Midwestern Regional Cookery: Game

Hunting is a way of life for many in the Midwest. Many varieties of game are most plentiful in the woods of the region’s northern reaches, and hunters from Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, and throughout the Midwest and beyond make their pilgrimage in droves to hunt there, especially during deer season. Venison is eaten as stew, steaks, roast, barbecue, and burgers and is incorporated into many regional and ethnic dishes, including pasty, Swedish potato sausage, jerky, summer sausage, cudighi, Italian pork sausage, Christmas mincemeat, and German sauerbraten. Pheasant is more common in the corn and grain fields that predominate in the southern and western parts of the region. Waterfowl hunters flock to the region’s many wetlands and flyways in season. Roasted goose and duck, sometimes smoked, sometimes stuffed, are enjoyed at any time and are often a special treat at Christmas. Wild game dinners in the fall and winter are popular social events.