CWD article in The Field

[spannulman]

Hello, the latest copy of the Field has an interesting article about CWD, which has prompted some questions I hope the community might be able to answer.

The article talks about the meat, and how day it is. I’ve heard from stalkers that it is very tender, and that their skins come off more readily than other deer species but I haven’t heard much about the taste and cooking.

I’m led to believe that venison fat isn’t great but my carcasses never have huge amounts on them but the two roe I took last weekend were covered in it. Not thick like on fallow but much more than I’ve seen in years- I guess the mild winters are the reason.

So, does anyone know, do you cook CWD like Lamb and enjoy the fat or is it truly honking as some people suggest?

What’s interesting in the article is how quickly the estate went from seeing the odd one, to culling 70 a year to now taking 500 a year! Blimey. They sound like they breed like bunnies.

 

[Gameking]

Can you indicate which issue (October 2022 ? ) and page please ? TIA

 

[Rasputin]

Just over sized rabbits when you drive round Woburn there’s hundreds in the fields. You might say some people with stalking businesses are farming them …

Taste wise for my money they are top notch just cook it like normal venison.

 

[Henns]

I'm not so keen, to me the taste isn't as good as lamb or venison. The fat however is perfectly edible on these, much better than Fallow fat for example.

 

[VSS]

CWD is the worst tasting venison I have ever had. Think mud, rotting pond weed, stagnant ditches etc.
OK, so the only CWD I've ever shot was in a marshy place and I guess the environment in which it lived, and it's diet, was reflected in the flavour, but it was bad enough to make me say I wouldn't thank you for another one.

 

[Pine Marten]

CWD is the worst tasting venison I have ever had. Think mud, rotting pond weed, stagnant ditches etc.
OK, so the only CWD I've ever shot was in a marshy place and I guess the environment in which it lived, and it's diet, was reflected in the flavour, but it was bad enough to make me say I wouldn't thank you for another one.

I'm sorry you were unlucky with that! I can't wait to get hold of another one, and neither can my kids.

Here's some inspiration for you.

Regarding the fat, it congeals at roughly body temperature so you don't really want to treat it like lamb. I left it on those ribs to melt during the barbecuing though.

 

[hoodwink]

I rather like it, my daughter roasts the legs like lamb, but probably a bit longer,I like lamb pink but CWD cooked through. THe only deer that i have found the fat palatable, the others congeal on the roof of your mouth.
Skinning is not a problem but the hair is a pain it falls out and gets everywhere.

 

[sikamalc]

The venison is very good. However all of mine are taken off farmland near Woburn. I have heard that those taken on boggy marsh land can have a different taste.
I have stalked and managed CWD for 25 years. I still enjoy stalking them and once hunted over a few weeks they are not as stupid as people make them out to be.

 

[Jon P]

CWD is the worst tasting venison I have ever had. Think mud, rotting pond weed, stagnant ditches etc.
OK, so the only CWD I've ever shot was in a marshy place and I guess the environment in which it lived, and it's diet, was reflected in the flavour, but it was bad enough to make me say I wouldn't thank you for another one.

I had a weekend on them at the Norfolk broads two weeks before the big covid lockdown, when you handle them in the field they do smell rotten.
However I found the venison ro be the nicest, think I brought 8 home with me , so I ate quite a bit of it at the time.

 

[Sash]

I shot my first CWD with Malcolm last November, brought it home, butchered it, and served it over a couple of weeks to my family.
They were all extremely complementary about the meat, so much so that my wife, who is the least keen on venison, happily authorised me to go back with Malcolm in three weeks time.
If I get one, I am going to work my way through the @Pine Marten cookbook!

 

[London Jaeger]

CWD is the worst tasting venison I have ever had. Think mud, rotting pond weed, stagnant ditches etc.
OK, so the only CWD I've ever shot was in a marshy place and I guess the environment in which it lived, and it's diet, was reflected in the flavour, but it was bad enough to make me say I wouldn't thank you for another one.

I've never stalked or eaten it but I hear the most polarising reviews on CWD venison than any other deer. Some people love it and say its super tender and so easy to butcher and prep due to size, where others say it is inedible and tastes (just like yourself) like the marshy ground they like to inhabit. I wonder if it is anything to do with how its prepped/cooker or wether it is graloched in the field or not.

 

[NoIDeer]

I've shot and eaten five of the six deer and the CWD is my least favourite so far but still OK, sika still to try. Its the hands full of fur you get when processing that I object to.

I'm not sure I understand why trophy hunting them is so expensive, as I understand they will all reach gold medal status if left long enough?

 

[bullet chucker]

The only one I've taken was also' the first I have butchered,as said above easy to skin, the hair' was some thing you would expect in the barbers!

BC.

 

[Bo Diddley]

We slow cooked a haunch last weekend with plenty of root veg & onions in the pot, served with mash, gravy, and wilted savoy cabbage/smoky bacon/cream and it was great and tasted very nice. We are getting a few around my part of Norfolk.

 

[GWP]

There was a guest chef on a James Martin show a couple of weeks back cooking cwd he had never seen it before and rated it highly the chefs use it on a regular basis

 

[long_range_rob]

Very tasty, they stink when still in the skin though

 

[Bowland blades]

CWD is very , very nice Venison ! Mild tasting and lighter in colour . its a toss- up for me between that or Muntjac for the top tasting venison but the CWD is a lot easier to skin and butcher . Like any animal it depends on what its been eating on the ground and the stress levels when shot etc etc . It is not like other venison

 

[spannulman]

There’s a wealth of knowledge on here as I expected. Thanks for all your replies. It has got me thinking about having a try for one and seeing for myself. I’ve eaten the other 5 species but not stalked them all myself.

The closest I’ve been is seeing them dotted around the grounds of whipsnade. Maybe a CWD stalk needs to be added to my to do list.

 

[Andyquadra]

There was a guest chef on a James Martin show a couple of weeks back cooking cwd he had never seen it before and rated it highly the chefs use it on a regular basis

Thought that was Muntjac they were cooking?

 

[spannulman]

Can you indicate which issue (October 2022 ? ) and page please ? TIA

I’m away at the moment but will check when I get home. But it’ll be whatever the latest issue is in the shops now.