh lime, squeezed
• Cotija cheese

Instructions

1. Cook the bacon in a hot cast iron skillet.
2. Add garlic and chopped vegetables and cook over high heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
3. Remove the vegetables and bacon from the pan, leaving the fat in the pan.
4. Mix cornstarch, spices and brown sugar in a bowl.
5. Add the heart slices and stir well.
6. Add the heart to the hot frying pan and fry it in fat over high heat for one minute. Stir and cook for another minute.
7. Return the bacon and vegetables to the skillet. Stir everything for another minute.
8. Squirt the juice of one lime over the heart-vegetable mixture.
9. Serve in warm tortillas and garnish with cotija cheese.

Note: The trick to delicious savory fajitas is to cook them over very high heat. This way you get a good sear on the outside and still get tender, medium-rare strips.

Morning-After Deer Heart Breakfast Hash Recipe

This is a perfect deer camp breakfast for the morning after harvest.

Ingredients

• 1 deer heart, cleaned and cut into ½ inch cubes
• 3 tablespoons butter olive oil
• 2 cups diced potatoes
• ½ yellow onion, chopped
• ½ green pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ teaspoon paprika powder
• ½ teaspoon rosemary (optional)
• 1 egg for each person

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a cast iron skillet over medium heat.
2. Add the heart to the pan, season with salt and pepper and cook until browned but not cooked through.
3. Remove the heart from the pan and set aside.
4. Add potatoes to the pan. Cook for five minutes without stirring. Turn the potatoes over, scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen the brown bits, and cook, untouched, for another three minutes.
5. Stir the vegetables, garlic and herbs into the pan. Continue cooking until the potatoes are soft.
6. Add cooked heart cubes to the hash mixture. Stir and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
7. Serve warm and top with a fried egg.

Other recipes for large deer hearts

If you need more culinary inspiration, here are some other fantastic recipes: some super fancy, some totally homey, all delicious.

Final thoughts on cooking deer heart

The key to cooking deer heart is not to overcook it. Strong muscles become stronger with use and the heart is the most used muscle in the body. You'll want to save a little pink to keep your heart steaks and strips from becoming rubbery and unappetizing. But if the heart is cleaned and prepared with care, it will quickly become one of your favorite cuts of deer.

The best deals on outdoor gear gifts

After field-testing the best gear all year long, we know exactly what should be on your shopping list. See the best performing outdoor products and the best deals available.