This venison bagel make for a hearty handheld meal and are truly delicious. If you’re into a high stack of meat on your sandwich, allot ½ lb of venison per person. If you’d prefer a normal amount of meat, do ¼ lb instead.

If you’re going to be making a bagel sandwich this special, it is well worth it to find a bakery that sells freshly made bagels. I find the smoky wood-fired Montreal-style bagels go particularly well with the venison, but it’s up to you.

A meat slicer would be very helpful with this recipe, but if like me you don’t have one, just strive to slice the meat as thinly as possible. If you happen to have some flaky finishing salt around, knock some over the venison after you’ve shaved it to amplify those meaty flavors even more!

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Shaved Venison Bagel with Horseradish Cream Cheese Recipe

Servings 4 servings Prep time 30minutes Cooking time 40minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1-2lb piece of venison loin/backstrap (you could use thickly cut steaks too)
• Kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 4 high-quality bagels, Montreal or New York style
• 8oz cream cheese
• 4 tablespoons yogurt
• 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons capers, chopped (optional)
• ½ English cucumber
• 1 large tomato
• ½ red onion

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VENISON BAGEL PREPARATION

1. Season the venison loin generously with salt.
2. Add oil to a stainless steel or cast iron pan over medium-high heat.
3. Add venison loin (or steaks if using) and cook, flipping occasionally, until rare to medium-rare, or until a meat thermometer reads 120-130°F when poked into the middle. Let rest for 15-20 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, mix together the cream cheese, yogurt, horseradish, and pepper into a bowl.
5. Slice cucumber, tomato, and onion thinly.
6. Once venison has rested, sliced across the grain as thinly as possible.
7. Cut the bagels in half and toast lightly.
8. Take a bagel and spread both sides generously with the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle over ¼ of the capers (if using) onto the bottom piece. Add the cucumbers, tomato, and red onion, then stack with the sliced venison. Top with the other half of the bagel and repeat with the rest. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

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Article and photo courtesy of Harvesting Nature. Click here to subscribe to the quarterly Harvesting Nature magazine, And Click here to enjoy the latest episode of the wild fish and game podcast.

Find more venison recipes on iSportsmanUSA.

Photo courtesy of Harvesting Nature.