This all-purpose venison marinade is perfect for tenderizing and flavoring whatever cut of venison you’re working with and it uses simple ingredients.
Ah, the all-purpose venison marinade. I’ve been messing around with venison marinades for some time now. I think it’s important to have something you can whisk together in a pinch. I’ve tried crazier ingredients like hot sauces, maple syrup, mustard, and more, but I keep coming back to this bright, fresh, and simple version. I love that it uses super simple pantry ingredients, too.
You can truly use this venison marinade recipe for any cut of meat, we love using it on Steak, Kebabs, and Venison Tenderloin, but I bet marinating a Backstrap with this would be delicious as well. You can use it on your favorite wild game meat too! It is incredibly easy to make and as with any marinade recipe, the longer you marinate the better it’ll be.
INGREDIENTS & KITCHEN TOOLS
This is a great marinade to use on any piece of meat such as a venison loin, venison backstrap, chops, steaks, and even venison roasts—really any cut—and especially those that are tougher in nature. The acid helps break down the tissue and tenderize. Here is what you’ll need.
- Olive oil
- Red wine vinegar
- Lemon juice or lime juice
- Garlic cloves, minced and smashed
- Italian seasoning
- Salt & black pepper
Kitchen Tools:
All you’ll need is a jar or container with a lid to store this marinade. You can also add it straight into a large bowl with the meat you plan on marinating and let is sit until ready to use. When cooking any type of meat, I always recommend a good cast iron skillet or skillet and a meat thermometer.
STEP BY STEP
Step 1: Add all ingredients to a jar with lid or a bowl.
Step 2: Shake or whisk together vigorously.
Step 3: Use as desired (this recipe will make enough for 1-2 lbs of meat).
I highly recommend letting your meat soak in the marinade in the refrigerator for up to an hr, but the longer the better.
For directions on cooking a venison steak – visit this post.
To make kebabs – Simply thread bite-sized chunks of meat onto a skewer with vegetables of your choice. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side, rotating to all sides over medium-high heat on a grill or grill pan. Let rest and enjoy!
This marinade will work perfectly for any cut of meat making them perfectly tender and delicious. I have used this marinade on other wild game as well (moose, elk, and bear), it’s perfect for the non-tender and tender cuts of meat.
Cooking Tip
With this recipe, I like to marinate for at least 4 hours if you can, but up to overnight is just fine (8-9 hours). The longer the meat has a chance to sit, the more tender it becomes.
COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Does venison need to be marinated before cooking?
The above paragraph leads my to this first point – does venison need to be marinated? My answer – it depends.
Cuts like the tenderloin or the loin/backstrap do not need to be marinated if cooked properly in a hot pan or grill to medium rare and seasoned appropriately. Those are some of the most sought-after and tender cuts of the animal.
However, deer meat has less fat and a different flavor than commercially produced meat (like beef, bison, even farm-raised deer & elk) so there isn’t a lot of room for error.
If you’re impartial to the taste of venison or you’re a beginner in the world of wild game, I recommend you use this marinade recipe because it helps to both tenderize and flavor your meat, giving you a little more room for error and making the flavors feel more familiar.
For tougher steak cuts and cubed/stew meat that you’re wanting to use for grilling/kebabs, this recipe is a must. It helps break down the meat to tenderize it.
The 3 main components your venison marinade needs to have
Fat
We want to add some sort of fat to our marinade to enhance the lean meat that venison is. I like to use olive oil here but avocado oil would also work well.
Acid
Acid is so important when working with wild game. It brightens the flavors of the rich meat (sometimes referred to as gamey) and makes it more palatable and familiar. In this recipe, we’re using both red wine vinegar and lemon.
Seasoning
We also want to make sure our meat is seasoned appropriately with enough salt and pepper and flavor. In this recipe, I use Italian seasoning (a staple in my kitchen) and fresh garlic.
How do you cook the meat after marinading?
If you’re making steak, check out this post for cooking steak. I like to use this to make kebabs, too. Simply thread bite-sized chunks of meat onto a skewer with vegetables of your choice. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side, rotating to all sides over medium-high heat on a grill or grill pan. Let rest and enjoy!
HOW TO SERVE
There are tons of way to serve up your marinated meat – over a salad, as kebabs or served as is with a side of roasted potatoes and green beans.
Print
All Purpose Venison Marinade
This all-purpose venison marinade is perfect for tenderizing and flavoring whatever cut of venison you’re working with and it uses simple ingredients. This recipe makes enough for 1-2lbs. of meat.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Category: Sauce/Marinade
Ingredients
Marinade:
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
- ½ lemon, juiced
-
3 garlic cloves, minced and smashed
-
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
-
¾ tsp. salt
-
½ tsp. pepper
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a jar with a lid or a bowl.
- Shake or whisk together vigorously.
- Use as desired (makes enough for 1-2lbs. of meat).
Cooking directions:
For directions on cooking a venison steak – visit this post
To make kebabs – Simply thread bite-sized chunks of meat onto a skewer with vegetables of your choice. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side, rotating to all sides over medium-high heat on a grill or grill pan. Let rest and enjoy!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 Tbsp.
- Calories: 144
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 441 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 1 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 5 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This post was originally published in 2019. It has been updated in December 2023. Photo by Amber Rice
Can I use apple vinegar instead? I dont’t have any red wine vinegar. I’m not rating at this time I just want to ask some questions. Also can I use a half of an orange?
You can use apple cider vinegar! I do think the orange may be a bit too sweet and not acidic enough. You’re welcome to try but know that lemon will be best and both of these swaps will change the flavor of the recipe!
Will this be enough for 2lbs of venison? Or should I double?
It’s enough for 1-2lbs. You should be good.
I used the marinade for venison steaks. It was wonderful, my family said it was the best venison they had eaten. Thank you so much for the recipes and tips.
I’m SO glad, Martie.
How long do I cook the meat on each side? And also how high shld I have the frying pan set for?
Hey Chrissy! This depends on what you’re cooking. I use this recipe for different cuts of steaks and kebabs. But in general, for pan/grill temperature, you want to work with medium-high. What are you cooking? If it’s steak, visit this post: https://www.missallieskitchen.com/venison-steak/
Wow! This looks like some perfectly cooked venison. Thanks for sharing;)
Is there anything that can be substituted for red wine vinegar?
Apple cider vinegar will work too. I seen this question asked on above. 🙂
Can this marinade be used on a charcoal grill? If not, can you recommend a marinade for charcoal grill cooking? Thnaks
oh goodness, yes. Charcoal, gas, smoker – perfect for any grill. LMK what you think 🙂
Thanks, I look forward to making it!
Oh my word…. I threw my venison backstrap in this for several hours … added a tiny bit of carribean jerk seasoning when I grilled it. It was SO tender and SO amazing. What a simple and delicious week night meal! I will make this again and again.
Amazing! I am so glad you’re loving this marinade and it turned out great for you! Thank you for your comment, I so appreciate you!
While I liked the recipe, I used it on backstrap (no, it doesn’t need it but I wanted something different) and found it too acidic, not a lot of connective tissue. So I tried again with half the vinegar and citrus. Bingo! Cheap meat, keep the Vinegar and lemon. Good stuff…loose it.
This is amazing, Joseph. Thank you so much for sharing your feedback, I really appreciate it and I am glad you enjoyed this marinade!
Best marinade to date. Full of flavor! The child (7yo) couldn’t get enough venison.
This is fabulous, Mary! So glad you and your little one are LOVING this marinade, thanks so much for sharing your review & star rating, I appreciate it!
Been making this marinade for a year and our household is obsessed! Really covers up the gaminess.
Question for you Miss AK — how long can I store the marinade without it going bad? I made two little jars.
Yummy!!
Would you recommend marinating venison stew meat before cooking it for several hours in a slow cooker? Or is that not necessary as long as there is moisture in the slow cooker?
I marinated venison medallions for over 9 hours, so very good. My husband is the one that typically cooks the venison and he was impressed. I cooked in cast iron, turned out delicious! Made exactly as written, thank you!
WOO! This is the best, Mandi! I am so glad you gave this recipe a try and it turned out great for you. Thank you for sharing your review, I appreciate it!
I need a reciepe for marinating venison with apple cider vineger
Fantastic. Did everything except the Italian seasoning which I didn’t have. Replaced with some Montreal steak season. My wife doesn’t usually eat venison, she couldn’t tell it was deer. Thanks!
This is so great to hear, Fish. I am so glad this recipe is a hit for you both!
Can this marinade be used for venison stew meat? I’m not eating it. But making it for my son and grandson. TIA.
Absolutely!
Been doing it wrong all my life! Best venison steaks I’ve ever fixed!
YAY! This is so great to hear, James!
I used this recipe on two elk backstrap roasts that I fixed for dinner for some friends. Everyone was raving about how delicious and tender the meat was. This marinade will be a regular in my house from now on!
WOO! This makes me so happy to hear, Deborah. I am glad this recipe is a hit!