Conventional wisdom holds that deer ribs taste best when cooked outdoors on a grill or smoker. But we throw conventional wisdom out the window with this recipe, cooking deer ribs low and slow in a Dutch oven until tender, juicy, and packed with flavor.
Why You Want to Harvest Your Deer Ribs
I've cooked a lot of venison since I started hunting here in North Dakota more than two decades ago. As a wild game chef and full-time recipe developer, I spend much of my working week figuring out how to make wild game recipes more approachable for hunters and home cooks. And few cuts need that encouragement more than deer ribs.
Too many hunters trim away the meat and leave the rib cage behind because they assume deer ribs are too lean, too tough, or too troublesome to bother with. I disagree.
When I bring home a deer, I want to use as much of that animal as I reasonably can. And when I can turn those ribs into something my wife and 11-year-old daughter are happy to gather around the table and eat with their fingers, I consider that a particularly good outcome.
The Secret to Cooking Deer Ribs
The important thing to understand about cooking deer ribs is that they are not beef ribs.
Venison is extraordinarily lean, and deer ribs contain connective tissue that needs time and moisture before it becomes tender. Trying to cook them quickly over dry heat can leave you with meat that makes your jaw work harder than it should.
That is why I love Dutch oven ribs.
First, you brown the meaty side. Browning creates deeper roasted flavors before the ribs ever enter the oven. Then the Dutch oven traps moisture while the broth surrounds the ribs with gentle heat. Over the next few hours, the tough connective tissue gradually softens.
However, do not make the mistake of assuming that every deer will behave exactly the same way.
A young whitetail and a big, mature North Dakota buck can give you very different ribs. Age matters. So does the size and thickness of the rib section and the amount of connective tissue surrounding the meat. Therefore, when someone asks me how long to cook deer ribs in oven, my answer is 2 hours to start, but possibly as long as 3 hours.
The clock gives you guidance. The meat tells you when supper is ready.
You can also check out my recipe for Pressure Cooker Elk Ribs.
Cleaning and Preparing Deer Ribs
Before you start cooking, pat the ribs dry with paper towels and spend a few minutes trimming them properly.
Look at the bone side first. Deer ribs often have a thin membrane covering the bones. Slip the tip of a sharp knife underneath a corner, loosen enough to grab, then use a paper towel to get a firm grip and pull it away.
Next, trim away thick, waxy fat and any obvious silverskin.
This small amount of knife work makes a noticeable difference at the table. Unlike the soft fat surrounding good beef ribs, venison fat can have a waxier texture and stronger flavor. Removing the excess lets the clean flavor of the meat come forward.
Just as importantly, patting the surface dry helps the ribs brown rather than steam when they hit the hot Dutch oven.
How to Cook Deer Ribs in the Oven
Once the ribs are trimmed, the cooking itself is wonderfully uncomplicated.
Salt the ribs first, then brown only the meaty side in avocado oil. You are not trying to cook them through. Instead, you simply want that surface to become deeply browned and fragrant.
After browning, coat the ribs with cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, and smoked paprika. The cumin adds warmth, while the smoked paprika and mesquite-flavored liquid smoke give these oven-cooked ribs some of the character we normally associate with outdoor barbecue.
Then comes the easy part.
Pour the broth and liquid smoke into the Dutch oven, return the ribs to the pot, cover it, and put the whole thing into a 350 degree F oven.
After 2 hours, check them.
Slide the tip of a fork or paring knife into the meat. You want very little resistance, but you do not want the bones tumbling out onto the bottom of the pot. These ribs still have one more important stop before dinner.
If they remain stubbornly tough, cover the Dutch oven again and give them another 30 minutes. Check again, and if necessary, continue cooking up to another 30 minutes.
That patience is one of the most useful lessons in wild game cookery. You cannot rush connective tissue simply because everyone is hungry.
The Best Part: BBQ Sauce and the Broiler
The final few minutes transform these from braised venison into proper, finger-licking ribs.
Transfer the tender ribs to a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet and brush the meaty sides generously with barbecue sauce. Position them about 6 inches beneath the broiler.
Then watch.
The sauce begins to bubble first. Soon it grows glossy and darker at the edges. Little patches begin to caramelize where the sauce meets the ridges of meat. That is what you are looking for.
Do not wander away. Barbecue sauce contains enough sugar to move very quickly from bronzed to burnt.
After 3 to 5 minutes, pull the ribs from the oven and let them rest for 5 minutes
A Recipe for Deer Ribs Worth Sharing
Cut between the bones with a sharp knife and put the ribs in the middle of the table.
Then forget the forks.
Some foods improve when eaten with your hands, and deer ribs belong firmly in that category. The meat should be tender enough to pull away with your teeth while still clinging to the bone. The exterior should be smoky, sticky, dark at the edges, and glossy with barbecue sauce.
These are the meals I love most.
My wife, daughter, and I live in Fargo, but hunting gives us an excuse to keep exploring the rest of North Dakota, from farm country and river bottoms to the wide-open country farther west. Bringing an animal home from one of those places carries a responsibility, but also a wonderful possibility. The ribs that might have been discarded can instead become Saturday-night dinner.
This easy deer ribs recipe requires no smoker, no special barbecue equipment, and no complicated technique. All you need is a Dutch oven and the willingness to try this recipe.
More Venison Recipes
If you enjoyed this deer ribs recipe and are looking for more ways to use some of that ground venison in your freezer, be sure to check out all of our family favorites right here.
Come Deer Hunting in North Dakota
If you are headed our way for North Dakota deer season, check out the North Dakota Game & Fish Department website. And if you want me to come along with you as your camp cook, photographer, or butcher, you can find out more details here.
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Dutch Oven Deer Ribs
Ingredients
- 2 pounds deer ribs, each about 4 to 6 inches long
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon avocado oil
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 cups venison or beef broth
- 1 teaspoon mesquite-flavored liquid smoke
- ¼ cup BBQ sauce
Instructions
- Go deer hunting, shoot a deer, and harvest the ribs.
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Pat the deer ribs dry with paper towels. Trim away any thick, waxy fat and silverskin. To remove the membrane from the bone side, slip the tip of a sharp knife beneath one corner to loosen it, then grip the membrane with a paper towel and pull it away. If it tears, loosen another section and continue until you remove most of the membrane.
- Season the ribs all over with salt.
- Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the ribs, meaty side down, and cook until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Do not brown the exposed bone side; leaving it unseared helps the meat hold to the bones during the long braise. Transfer the ribs to a plate.
- In a small bowl, combine the cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, and smoked paprika. Rub the spice mixture generously over both sides of the ribs.
- Add the broth and liquid smoke to the Dutch oven, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Return the ribs to the pot, meaty side up. Cover and transfer to the oven. Cook for 2 hours.
- Remove the lid and test the ribs with the tip of a fork or paring knife. The meat should be tender and yield readily when pierced, but still cling firmly to the bones. If the ribs remain tough, cover the pot and return it to the oven for another 30 minutes to 1 hour, checking after 30 minutes. Deer ribs do not cook according to the clock alone. The age and size of the animal, along with the thickness of the ribs and amount of connective tissue, all affect how quickly collagen softens. A young deer with smaller ribs may be tender at 2 hours, while the ribs from an older, larger animal may need closer to 3. Judge tenderness, not time.
- When the ribs are tender, remove them from the Dutch oven and transfer them, meaty side up, to an aluminum foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Adjust an oven rack so the ribs will sit about 6 inches below the broiler element and heat the broiler. Brush the ribs generously with the barbecue sauce.
- Broil until the sauce is bubbling and glossy and has begun to caramelize around the edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Watch closely during the final minute; the sugars in barbecue sauce can go from beautifully burnished to scorched surprisingly quickly.
- Let the ribs rest for 5 minutes. Using a sharp knife, cut between the bones to separate them into individual ribs. Serve them warm, preferably without much ceremony. These are ribs, after all. Pick them up with your fingers and eat the tender, smoky meat straight from the bone, with the sticky, caramelized edges making the mess well worth it.
Sammy says
I'll admit I was hesitant about trying to eat the deer ribs again after two different bad experiences. But this recipe works! Jeff is right about having to eat them hot though. The minute they cool down, the chalky flavor appears. So eat them hot! You'll love 'em!
Jeff Benda says
Thanks, Sammy. Glad you took my advice on the ribs and enjoyed them hot.