Venison Street Tacos

Venison Street Tacos

As of November 1st of this year, deer (gun) season has officially begun in the great state of Texas.  My husband was there the first weekend with what I'm sure is a ton of other people.  Our freezer will soon be filled up with packages of lean, tasty venison to take us through another year. 

There are just a few packages of meat left from last year's hunting season. I purposefully saved one backstrap (the piece d' resistance of venison lovers) to do something special with for my husband when he returned home.  I am very sure that he's going to be a happy guy when he gets home <3

Barbacoa is shredded meat that you find in the "street taco" style tacos.  Oh. My. Gosh! I have found a little slice of Heaven on my little piece of East Texas!  

The ingredients are things that you probably already have at home (well, if you love Mexican food you probably do) and the best part...IT CAN BE MADE IN THE CROCKPOT!!  Yes!!!!!  I love being able to put something together in the morning and having it ready to eat in the evening!

Onion and garlic....how can anything be wrong with this? I'm also proud that this is an onion from our garden this summer!  This was the first year that I had onions cure out well enough to store - probably won't ever happen again :)

I love the smokey, little bit of heat chiptoles add to this dish.

All the ingredients before mixing in the meat.  If you'll notice in the upper right of the crockpot, there's some brown stuff.  That is the beef base.  My original intent was to use beef broth.  I totally grabbed the wrong carton at the store and didn't realize that I had picked up chicken stock instead.  So in trying to fix it, I used the chicken stock then added the beef base to "beef up" the flavor.  Sometimes our mistakes can turn into our triumphs!

This is the backstrap after I trimmed the little bit of silver skin that was still on it.  I know there's a little left but, oh well :D

Cubed pieces of the venison.  I cut them in about 1 1/2" to 2" cubes. 

All mixed up and ready to cook away while I do all the boring things I need to do on a Saturday.  Too bad there isn't a magic fairy that lives in my house to do it for me.

The smell is amazing!!

After the shredding has taken place.  Venison doesn't really shred, it kinda just breaks apart.  Hey, whatever works. Most of the liquid is absorbed into the meat.  It was so moist!

All dressed up and ready to go!

Recipe

2 to 3 pound backstrap, cut into 1 1/2" - 2" cubes
4 cloves minced garlic
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
2 heaping teaspoons beef base
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
small to medium onion, finely diced
1 tablespoon ground oregano
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons salt
black pepper (not sure how much to tell you here, I use fresh ground and did about 20 turns with the grinder)
 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Add all the ingredients to the crockpot except for the backstrap.  Mix them well then add in the backstrap.  I mixed the meat in with my hands that way I could make sure that each piece was coated well with all those wonderful bits of joy! Put on the lid and let it cook on high for about 3-4 hours or low for around 6 to 7 hours, the meat should be falling apart.  Take the meat out (don't drain it!!) and shred it with two forks, or, if you're like me, use your fingers.  It's hot but it just does so much better for me that dealing with the forks!  Put the meat back in the juice and let it cook for another 10 to 20 minutes to absorb some of the liquid.

Serve this with tortillas (corn or flour), a wedge of lime, some diced onions, and of course, guacamole!  YUMMMMMO!

Zucchini and Squash Soup

Previously (like last summer) I told you about the crazy amount of zucchini and squash we grew in our garden.  I mean CRAZY!!  I still have a lot of it in my freezer and have been needing to get it used up.  Summer is creeping up on us again so I will need the room in the freezer for the next batch of veggies.  All that being said, I've been wanting to try some zucchini soup, but really wasn't thrilled about the recipes I was seeing.  I wanted it creamy but didn't want it laden with fats and cheeses nor did I want any meat in it.  The following recipe is what I came up with.  I was pleased with the end result and hope that you are too!

Zucchini and Squash Soup

1 medium diced yellow onion

2 cloves minced garlic

1 serrano  chili, seeded and chopped

1/4 cup olive oil

6 to 8 cups diced or sliced zucchini and squash (I used some I had frozen.)

1 tsp dried parsley

1 1/2 tsp basil

1 1/2 tsp oregano

salt 

pepper

4 cups chicken broth

2 tbsp butter (optional)

Saute the diced onion in the olive oil in a heavy pan for about 4 minutes.

Add in the serrano and garlic continuing to cook for another minute or two.

Dump in the zucchini and squash.  Mine was still frozen but that didn't matter one bit.  

Continue cooking until the veggies are beginning to soften (about 10 minutes or so).

Put in the spices, salt, and pepper.  Keep cooking until the herbs become fragrant (about 2 to 3 minutes).

Add in the chicken broth and continue cooking over medium heat for about 15 to 20 minutes.  This will allow all the flavors to blend.

After cooking, remove from the stove.  Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth.  This will thicken the soup and give it that creamy consistency like a cream based soup but without all the calories.  If you don't have an immersion blender, blend in batches in a regular blender.  Just be careful - this stuff is HOT!

All done!  To finish it off, I did put two tablespoons of butter in the pot and stirred until it melted.  It just kinda took the soup to the next level.  

Note:  For those that do not like peppers, please feel free to omit the chili.  I like things a little spicy.  Removing the seeds and ribs will take some of the heat out.  I personally did not think this was too hot, but then again, I'm from Texas!