One of my friends harvested a deer over the weekend and dropped me off a deer tenderloin. I couldn’t wait to marinate it and grill it up with a few seasonings, add some sauce, and dine like a king.

Making Grilled Venison Tenderloin Medallions

If you’ve never had venison, you should try it if you get the chance. This recipe is flavorful and delicious. It’s just the dish for those cold nights when you want a good meal to fill your belly and warm you up. Let’s get started. 

The Ingredients

• Venison tenderloin. A nice piece of lean meat, courtesy of my hunting buddy. 
• Marinade. I mixed Worcestershire, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, Heath Riles BBQ Garlic Butter Rub, black pepper, and olive oil all together. 
• Heath Riles BBQ Hot Rub. My award-winning Hot Rub adds a delicious kick of heat to all types of food. 
• Heath Riles BBQ Simple Citrus Rub. Sometimes a zesty touch is just what you need to make a recipe pop. 
• Red wine mushroom cream sauce. Butter, sliced portobello mushrooms, minced garlic, red wine, and heavy whipping cream creates a sauce that will make you think you’re eating in a fancy restaurant. 

The Equipment Setup

My Goldens’ Cast Iron Grill cooked these medallions up hot and fast. 

The Process for Making Grilled Venison Tenderloin Medallions

If you like watching videos of recipes as they’re being made, I shot one recently and added it to my Youtube channel. Head over there if you’d like to follow along. 

• Get the venison ready. I laid out the tenderloin, dried it off, and trimmed off the bigger pieces of fat using a sharp knife.
• Make the marinade. My plan was to soak the venison tenderloin in the marinade to take a bit of the gaminess out of the meat, and add some extra flavor. I mixed all the ingredients together in a big measuring cup and set it aside.
• Slice up the meat and marinade. I cut the venison into medallions, placed them in a ziplock bag, and poured the marinade over them. Once I sealed the bag, I stuck it in the fridge to marinate for a minimum of 4 hours. (You can even leave it overnight).
• Season the medallions. Once the meat marinated for a little over 4 hours, I poured it into a large aluminum pan. Now, I didn’t dry it off or anything, I left all the extra marinate on it. First, I sprinkled a light layer of my Hot Rub over the pieces, following it up with my Simple Citrus Rub. The Hot Rub will add a kick of heat and flavor, and the Simple Citrus Rub will give the medallions a twang of citrus at the end. I repeated this process on the other side of the venison. 
• Mix up the sauce. I combined the ingredients for the red wine mushroom cream sauce and cooked it on the grill right along with the venison tenderloin medallions.
• Grill it up. Aiming for a good medium-rare cook, I laid each piece of venison directly on my Goldens’ Cast Iron grill grate and flipped them every 2 minutes. They cooked for about 10 minutes, or until they reached an internal temp of 130 degrees F. Cooking venison hot and fast helps it absorb some flavors and come out moist and delicious. 
• Take it off, let it rest. I used a pair of tongs to remove the tenderloins from the heat, panned them up, and let them rest for about 10 minutes.
• Slice into it. These smelled so delicious I couldn’t wait to dig into them. I cut one of the biggest medallions, and it was a perfect medium-rare color. It was also juicy and moist.
• The Results. The first bite was a big flavor ball in my mouth! It was so tender and the flavor popped from the marinade, spices, and the venison’s own natural flavor. I tried the first bite by itself, then sampled it with the sauce. I didn’t think it could make it any better, but it did. It was over-the-top good. This is a fancy-looking meal that is fairly simple to make and knock-out delicious. 

Serving Suggestions for My Grilled Venison Tenderloin Medallions

Most people will want to eat 3-4 medallions and a couple spoonfuls of the sauce, along with a couple of sides for dinner. 

Storing It

Place the venison in an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Store the sauce in the fridge separately. 

Equipment and Tools

Goldens’ Cast Iron Grill, Royal Oak Charcoal, Black nitrile gloves, Sharp knife, Ziplock bag, Large measuring cup Thermapen ONE, Cast iron skillet, Wooden spoon