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Home » Recipes » Beef, Venison, Lamb, Pork

Grilled Marinated Venison Steak Tasty And Tender

Published: May 8, 2019 · Modified: May 6, 2025 by Marisa Franca

Jump to Recipe
Venison on a dark brown platter with mushrooms surrounding.
 


Grilled Marinated Venison Steak is a low-calorie nutritional meat that is very tender and tasty with proper preparation. Marinating the meat not only makes sure that the meat has plenty of flavor but also that it retains its juiciness.

Close up of a grilled Venison Steak surrounded by brown potato wedged on a green and white plate with leaf pattern.
Jump to:
  • Before the grilled steak it's the deer challenge
  • What cooking method to use on venison steak
  • Preparing the venison steak for grilling
  • Grilling the venison steak
  • Testing the venison steak for doneness
  • Important last step for cooking deer steak
  • Grilled Marinated Venison Steak Tasty and Tender
  • 📖 Recipe
  • 💬 Comments

Before the grilled steak it's the deer challenge

We are fortunate to be the recipients of a variety of deer cuts. Our son, Jason, bagged a couple of deer and he generously gave us and his brother and sister quite a bit of meat.

We decided on Grilled Marinated Venison Steak for our first deer dish. As we learn about cooking venison, we'll share what we discover.

It's not easy bagging a deer. A hunter has to get up before dawn, hide in a tree or deer blind, ignore the cold and perhaps rain,  and wait patiently without making a sound.

I couldn't do it. And the hunters don't do this just once! Nope! They do this throughout deer season which in Indiana starts in October with archery then November and December with Firearms.

It takes patience and determination!!

View of a green field from a tree blind high in the tree.

What it takes to get a deer

  • The hunters have to purchase tags for the deer they hope to get. There are no guarantees. Sometimes, a hunter may not get one single deer. How depressing!
  • All those hours, sitting in a tree, suffering the cold and nothing to show for it! Thinking about the sacrifice Jason made to get the meat, makes Honey and I appreciate the venison steak, and the deer meat in the freezer, all the more.
A cylindrical dark brown deer-blind on stilts in the middle of a clearing in the woods with leaves turning colors in autumn.

What cooking method to use on venison steak

There are quite a few ways to cook venison. Some of the methods involve using:

  • dry heat,
  • grilling,
  • roasting,
  • braising,
  • stewing.

Our venison steak is ideal for either broiling or grilling.

We opt for grilling the meat and using a marinade.

Two Stags in the middle of the woods grazing on the plants.

Marinating deer steak is highly recommended because there's no fat on the venison.

The lemon juice in our marinade helps to tenderize the meat and add flavor.

The olive oil in the marinade helps keep the venison steak moist.

Stag with a large rack stands in a clearing staring at the photographer.

We also use minced garlic, pepper, soy and Worcestershire sauce in our marinade.

We pour the marinade into a plastic bag along with the steak and let it marinate in the refrigerator for 5 hours.

Preparing the venison steak for grilling

We drain the marinade and let the deer meat rest on the counter as Honey lights the grill.

Venison steak over a hot fire on a black grill.

The rule of thumb is to start with a thick steak.

The meat needs to come to room temperature before grilling, about 30 to 60 minutes. By doing this, you make sure that the steak is not cold in the center and done on the outside. It isn't dangerous to eat, just not very palatable for most people.

If the steak is thin, it should go right from the fridge to the grill so that it doesn't overcook.

Grilling the venison steak

Honey gets the grill really hot. We like grill marks on our steak. If you like grill marks on your meat the trick is not to mess with the steak. You only flip it once and leave it alone until it's done. We explain how we do it here.

Venison steak resting on a white a green leafed plate with green parsley on either side.

Don't worry about getting the grill marks on the underside, how many people do you know that check under the steak to see if the marks are there?

Honey goes ahead and puts the grill marks on the bottom just to ensure the meat cooks evenly.

We want to cook our venison steak to medium rare, but we don't want to use a meat thermometer because it pierces the meat and lets out the delicious juices.

Collage showing how to check meat's doneness by using the fingers of your hand.

Testing the venison steak for doneness

How can we tell when it's cooked just the way we like it? We use our fingers. How?

  • Well, touch your forefinger to your thumb and poke the base of the thumb with the forefinger of your other hand. Can you feel it? That's rare.
  • Now touch your middle finger to your thumb. Touch the base of the thumb again with the forefinger of your other hand. That's how medium feels.
  • Now, touch your ring finger to your thumb, you DON'T want your venison steak to feel like that!
Venison steak cooked to medium rare and sliced on a cutting board.

Important last step for cooking deer steak

One of the most important steps in cooking venison or any meat is letting it rest. We let the venison steak rest at least 5 minutes after grilling. If we just throw it on a plate and dig in, the fantastic juices will ooze out of the steak and leave the meat dry.

If a steak is thick, we let it rest 5 to 10 minutes.

Venison steak dinner with browned potato chunks and a melange of vegetables comprising of broccoli, carrots, and red peppers.

When Honey slices the meat it's cooked perfectly. Our venison steak is melt-in-our-mouth tender.

We have lots of plans for the rest of our venison packages. If you'd like more wild game recipes, be sure to sign up for the newsletter. We'd love to share what recipes we're making.

Here are some more wild game recipes you may enjoy

Spicy Baked Venison Meatballs

Hearty Venison Chili Hunter J's Original Spicy Award-Winning Recipe

Italian Venison Wellington The Ultimate Elegant Holiday Dish

This is just a sampling. Take a look and see how delicious the dishes look!

We hope you have the opportunity to try venison. It's delicious and good for you too.

Tutti a tavola è pronto!

Un caro saluto e alla prossima.

YOU MAY NEED...

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These extra long tongs are similar to the ones we use when we grill. We lie the length and strength of them so that we can easily lift and turn heavy meats as well as light cuts. The tips of the tongs are extra sturdy. We've noticed that some tongs are now coming with rubberized tips that have a tendency to end and not firmly grip the meat. 

Long handled tongs for grilling.
Long handled tongs for grilling.

Grilled Marinated Venison Steak Tasty and Tender

Once you take a bite of this tasty venison steak you'll swear you're eating beef. No, you'll swear what you're eating is even better. The meat is moist and flavorful without any hint of gaminess. The recipe is easy and not time consuming at all. Just follow the instructions and you'll be a venison convert!! Promise!

If you like this recipe, please consider giving it a 5-star rating. This helps others to decide whether to try the recipe.

📖 Recipe

Venison Steak grilled and marinated and grilled with potatoes.

Grilled Marinated Venison Steak

An easy way to make venison steak that is delicious and tender. Venison is a meat that is low in fat and cholesterol and high in vitamins. The meat is amazingly tender and tasty.
4.97 from 58 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: grilled wild meat, main dish, Meat, venison
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes minutes
Resting time: 5 minutes minutes
Total Time: 5 hours hours 18 minutes minutes
Servings: 2 people
Calories: 740kcal
Author: Marisa Franca @ All Our Way
As An Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ lbs. venison steak an 1 inch thick
  • 3 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper
  • ¼ cup dry red wine - we used Pinot Noir
Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

  • Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a measuring cup.
  • Place venison in a large zip lock bag.
  • Pour marinade over steak and seal the bag.
  • Place bag in a flat casserole dish so that the steak lies flat.
  • Refrigerate and marinate at least 5 hours, turning every half hour to marinate each side.
  • Drain the marinade at let the steak come to room temperature at least 1 hour.
  • Spray grill grate with spray oil and heat the grill to 500 F.
  • Pat the steak dry with paper towels and then rub both sides of steak with olive oil.
  • Lay the steak on the grill. Do not disturb for 2 minutes. With tongs pick up the steak and move it 90 degrees on the grill -- this will give you the cross-hatch grill marks. Grill another 2 minutes on the same side.
  • Flip the steak and grill until medium rare, using the same method as the first side. Do the Finger test for doneness about 4 minutes.
  • Move the steak to a platter and let it rest for at least 5 minutes.
  • Slice the meat and serve.

Notes

NOTE: If you like dipping sauces, this Cowboy Butter Dipping Sauce is fantastic. 

Nutrition

Serving: 2g | Calories: 740kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 103g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 268mg | Sodium: 781mg | Potassium: 1441mg | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 14.7mg

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    A green leaf platter holds grilled venison steak that is medium rare with chunks of cooked potatoes surrounding it.
    First Published: December 06,2016... Last Updated: May 08, 2019

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    I’m Marisa Franca, a home chef, food writer, and photographer who believes that you can make gourmet quality food at home with simple seasonal ingredients. I’m passionate about family, food, friends, everything Italian, and happy endings.

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