Name: Venison Goulash Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil ((1 tablespoon if your venison is blended with pork or beef fat)); 1 pound lean ground venison; 1 medium yellow onion, diced; 1 teaspoon jarred minced garlic ((about 2 cloves)); 3 tablespoons tomato paste; 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder; 1 (14.5 ounce) can petite diced tomatoes (undrained); 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce; 1 1/4 cups beef broth; 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce; 1 teaspoon paprika; 1 teaspoon dried oregano; 1 teaspoon table salt; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; 1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni; 3/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar; Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish ((optional))

A delicious venison goulash inspired by a classic Michigan goulash. It’s hearty, cheesy, and tender, with no gamey taste at all. Lean ground venison can cook up dry and a little wild-tasting, and my easy changes fix both. It all happens in one pot, with dinner on the table in under an hour.

VENISON GOULASH At A Glance

Prep

10 min

COOK

40 min

Total

55 min

Serves

Pan

Large pot or Dutch oven

A wooden bowl of cheesy venison goulash with elbow macaroni, ground venison, and tomato sauce, garnished with chopped parsley — Venison goulash, rich and cheesy, straight from the pot.

A Goulash to Remember

When my mom finally brought over her old recipe box, I spotted venison recipes tucked in among the cards. And just like that, I remembered: whenever my stepfather Dave got a deer, my mom made her goulash with venison. Venison goulash is a Michigan thing, as we have one of the biggest deer hunting traditions in the country. If you grew up here, there’s a good chance you ate it too.

My own easy goulash recipe is one of Greg’s favorite dinners, but it’s built on 85/15 ground beef. While I could have just swapped it for ground venison in my recipe, venison is VERY lean. Without fat in the pot, it browns into dry little crumbles, and the onion and tomato paste have nothing to cook in. Lean venison can also taste a little gamey. So this recipe is a little different. I added fat (olive oil), bumped up the Worcestershire, did a special sear of the meat, and stirred in the same secret ingredient I use in my slow cooker pot roast. A little sharp cheddar at the end brings back the richness the fat would have given.

And this venison goulash is truly excellent! The texture is great, and there is no gamey taste at all.

Let’s dig in!

Tips and Notes Before You Start

Use the oil. It adds in the fat that lean venison lacks.
There’s nothing to drain. Whatever is left in the pot after browning is oil and flavor, so keep it. This really is a one-pot wonder.
Double-check your venison. Some processors mix in a lot of pork or beef fat. If yours looks pale and flecked with white, cut the oil to 1 tablespoon. I made mine with 97% lean venison.
Cook the onion in the middle. Pushing the venison to the sides before you add the onion puts the onion right in the oil, so it softens without the meat overcooking.
The cheese is worth it. It brings back some of the richness that fat gives regular goulash made with ground beef.

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What You’ll Need for Venison Goulash

Labeled ingredients for venison goulash: ground venison, beef broth, petite diced tomatoes, elbow macaroni, onion, tomato sauce, olive oil, tomato paste, sharp cheddar, garlic, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper, cocoa powder, and Worcestershire — Everything that goes into the pot.

Ground venison and oil. This recipe is written for very lean ground venison. I used grass-fed ground venison that’s 97% lean (it has a tiny bit of grass-fed beef in it). Yours may be just as lean unless your processor mixed in pork or beef fat. Lean venison is a deep, dark red with very few white flecks. No hunter in the family? Ground venison is sold online and at some grocery stores (I used the Force of Nature brand I found at my local Meijer).

Tomato paste and cocoa. These both add a lot of depth, and are totally worth it. Cocoa powder is my “secret ingredient” here. Be sure to use plain baking cocoa, not hot cocoa mix, which is sweetened. You won’t taste it as chocolate. It just makes the sauce taste deeper.

Tomatoes. I prefer to use petite diced tomatoes because they are small enough to melt into the sauce. That said, it is more typical of old fashioned goulash to use stewed tomatoes (that’s what my mom always used), so feel free to swap those in.

Beef broth. Don’t skimp here, as the macaroni cooks in it.

Worcestershire. The savory tang covers that gamey edge.

Elbow macaroni. This pasta cooks right in the sauce, so there’s no separate pot of water. Yay!

Sharp cheddar. The cheese brings back the richness the missing fat would have given.

How to Make Venison Goulash

First we’ll brown the venison, then we’ll build the sauce right on top of it, and finally cook the macaroni in the sauce.

Step 1: Sear the venison

Raw ground venison pressed into an even layer in olive oil in a white enameled Dutch oven — Press the venison flat and leave it alone.

Heat the olive oil in your large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add the venison and press it into one even layer with a spatula or fork. Then leave it alone for 3 to 4 minutes, until the bottom is deeply browned. This helps because venison only gets a good crust when it sits still against a hot pan. If you stir it right away, it steams and turns gray.

A spatula flipping a section of seared ground venison to show the dark brown crust underneath — That dark crust is what you’re waiting for.

Flip it over in sections, then break it into crumbles and cook for another minute or two. Don’t worry if there’s still a little pink here and there. It finishes cooking in the sauce, and cooking it all the way through now is how lean venison ends up dry.

Step 2: Cook the onion and garlic

Diced onion added to a well in the center of browned ground venison in a Dutch oven — Push the venison to the sides so the onion can cook in the oil.

Push the venison out toward the sides of the pot and add the onion to the center, where the oil is. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until it’s soft. Then stir in the garlic and cook it just until you can smell it, about 30 seconds. Be careful not to let the garlic sit any longer than that. The pot is still hot from the sear, and garlic burns fast and turns bitter.

Step 3: Bloom the tomato paste and cocoa

Tomato paste and cocoa powder in the center of the pot with browned ground venison, onion, and garlic — Tomato paste and cocoa go right in the middle.

Add the tomato paste and cocoa to the center of the pot and stir them around for about a minute, until the paste darkens a shade. Cooking the paste in the oil first takes away its tinny, raw taste, and the cocoa toasts along with it.

Step 4: Simmer the sauce

Petite diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and beef broth added to the browned venison in the Dutch oven — Tomatoes, tomato sauce, and broth.

Add the diced tomatoes with their juices, the tomato sauce, broth, Worcestershire, paprika, oregano, salt, and pepper. Stir, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pot, because those bits are flavor. Bring it to a simmer and let it cook for 10 minutes, stirring now and then.

Step 5: Cook the macaroni in the sauce

Uncooked elbow macaroni added to the simmering tomato and venison sauce — The macaroni cooks right in the sauce.

Stir in the macaroni and keep it at a steady simmer for 12 to 14 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until the pasta is tender with just a little bite. Start tasting at 12 minutes. It will look soupy at first, and that’s totally normal. The macaroni soaks up the sauce as it cooks. If the pot looks dry before the pasta is done, add a splash of broth.

Thick venison goulash with tender elbow macaroni in a Dutch oven with a wooden spoon — Thick and saucy, with tender macaroni.

Step 6: Stir in the cheddar and let it rest

Shredded sharp cheddar piled on top of venison goulash in a white Dutch oven — The cheddar goes in off the heat.

Take the pot off the heat and stir in the cheddar until it melts. Then let the goulash rest for 5 minutes. The sauce thickens up as it sits, and the macaroni finishes softening. Taste it, add a pinch of salt if it needs it (mine did not), and sprinkle on a little parsley if you like.

Overhead view of finished venison goulash garnished with chopped parsley in a white Dutch oven with a wooden spoon — Ready to serve.

A wooden spoon lifting a cheesy spoonful of venison goulash with macaroni out of the pot — The cheddar makes every spoonful creamy.

How to Store and Reheat Venison Goulash

Leftovers keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. It will be thicker the next day, because the macaroni keeps soaking up the sauce.

To reheat, warm it on the stove over medium-low or in the microwave with a splash of broth or water, stirring until it loosens up. I haven’t frozen this one. Pasta that’s been cooked in sauce usually turns soft after thawing, so I’d make it fresh.

Two wooden bowls of venison goulash beside a white Dutch oven on a striped kitchen towel — Enough for four bowls.

Venison Goulash FAQs

Close-up of venison goulash with elbow macaroni, ground venison, diced tomatoes, and chopped parsley — Tender macaroni, venison, and tomatoes in every bite.

How do I keep ground venison from tasting gamey?

The Worcestershire and cocoa take care of the flavor, and the sear in oil takes care of the texture. Ours had no gamey taste at all.

Why does my ground venison come out dry?

Usually it’s too little fat or too much time in the pan. Step 1 above walks you through the fix.

Can I use ground beef instead?

Yes. My easy goulash (linked above) is written for 85/15 ground beef. If you use beef in this version, you can leave out the oil, since the beef brings its own fat.

Is this Hungarian goulash?

No, this is American goulash, the one-pot macaroni dinner with ground meat and a tomato sauce. Hungarian goulash is a paprika-heavy beef stew.

Can I make it gluten free?

Try gluten-free elbow macaroni, and check that your broth and Worcestershire are gluten free too. I haven’t tested it that way. Some gluten-free pastas cook faster, so start tasting a few minutes early.

I think you’re going to love this as much as we do!

Happy cooking!

Love,
Jennifer

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