Venison Stroganoff without Cream of Mushroom

Skillet Venison stroganoff without cream of mushroom is easy. Cubed deer meat in a thick gravy is delicious made from scratch = homemade comfort food. Like our Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff but we are cooking with game meat this time!

Easy Venison Stroganoff Recipe

We will show you how to make this rich sauce and tender meat in a skillet. It is wonderful as is but typically served over rice or noodles. We find our favorite way is to boil egg noodles to al dente and fold those in at the end so everything is well coated like a Stroganoff Casserole of sorts. 😉

Alternatively you could add more vegetables into the mix if you wanted to make more of a Venison Stew Recipe. Small chunks of carrots and diced potatoes would work well, and/or some frozen peas are another favorite add in for more of a one pot meal.

How to Make Venison Stroganoff without Sour Cream

I will explain the ingredients for stroganoff sauce we used below. Now if you needed an option for a Dairy Free Stroganoff I have made that as well as my husband has has needed lactose free meals at times. The only thing you’d need to swap out on this one is the sour cream which you can find without lactose in many stores nowadays and literally tastes the same. 😉

Alternatives to this as far as dairy free goes would be a lactose free version, Lactaid has a great one. You could use coconut milk or cashew version with a little cornstarch whisked in so it still thickens your gravy. Cream cheese that is softened is another option you could use!

Deer Stroganoff Ingredients

• 1 lb venison thinly sliced or cubed into bite size pieces
• Olive oil to brown the meat and lock in the juices
• Onion and garlic to add flavor
• Mushrooms sliced, or add boiled mushrooms
• 2 tbsp all purpose flour for a roux for the gravy
• Beef broth is better than water for the sauce
• Sour cream or dairy free alternative, plain Greek yogurt works too
• 1/2 tsp salt and pepper are basic seasonings
• 1/2 tsp coriander

Can you make stroganoff with sausage?

You could make this as a Venison Sausage Recipe too if you had links instead. Keep in mind that those don’t need very long or will get dried out so cut down on the cook time especially if they are sliced.

Do you have to soak deer meat before cooking it?

That is up to you. Soaking deer meat, before cooking is a common practice used to help reduce the strong gamey flavor and/or to tenderize the meat. However, it isn’t a must and can be cooked without this step too. Whether you do depends on personal preference and the specific cut you’re using.

If yours is ground then for sure you do not want to do that, this technique is just for cubed. For something like Crockpot venison chili you would just brown, throw it in with other ingredients to cook.

What is the best way to cook deer meat?

Especially if you think it isn’t a pleasurable flavor in of itself you will want to cook it with a rich sauce. Gravy is the best option as you can include onions and garlic if you like to tone down the taste this protein naturally has. Cooked low and slow is key to getting it tender too.

How to Make Stroganoff with Venison

• Heat one tablespoon of oil and fry the venison over medium high heat for 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring.
• Each piece should be covered with a crust.
• Then transfer the venison to a plate.
• In the remaining frying oil, or can use butter in a large skillet, fry the onions and add the mushrooms for 7 minutes, stirring.
• Add garlic, fry for another 1 minute.
• Add flour and stir, fry for another 2 minutes.
• Pour in the broth and stir until all the lumps of flour are broken up, scraping the bottom of the pan to get browned bits off along the way.
• Then add salt and spices. Stir and cook covered for another 3 minutes.
• Add sour cream, stir and bring to a boil, wait 3 minutes.
• Add red meat, stir and cook for 5-7 minutes. Try the meat – it should be soft. If it is not soft enough, cook for another 10-15 minutes, adding water or broth if necessary if sauce gets too thick until the meat is as tender as you’d like.
• Served over egg noodles or mashed potatoes is our favorite way of enjoying this wild game meat.

What can you make with Venison Stew Meat?

If you have this variety I would slice each piece in half so it is thinner and gets tender. You could use other meats sliced thin in this too. OR have leftover Venison Meatloaf? Just dice that up and use it with this same sauce! The base is super versatile once you get the hang of how it’s made. Then you can add just about any protein you like to mix it up week after week.

slow cooker option

You could in fact use your Crockpot to make this. I would follow directions below as far as browning the meat and adding other ingredients. Leave dairy items to the end or they may curdle. Cook on low for 6ish hours until tender. Fold in the sour cream at the end, 30 minutes before serving and enjoy that way too.

How to Make Venison Stroganoff with Cream of Mushroom Soup

If you in fact hunted this and have all the pieces you may also be interested in reading our how to cook organ meat post on how to prepare those other questionable pieces as well. You can make this with condensed soup as well if you’d like. You’d skip the flour in this case and only use enough broth to thin it out.

It is great if you can not let anything go to waste for sure and you may find that there is one you may not have thought you’d like, but do now. If prepared right, things like Deer Liver can be quite delicious and full of nutrients.