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This pan seared venison tenderloin with garlic herb butter is one of our favorite venison recipes. Tender and juicy fresh venison steaks are seasoned simply and seared to a perfect medium rare in a cast iron skillet. There are no gamey venison steaks here when you use this fool-proof cooking method!
In my opinion, venison tenderloin is equal to or better than beef tenderloin. And often works perfectly in a recipe where beef is called for – like my Venison Wellington! This simple recipe for venison steak that is cooked in a cast iron skillet is just another example of how good deer steaks can be!
Ingredients for this recipe
- Venison Tenderloin
- Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper
- Salted Butter
- Garlic
- Fresh Rosemary
- Fresh Thyme
Tender Venison Steaks
The tenderloin is a cut of venison that comes from the back area of a deer, near the spine. These steaks are very similar to backstrap, though not exactly the same.
Both cuts however, are some of the most tender cuts of fresh venison. Because of this, you need only to season and cook it properly to enjoy a tender steak that practically melts in your mouth.
How to Cook Venison Tenderloin
- Season the tenderloin. I do this by liberally sprinkling the dried cuts with Kosher salt and black pepper a day before cooking.
- Mix the garlic herb butter. So much flavor!
- Sear the tenderloin. In a screaming hot cast iron skillet with a high smoke point oil.
- Baste with butter. This adds fat and flavor to the deer.
- Let the meat rest. This is imperative to keeping the tenderloin juicy!
Why do you salt meat before cooking?
Salting the venison tenderloins in advance of cooking is imperative to this recipe. In fact, it’s imperative to cooking most red meats.
Salting the meat in advance helps to tenderize the steak, making it juicier and more flavorful!
When the salt is sprinkled onto the meat, it releases its natural juices. This moisture then dissolves the salt. The dissolved salt and juice is reabsorbed into the steak. This process tenderizes the protein by breaking down muscle fibers in the meat.
Properly seasoned steaks will also be dryer on the outside, reducing the amount of steam while cooking. Less steam equals a better sear and that crispy, brown crust that’s so delicious!
Ingredient Substitutions
- Backstrap – you can substitute venison backstrap for the tenderloin in this recipe for a near seamless match! You can also enjoy my perfectly grilled a backstrap recipe, too.
- Table Salt – in all my recipes I call for Kosher salt. I prefer it because it has larger, coarser grains and sticks beautifully to meat. Because of the size difference, if you’re using table salt, you only need to use half the amount. So for this recipe, about half a tablespoon.
- Unsalted Butter – if all you have on hand is unsalted butter, feel free to use that but adjust your seasoning with Kosher salt accordingly!
- Dried Herbs – If dried rosemary and thyme are all you have on hand, that’s a-ok! Simply use half the amount of the dried herbs in place of fresh. So, 1 ½ teaspoons of dried herbs will suffice.
Pan Seared Venison Tenderloin with Garlic Herb Butter
Equipment
- Cast Iron Skillet
Ingredients
For the Venison Tenderloin
- 1 ½ pounds fresh venison tenderloin, cut into two equal pieces
- 1 tablespoon Kosher salt, more or less to taste
- 2 teaspoons Freshly cracked black pepper, more or less to taste
For the Garlic Herb Butter:
- ½ cup salted butter, at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
- 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil, for cooking
Instructions
- 24 hours ahead of time, pat the tenderloin dry with paper towel and season liberally on all sides with 1 tablespoon kosher salt and 2 teaspoons freshly cracked black pepper, more or less, to taste. (I season meat like I am still working in restaurants, and I know not everyone does that).
- Leave the tenderloin uncovered and place in the fridge overnight.
- An hour before cooking, remove the tenderloin from the fridge. (It is important to allow any meat you’re cooking to warm slightly before cooking to avoid it becoming tough.)
- While the tenderloin warms, mix together ½ cup room temperature salted butter with 2 tablespoons minced garlic, 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves, and 1 tablespoon minced thyme leaves. Set garlic herb butter aside.
- When ready to cook, place a cast iron pan over high heat and allow to heat for 2 minutes. Add in 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil (or another high heat oil, such as avocado) and heat until shimmering. Add the tenderloin pieces to the pan, being sure not to touch, move, or disturb the meat (this is how you get a lovely crust on the meat). Cook tenderloin for 5 minutes and flip. Add a generous dollop of garlic herb butter to the top of each piece of venison.
- Cook for another 5 – 8 minutes more, depending on how done you like your tenderloin. As the venison cooks, the butter will melt around it.
- During the last two minutes of cooking, carefully tilt the pan so the butter gathers in one area of the pan. Continually spoon the melted butter onto the tenderloin to baste it, being sure to get all those good bits of garlic and herbs onto the meat.
- Remove the venison from the pan and allow to rest on a plate for five minutes before slicing and serving. If desired, drizzle even more of the pan drippings and flaky salt onto the sliced venison!
Notes
- If you don't have 24 hours to season the tenderloin in advance, 12 hours will suffice. And 1 or 2 hours will work in a pinch.
- Refer to post for ingredients substitutions.
John Reihner says
Flavor was amazing. I followed the recipe exactly. Cooked to rare/med rare. We love venison. We thought the tenderloin was not as tender as it should be. Thanks
Amanda Gajdosik says
Hi John,
Thanks for rating and reviewing! I'm curious as to what you mean by "we thought the tenderloin was not as tender as it should be" - was this as the result of the recipe? That would be so interesting to me as the tenderloin, by nature, is going to be one of the most soft and tender cuts from venison you can ever have, and this recipe was developed to enhance that. And I've never had anyone say something like this before.
The only reason I can think why a tenderloin wouldn't be "as tender" as expected would be due to processing/storage issues. I have to wonder if the meat was properly butchered or if perhaps there was silver skin still on it or maybe freezer burn if it was stored too long. Otherwise, another factor could be that it was cooked while too cold - that'll toughen up almost any piece of meat.
I always want to make my recipes the best they can be so would love some more info, if you're willing to share. Otherwise I sure hope you try some of my other recipes 🙂
Thanks!
Amanda
John Reihner says
Thanks for your comments. I would appreciate any thoughts you have.
The tenderloins were from a deer taken one day ago, never frozen. It was a clean kill, I do my own butchering so I don't think that is the issue.
I did not give an accurate statement on the end result. The tenderloin was actually tough. I am as stumped as you are. Cooked many tenderloins before and this never happened.
Thanks for any thoughts you may have.
Amanda Gajdosik says
Oh interesting! If I *had to* guess, I would say it had something to do with the deer itself, then. Maybe the age or if the deer was stressed in any way, maybe injured? A few years ago my husband took down the biggest doe he or his friends had ever seen and we guesstimated she was well into double digits in age. Her meat was a bit tough, so we mainly turned it into ground. Seasoning and searing a tenderloin shouldn't make it "actually tough" for any reason - again no one I know has ever had that experience before. Salt actually helps tenderize meat so I'm at a loss. What a bummer though! Best of luck with the rest of deer season!
JWeb says
I am leery of venison because I don’t know how to cook it. This recipe is delicious and does take the “gamey” out of the meat. I feel a little more confident now!
Amanda Gajdosik says
I love to hear that, I always hope my recipes can instill confidence in readers! This is such a great recipe to start your venison journey - and be sure to check out all my others! There's not a gamey piece of deer meat in sight! https://midwestniceblog.com/category/venison-recipes/
Happy cooking 🙂
Bethany says
Made this for dinner tonight - SO GOOD! I'm adding it to our favorites. Thank you!!
Amanda Gajdosik says
THRILLED to hear this, Bethany! It means so much when people enjoy my recipes (especially since I wasn't a venison eater until I married an avid hunter!). Thank you for reviewing! Also, if you haven't already, feel free to download my FREE venison e-book (there's a link in the menu section) for some exclusive deer recipes 🙂
Bethany says
Thank you! We're always on the hunt for good venison recipes 😁 (we made this recipe AGAIN tonight 🤤)
Lou Ann Smoker says
Made it for dinner last night . Fabulous! My grandson did t even realize he was eating venison. Will definitely make again.
Amanda Gajdosik says
I love hearing that, Lou Ann! I think people can be pleasantly surprised by how delicious venison steaks can be! Gamey meat is a thing of the past! 🙂
Leigh says
Can I use bacon grease?
Amanda Gajdosik says
Hi Leigh, I wouldn't as it doesn't have as high of a smoke point (the point at which oil burns). Bacon grease smokes at about 325 degrees. Grapeseed and canola oil's smokepoint is 400 degrees and avocado is the highest at 520 degrees. I recommend using any of the other three oils I mentioned in lieu of bacon grease so you don't burn your fat or ruin your tenderloin. 🙂
Thomas says
Do you have any issues with venison tenderloins drying out in that 24 hour period in the fridge before cooking? I’m really interested in trying this method but I’m worried that the meat will develop a rind. Does the salt help keep moisture? Thank you!
Amanda Gajdosik says
Hi Thomas,
I haven't had any issues with a rind developing, the salt helps to prevent that. And we have a newer "fancier" fridge that is humidity controlled. But! If you're concerned with it drying out, feel free to wrap the dish in plastic and store in the fridge overnight. When you remove the venison to come up in temp, you can remove the plastic as well!
Hope this helps 🙂
Chloe says
Absolutely delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Amanda Gajdosik says
So glad you enjoyed it, Chloe! 🙂
Erin says
This was delicious. A nice change from always grilling our venison tenderloins. Will definitely do this more often!
Amanda Gajdosik says
LOVE to hear this, Erin! So happy you enjoyed it. Even happier you'll be making it again 🙂 Happy hunting!