A hearty venison dish straight from field to table. (Author photos)
December 11, 2025
By Brian Fortenbaugh
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I’m not a heartbreaker. I’m not a heartthrob, either — oh, how I wish I was, but I’m not.
What I most definitely am, however, is a heart-eater! Always have been, always will be. And it doesn’t matter what critter this life-giving organ came from. From beef to tuna to chickens and wild turkeys — I will partake.
This last paragraph is not true of a lot of people, and I’m not sure why… But I have a couple of guesses, starting with my “mind-over-matter theory.”
Remember when you were a little kid and your parents put something new in front of you that wasn’t French fries or hot dogs or chicken fingers? What did most of us do? We refused to eat the new menu item without even giving it a taste!
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All the ingredients ready to transform these deer hearts into a flavorful venison dish. (Author photos) That same childhood refusal to try the unfamiliar is applicable to venison heart, and the moral of my first point is this: Don’t knock anything, even as adults, without trying it first!
My second guess applies not only to the heart, but to all choice cuts of venison and various other wild-game animals: It wasn’t taken care of properly in the field, and I guarantee it was overcooked!
So, now that I’ve got that out of the way, what will follow is how to properly clean/care for your venison hearts, plus two of my favorite recipes for cooking them.
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Take Care Of Your Heart So, your well-placed arrow did its job and you’ve field-dressed the deer. What now?
Whether you are going to make the heart fresh (always best) or vacuum-seal/freeze for the future, the following cleaning/prep steps are imperative, and both apply to the recipes included in this article.
Start by first soaking the heart in a lukewarm bowl of saltwater for roughly 30 minutes. Once this is done, start squeezing the heart in your kitchen sink to further remove as much blood as possible.
Now you need to rid the heart of any unwanted parts, and this involves a little Biology 101.
Trimming away arteries, fat, and tendons preps the heart for the skillet. Hearts have two ventricles (the good stuff), and at its top are the arteries and atriums. Get rid of the latter by using a sharp fillet knife to remove the top of the heart.
Once this is done, you’ll next want to eliminate the white, waxy fat. This can be done with a knife and your fingers. Now that you have a more presentable looking muscle in front of you, it’s time to work on the “good stuff.”
You’ll notice there is a definitive vertical line separating the heart into two pieces. Use your knife to cut along this line and then set that piece to the side, leaving you with one larger, cone-shaped piece. All that’s left to do with the larger piece is to cut it open.
Now you have two edible “steaks,” and all that is left to do to both is to remove the tendons that resemble spiderwebs and make a few small slits at the bottom so both small and big pieces lay flat.
There are many ways to turn heart into delicious table-fare, but the following two recipes happen to be my personal favorites. Oh, one more thing before I delve into them: For the best flavor, never overcook any cut of venison — heart included. I firmly believe that medium-rare is the best way to go!
Pan-Fried Heart Pan-fried to medium-rare perfection with butter, onions, and bell peppers. This stovetop recipe is about as easy as it gets, and like most things I love to cook, I truly believe that simple is usually best!
Ingredients:
1 heart, cleaned and cut into two flat steaks 1-2 bell peppers, sliced into bite-sized pieces 1 large onion, sliced into bite-sized pieces Olive oil Butter Salt Pepper Directions:
Place a medium/large skillet on stovetop burner set on medium-high. Add enough olive to skillet to lightly coat and help prevent burning the butter. Once hot, add peppers and onion to skillet and cook until the peppers start to soften and the onions start to clarify. Then add as much butter as your heart desires while also seasoning steaks with salt and pepper. Once the butter has melted and is starting to bubble, increase heat slightly, wait a few minutes, and then add the heart steaks into the mix. Continue cooking until heart is medium-rare, then remove skillet from burner and allow everything to rest for a minute or two before plating. Pickled Heart Pickled venison heart resting in its jar — patience makes it irresistible. This recipe is a bit more labor-intensive, but I absolutely love it!
Ingredients: 1-2 heart steaks, sliced or cubed 1-2 bell peppers, sliced into bite-sized pieces 1-2 large onions, sliced into bite-sized pieces Garlic cloves 4 cups vinegar (white or apple cider) 2 cups sugar White wine or white cooking wine (just a splash) 3 Tbsp. onion powder 4 Tbsp. Pickling spice Salt & pepper Directions Fill a medium or large pot halfway with water. Add onion powder and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer. Season sliced/cubed heart with salt and pepper. Add venison heart to simmering water, cook 3-5 minutes then remove pot from stovetop. Drain heart in colander and set aside. In same pot, add vinegar, sugar, pickling spices, and splash of white wine. Boil 5-10 minutes, then remove from heat and allow to cool. Get your mason jars (I prefer quart-sized). Layer the jars starting heart then onions, peppers and garlic, repeating the layering process until the jar is full. Add the now-cooled pickling concoction to each jar until full, screw the lid on tight, and refrigerate. Now comes the hardest part: Don't open your jars for 7-10 days! Then you can eat the contents whatever way you want to — trust me when I say it’s pretty tasty on a Ritz cracker! Give Heart A Try I hope all of you reading this article learned a little bit, and that maybe my words will persuade those of you who’ve been a bit “squeamish” to eventually try this truly wonderful part of North America’s most sought-after big game animal — Bon Appétit!
