Venison originally meant the meat of a game animal but now refers primarily to the meat of deer (or antelope in South Africa). [1] Venison can be used to refer to any part of the animal, so long as it is edible, including the internal organs. Venison, much like beef or pork, is categorized into specific cuts, including roast, sirloin, and ribs.
The word derives from the Latin venari, meaning "to hunt or pursue". [2] This term entered the English language through Norman French venaison in the 11th century, following the Norman conquest of England and the establishment of Royal Forests.
Venison originally described meat of any game animal killed by hunting [3] and was applied to any animal from the families Cervidae (true deer), Leporidae (rabbits and hares), Suidae (wild boar) and certain species of the genus Capra (goats and ibex).
In Southern Africa, the word venison refers to the meat of antelope, [4] a Bovidae taxon, as there are no native Cervidae in sub-Saharan Africa.
Venison may be eaten as steaks, tenderloin, roasts, sausages, jerky, and minced meat. It has a flavor reminiscent of beef. [5] Cuts of venison tend to have a finer texture and be leaner than comparable cuts of beef. [6] However, like beef, leaner cuts can be tougher as well. Venison burgers are typically so lean as to require the addition of fat in the form of bacon, beef, olive oil, or cheese to achieve parity with hamburger cooking time, texture, and taste. [7] Organ meats (offal) of deer can also be eaten. Traditionally, they are called hombres (originally the Middle English hombres). This is supposedly the origin of the phrase "humble pie", meaning a pie made from the organs of a deer. [8] [9]
When sourced correctly from a healthy deer, venison can be healthy meat for human consumption. [10] Venison is higher in moisture and protein, more diverse in amino acids, and lower in calories, cholesterol, and fat than most cuts of grain-fed beef, pork, or lamb. [11]
However, since it is unknown whether chronic wasting disease (CWD) – a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy among deer – can pass from deer to humans through the consumption of venison, there have been some fears of dangerous contamination of the food supply from wild deer carrying CWD. [12] The disease has been found among farmed deer in the US and western Canada, but New Zealand has not identified the disease among its herd.[ citation needed ]
According to the CDC[ citation needed ], the Toxoplasma gondii parasite can also be transmitted through human consumption of undercooked or raw venison if it did not reach an internal temperature of 145 °F (63 °C) for whole pieces of meat, or 160 °F (74 °C) for ground venison. The CDC also says that freezing meat for several days in sub-zero (0 °F or −18 °C) temperatures can greatly reduce the chances of infection by toxoplasmosis.
Hunters are advised not to shoot for food a deer that appears sick or is acting strangely, and they are also advised to take general precautions in examining the meat from deer they have killed. [13]
Venison (as well as other game meats, mainly wild boar) is a part of the traditional cuisine of the country and is commonly eaten, not considered a specialty. Dishes such as deer goulash are often on restaurant menus. [14] A variety of venison (roe, red and fallow deer, mouflon) and other game meat is widely available in butcher shops in fresh state, distributed by wholesalers, [15] as well as in big retail chains such as Tesco, at prices similar to beef or pork, around 200 CZK or 8 EUR per kilogram. Despite the popularity and low prices, in recent years the production of venison has surpassed demand, and is therefore often used in production of animal food. [16]
New Zealand has large populations of wild and farmed deer, making venison a relatively common meat. It is widely available in supermarkets.[ citation needed ]
In England, hunting rights were restricted in an effort to preserve property rights. As a result, the possession and sale of venison was tightly regulated under English law, [17] although it is readily available commercially.
In the United States, venison is less common at retail due to the requirement that the animal first be inspected by USDA inspectors. There are very few abattoirs which process deer in North America, and most of this venison is destined for restaurants. Where deer are considered an invasive species, companies such as Molokai Wildlife Management and Maui Nui Venison that hunt axis deer in Hawaii, combine culling with USDA certification and retail sale. [18] [19] Most venison sold through retail in the United States are farmed from New Zealand and Tasmania. It is available through some high-end specialty grocers and some chains which focus on more "natural" meats. Non-retail venison is often obtained through hunting and self-processing or contracting to small meat processing facilities to do the processing for the hunter, but sale of the finished meat is usually illegal. [20]
The American sandwich chain Arby's gained attention in October 2016 when word leaked through social media that they were about to test a venison sandwich. Arby's later confirmed that they had selected 17 stores in Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Wisconsin (all major deer hunting states) to offer a venison sandwich during a four-day test during those states' hunting seasons. Both due to curiosity and heavy demand from hunters, the sandwiches sold out in all markets on the first day of the test. [21]
A deer or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae. Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae and Capreolinae. Male deer of almost all species, as well as female reindeer, grow and shed new antlers each year. These antlers are bony extensions of the skull and are often used for combat between males.
Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish, used as a central ingredient, or as a flavouring or accent. Regular bacon consumption is associated with increased mortality and other health concerns.
Finnish cuisine is notable for generally combining traditional country fare and haute cuisine with contemporary continental-style cooking. Fish and meat play a prominent role in traditional Finnish dishes in some parts of the country, while the dishes elsewhere have traditionally included various vegetables and mushrooms. Evacuees from Karelia contributed to foods in other parts of Finland in the aftermath of the Continuation War.
Goulash is a soup or stew of meat and vegetables seasoned with paprika and other spices. Originating in Hungary, goulash is a common meal predominantly eaten in Central Europe but also in other parts of Europe. It is one of the national dishes of Hungary and a symbol of the country.
Chronic wasting disease (CWD), sometimes called zombie deer disease, is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) affecting deer. TSEs are a family of diseases thought to be caused by misfolded proteins called prions and include similar diseases such as BSE in cattle, Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD) in humans, and scrapie in sheep. Natural infection causing CWD affects members of the deer family. In the United States, CWD affects mule deer, white-tailed deer, red deer, sika deer, elk, bison, squirrels, antelope, caribou, and moose. The transmission of CWD to other species such as squirrel monkeys and humanized mice has been observed in experimental settings.
Arby's is an American fast food sandwich restaurant chain with more than 3,300 restaurants. The flagship property of Inspire Brands, it ranked third in systemwide sales in the United States in the quick-service and fast-casual restaurant industries in 2012, behind Subway and Panera Bread. In October 2017, Food & Wine called Arby's "America's second largest sandwich chain ".
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Game or quarry is any wild animal hunted for animal products, for recreation ("sporting"), or for trophies. The species of animals hunted as game varies in different parts of the world and by different local jurisdictions, though most are terrestrial mammals and birds. Fish caught non-commercially are also referred to as game fish.
Bresaola is air-dried, salted beef that has been aged two or three months until it becomes hard and turns a dark red, almost purple colour. It is made from top (inside) round, and it is lean and tender, with a sweet, musty smell. It originated in Valtellina, a valley in the Alps of northern Italy's Lombardy region.
Slovak cuisine varies slightly from region to region across Slovakia. It was influenced by the traditional cuisine of its neighbours and it influenced them as well. The origins of traditional Slovak cuisine can be traced to times when the majority of the population lived self-sufficiently in villages, with very limited food imports and exports and with no modern means of food preservation or processing.
Deer hunting is hunting deer for meat and sport, and, formerly, for producing buckskin hides, an activity which dates back tens of thousands of years. Venison, the name for deer meat, is a nutritious and natural food source of animal protein that can be obtained through deer hunting. There are many different types of deer around the world that are hunted for their meat. For sport, often hunters try to kill deer with the largest and most antlers to score them using inches. There are two different categories of antlers. They are typical and nontypical. They measure tine length, beam length, and beam mass by each tine. They will add all these measurements up to get a score. This score is the score without deductions. Deductions occur when the opposite tine is not the same length as it is opposite. That score is the deducted score.
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