Asado cooking

[VSS]

Does anyone have any experience of asado type cooking for venison?
Someone's ordered meat from me for what they're calling an "asado", and I'm wondering what cuts would be best? They've suggested loin fillets (what the Americans call "backstraps"), but I'm think a whole butterflyed haunch might be more suitable?
I have no experience of this, so your thoughts would be welcome.

 

[75]

It's just a type of BBQing, isn't it? So I've say either loin, steaks or butterflyied haunch would be fine - prob more dependent on how many they are catering for.

 

[VSS]

It's just a type of BBQing, isn't it? So I've say either loin, steaks or butterflyied haunch would be fine - prob more dependent on how many they are catering for.

As far as I can ascertain, asado is a slow cooking method, with the meat propped up on a rack or frame, or hanging from a hook, over hot embers.
In my experience of venison, loin is not something that you want to slow cook, and individual steaks would be too small, hence why I'm thinking butterflyed haunch, but open to all suggestions from anyone who's done it.

Maybe I'll give Cai ap Bryn a ring for some advice. He ought to know.

 

[Andyquadra]

Google is your friend, its South American BBQ, but looks like it can vary quite a bit in style

Asado - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[The Singing Stalker]

As far as I can ascertain, asado is a slow cooking method, with the meat propped up on a rack or frame, or hanging from a hook, over hot embers.
In my experience of venison, loin is not something that you want to slow cook, and individual steaks would be too small, hence why I'm thinking butterflyed haunch, but open to all suggestions from anyone who's done it.

Maybe I'll give Cai ap Bryn a ring for some advice. He ought to know.

There was something on the shooting show about it and I have also seen him at the game fair doing it. If it is what I think.
He opened a whole carcase ona metal frame and cooked it over the heat. Like pig but not turning it.

 

[Andyquadra]

A Guide to the Argentine Asado - Pick Up The Fork

This article originally appeared in Lucky Peach Magazine. If where there’s smoke there’s fire, then in Argentina, where there’s fire, there’s a dismembered cow slowly grilling over hot coals. Asado isn’t just a barbecue, or a cultural tradition, it’s a main source of national pride and...

pickupthefork.com

 

[VSS]

There was something on the shooting show about it and I have also seen him at the game fair doing it. If it is what I think.
He opened a whole carcase ona metal frame and cooked it over the heat. Like pig but not turning it.

Yeah, that sounds about right. I supplied Cai with all the venison for the catering at the Welsh Game Fair a couple of years ago, and he used butterflyed haunches, cooked hanging from a hook or on a rack over flames.
But I'm not sure that that is technically "asado", or whether it's just a glorified bbq over a wood fire? Likewise, I'm not 100% certain what my customer is planning, other than that they've described it as "asado".

 

[Morkai]

As far as I can ascertain, asado is a slow cooking method, with the meat propped up on a rack or frame, or hanging from a hook, over hot embers.
In my experience of venison, loin is not something that you want to slow cook, and individual steaks would be too small, hence why I'm thinking butterflyed haunch, but open to all suggestions from anyone who's done it.

Maybe I'll give Cai ap Bryn a ring for some advice. He ought to know.

Really its best for fattier, spatchcock carcasses or big sides of beef.

You could, I suppose, bone out a leg or shoulder to do it, but its more a method for on the bone meat (as above).

 

[VIGILAIRE]

Did a whole spatch cocked muntjac over wood Mark 4 recently long and slow, plenty of rosemary, oregano and mint out the garden added to the smoke. Made a wire frame which could be lowered as I've seen abroad. Worked well.

 

[Morkai]

Did a whole spatch cocked muntjac over wood Mark 4 recently long and slow, plenty of rosemary, oregano and mint out the garden added to the smoke. Made a wire frame which could be lowered as I've seen abroad. Worked well.

Sounds brilliant.

 

[Andyquadra]

I knew I'd heard it before! John Tarode's in the BBC series Cook abroad episode 3, about 6 minutes onwards

A Cook Abroad - 3. John Torode's Argentina

Cooking show. MasterChef judge and meat connoisseur John Torode fulfils a lifelong ambition to go to Argentina, where eating beef is a national obsession.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[tozzybum]

Hunter Gatherer on Instagram does courses on it Tim.
Worth a pm on there seems a friendly polite person atb

 

[gelert]

Chris Flamebaster from Caernarfon did a whole series on S4C pretty much all cooking Argentine style asado meats. I shot a munty and we had it whole on a bbq a few years back on a beaters day. Chris Roberts | Fire chef | Flamebaster

 

[VSS]

Yes, I could have a chat with Chris. That's quite a good idea.

 

[Mungo]

If they actually mean true asado, it’s hard to get right with venison - just not enough fat.

If they just mean a glorified bbq, then you can create an ersatz asado simply by cutting up a haunch into cubes and putting them on kebab skewers. Looks convincing and very easy to cook well.

 

[nun_hunter]

Hunter Gatherer on Instagram does courses on it Tim.
Worth a pm on there seems a friendly polite person atb

I've met Nick and he certainly is a decent bloke and I am sure would take the time to chat through any cooking method using fire, especially if it's wild UK game.

 

[Overlay]

I got shown how to butterfly a haunch down to a thin 1” thick , spices, salt olive oil n show it over a bbq last season and its all I do with haunches now I've done a few mostly muntjac odd roe and a yearling fallow, by far the best was the muntjac, don't know whether it was because it was slightly thinner layered back or the applewood used on the small wood bbq and not gas

But muntjac over applewood i dont think you will beat with any species, try a muntjac first VSS its a head turner

 

[Heym SR20]

I have cooked plenty of venison over a wood fire. Secret is to have your cooking area next to the fire and rake out the coals as you need them. You don’t want high heat - you should be able to hold your hand at required height for a few seconds.

Best was a whole haunch of venison sika venison. I cooked it slowly for a bit over two hours and let it rest - it was superb. I cooked it for a friends birthday on their croft amongst Scottish west coast woods. I had shot it whilst looking after the croft whilst they were away the previous autumn. There were quite a few vegan earthy types. Once I had told them that it was shot on the far side of the field about 50 yards away, that it was probably conceived and born within a few hundred yards and was damaging the trees they all dove straight in. I only got the chefs sample but it was delicious. I wish I had done both haunches.

I have in the past butterflied haunch of Roe. Probably a mistake as it cooks very quickly unless you are careful. Better keeping it whole.

You can wrap a haunch with a really fatty piece of pig skin / belly pork and then cook it slowly in similar manner. Probably better this way in a wood fired oven.

Choice of wood makes a huge difference. Beech I think is best. Pine of any sort the worst. Nothing beats mopane or acacia thorn, but thats an African thing.

 

[Kentish]

Just reviving this to see if anyone has experience of this type of cooking on a fire pit and if so what size/type of attachments if I was to buy one for the purpose. Having a big post wedding bbq and thinking of haunches of venison and legs of hogget cooked over wood fire

 

[weblyish]

Just reviving this to see if anyone has experience of this type of cooking on a fire pit and if so what size/type of attachments if I was to buy one for the purpose. Having a big post wedding bbq and thinking of haunches of venison and legs of hogget cooked over wood fire

Hope will be just the ticket done slowly in a firepit

I've often done a pair of hogget legs hanging over a donut fire on a pulley chain With a Dutch oven of potatoes under to catch your drips
Usually foil covered for 2-3 hours then uncovered for an hour or two
Drop it onto the potatoes to rest and sit while you do anything else you need to



As mentioned above the venison would lend itself to kebabs as a starter maybe