Learn skills to take venison from field to plate

Venison is a local favorite on dinner tables in Southeast Alaska. Ian Derauf, who has been hunting and cooking wild game since he was a teenager, will lead a two-day workshop in Sitka on transforming meat from a Sitka black-tailed deer into tasty meals. 

The workshop, “Hands-on Venison Butchery, Processing and Cooking,” is sponsored by the Sitka outreach office of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service.

Being involved with his food from field to plate first got Derauf excited about cooking and making meals from what he harvests, and it continues to be a passion of his.

Derauf will teach participants how to transform a hindquarter from a Sitka black-tailed deer into individual steaks and roasts, prepare these cuts for freezing and make several meals using the meat. Participants will gain hands-on experience with butchery and cooking. Any leftover venison will be donated to the Sitka Tribe for distribution to elders.

Participants will meet from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 21, and Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, at Sitka Lutheran Church kitchen, 224 Lincoln St. The workshop series costs $50 and includes all materials and supplies. Venison is donated for this educational event. Please register using this online form. Participants must be 14 years old or older. The registration deadline is Jan. 18.

Accommodation requests related to a disability should be made five business days in advance to Jasmine Shaw at jdshaw2@alaska.edu, 907-747-9440. Language access services, such as interpretation or translation of vital information, will be provided free of charge to individuals with limited English proficiency upon request to amnorris2@alaska.edu.

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