Venison tamale pie seasoned with chilis, green pepper and chili powder. Topped with homemade sweet stoneground cornbread biscuits and baked using high heat. This dish can be on the table in 45 minutes!
The weather is warmer up here in NW Ohio and that means less time in the kitchen and more time at the park across from our front house! Tonight’s dinner includes one of our favorite ways to use ground venison; a sweet and savory dish that reminds me of the good ol’ days…
With the arrival of our second daughter in 2013, a dear neighbor stopped over to see the baby and bless our family with this amazing meal. He called it Tamale Pie because it had green chilis, sweet corn and chili powder. I have since changed out the corn for green pepper, but either version is wonderful. From start to finish, you can have this dish on the table in 45 minutes. If you enjoyed my Hunters Casserole made with ground venison, you will love this one too!
How to Make Venison Tamale Pie
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. In a large saucepan, saute the chilis, green pepper and onion in salted butter on medium heat until the peppers and onions are translucent.
Add your ground venison and chop the meat, cooking it until all the pink is gone. You might have noticed that I’m not removing the peppers first, but that’s because we don’t need to drain the excess fat from the meat. Venison is very lean and what little fat there is will add flavor.
Simmer for 5 minutes on low-medium heat after adding 1 can of condensed tomato soup (I like to buy the most natural brand I can find), chili powder, garlic powder, salt and water. This will become the base sauce of our venison tamale pie.
Make the homemade cornbread biscuits which will make the topping for our tamale pie. Cream together the butter, sugar, sour cream and egg until well mixed.
Stir in the flour, stone ground cornmeal (Hodgson Mill is the brand I use), salt and baking soda.
Pour your venison and sauce into a 3 quart casserole dish or deep dish pie plate. Top with 12 large scoops of cornbread mixture.
Cover the dish with foil and bake for 15 minutes at 425˚ F. Then remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes until the cornbread is golden and baked through.
Top the venison tamale pie with chopped cilantro or sour cream and enjoy with the ones you love on a busy spring evening. I like to add a garden salad or favorite vegetable on the side for one complete and scrumptious meal. Bellies will be full and ready for more play…spring is here!
Enjoy!
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More Venison Recipes
- Venison Roast Recipe
- Instant Pot Venison Steak Recipe
- Simple Savory Pie Recipe (Make with hamburger or venison!)
- Smoked Venison Backstrap Recipe
Venison Tamale Pie
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground venison thawed
- 2 Tablespoons salted butter
- 1/2 cup yellow onion chopped
- 1/2 cup green bell pepper chopped
- 3 Tablespoons green chilis chopped
- 3/4 teaspoon. chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 can condensed tomato soup
- 3/4 cup water
- 4 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 3 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup stone ground cornmeal
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
- In a large saucepan, saute the chilis, green pepper and onion in salted butter on medium heat until they are translucent. Add your ground vension and chop the meat well into the pan, cooking through.
- Add 1 can of condensed tomato soup, powders, salt and water. Simmer for 5 minutes on low-medium heat.
- Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, cream together unsalted butter, sugar, sour cream and egg until well mixed. Stir in the flour, stone ground cornmeal, salt and baking soda. Mix well.
- Pour your ground venison sauce mixture into a 3 quart casserole dish or deep dish pie plate. Top with 12 scoops of cornbread mixture.
- Cover the dish with foil for 15 minutes at 425 degrees. Then remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes until the cornbread is golden and baked through.
Super yum. I dbld recipe due to 9 kids. Added squash and zucchini. I added 1 can cream corn to double mixture for corn bread, same sour cream as suggested, and a handful of shredded cheese. Def a new favorite.
It was pleasantly surprised with this one. The only thing I think could be added is some corn maybe. add a little crunch and sweetness to the whole experience maybe sprinkling between mashed potatoes and meat layer.
Also I was not sure if iI was supposed to drain the cottage cheese and feel maybe I should have, how does everyone else feel about that?
Hello!
I think you are referring to the ‘Hunters Casserole’ recipe instead of this tamale pie? Irregardless, I’m so glad you liked it. Corn would be a great idea. For the cottage cheese, I buy a really thick cottage cheese made by the ‘Michigan Brand’ so there is no excess water. You could drain whatever you have. Thanks for the comment! 🙂
Wow! This is so good. I like working with ground deer, but I don’t like making recipes with it that we traditionally use beef for as it feels “off”. This recipe was sooo yummy and completely doable to make on a busy weekend night. I just found your website, and I plan on making many more! I have lots of deer, and am always looking for new ways to cook it.
Hi Alexia!
Thank you! So glad you liked it. We have another one here called “Hunter’s Casserole” that is a favorite of mine. A freezer full of deer is a blessing for sure 🙂