What is a "tiehacker"?

"Tiehacker" is a term originating in the Ozark hills of southern Missouri. It referred to a class of people from WAY back in the hills that made a living cutting trees into ties for the railroad. I first heard the term from my wife shortly after we married. I had been working outside all day and was dirty and stinky. When I came inside, she told me I looked like a "tiehacker" and had to get cleaned up. She had learned the word from her father, and thought it just meant "a bum". Never having heard it before, I looked it up. Although I am not really a bum, I thought it was interesting, and I do have a life-long love affair going with the Ozark hills, so ... there you have it!

Saturday, December 5, 2015

Making sauteed venison medallions ... tasty!!!



Well, I never intended on this being a cooking blog, but I seem to be doing a lot of cooking lately, so why not document it? Perhaps someday someone may find these little jottings useful.

Anyway, This is one of the Debster's recipes, and it's pretty darn good! I did the prep work under her supervision, and she did the actual stove work.

Start with a chunk of venison. Any cut is fine; even the tougher pieces turn out OK. Prepping the meat is really the KEY to this dish. Using a very sharp knife slice the venison into medallions about three inches around, give or take. Smaller than the palm of your hand, at any rate. If there are smaller pieces, that's not a problem. The pieces should be no thicker than about a half inch. The thinner the better, especially for tougher cuts.

Once you have them sliced, lightly spritz them with a mixture of half water and half vinegar. Don't soak them, just enough to dampen a little. Sprinkle both sides with either seasoned salt or steak seasoning; this batch we used Lowery's Seasoned Salt.

raw meat ready for the skillet
Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet, and add the meat. Keep the heat relatively low. As the meat begins to brown, add a few pats of butter on top and let it melt into the meat and oil.

sauteing in progress
The meat will cook quickly, about a minute and a half on each side. Thicker slices may take a bit longer. That's it. You're done. 

Finished product. Dig in!


Serve as is as a nice meaty snack, or saute mushrooms with them, and serve over a bed of rice or noodles. The drippings are the basis for an excellent gravy!


God bless y'all!

Ron and the Debster

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