Let your fire burn for a long, hot time to make sure you heat the rocks thoroughly and create a thick ember bed.
Generally, you cook whole large animals on large rotisseries over a firepit, but more traditional methods include using an underground pit to cook whole pigs and other large creatures. The rotisseries can be expensive, so digging a pit and building a fire is a great alternative for your backyard venison roast. Whether you choose to cook the whole deer, or just a deer quarter, cooking your game slowly in a pit will result in a delicious feast. Add this to my Recipe Box.
Instructions
Marinate the Deer and Prepare the Pit
1. Place your deer quarter in a waterproof plastic bag.
2. Fill the bag with a brining solution of 32 parts liquid to 1 part salt to cover the deer quarter.
3. Seal the bag and place it in the fridge. Allow to marinate for 24 hours.
4. Dig a pit in the earth that is wide enough to hold the deer quarter without it touching the sides. Make sure the pit is deep enough to hold the deer quarter, a layer of rocks and embers, and the greens. You'll need to cover it over with a layer of earth, probably 2- to 3-feet deep .
5. Place a layer of rocks across the entire bottom of the pit. The rocks should each be roughly 6 inches in diameter.
6. Fill the pit with wood and start a fire. Keep the fire burning, adding more wood as necessary, until you have added enough wood that the ember bed fills in around the rocks and covers them over by about 1 inch. Allow the fire to burn down until only the ember bed is left smoldering.
Prepare and Cook the Deer
7. Remove the deer quarter from the brining solution and pat dry. Discard the brining solution. Season the deer quarter with salt and pepper to taste. Completely wrap the deer quarter in aluminum foil.
8. Wrap the deer quarter with bailing wire to hold the aluminum foil in place and keep the deer quarter from falling apart during cooking. Start at one end of the deer quarter, tie off the bailing wire and wrap the deer quarter up the length. Tie off the bailing wire.
9. Place a layer of greens onto the embers to protect the deer from direct heat and add moisture to the cooking pit. A thick layer of banana leaves is traditional for pig roasts, but any edible greens are appropriate and will add flavor to your meat. Place the aluminum wrapped deer quarter on top of the layer of greens. Place another insulating layer of greens over the deer quarter.
10. Cover the deer quarter and greens with a layer of earth to fill the pit. Fill the pit completely, and make sure it is well insulated so that the top is cool to the touch.
11. Allow the deer quarter to cook, undisturbed, for anywhere from 5 hours to 12 hours depending on the size and desired done-ness. Unearth, unwrap and enjoy your perfectly cooked venison quarter.
Tags: deer quarter, bailing wire, brining solution, cook whole, deer quarter, layer greens, aluminum foil