The Super Bowl is fast approaching and it’s time to think about what you'll be throwing on the grill. What better time to spoil your guests with wild game? There’re many things that go great with football, but chili is one of the best!

The secret to a good chili is venison with some added smoke flavor. The best way to do this is with a Green Mountain pellet grill and a large Dutch oven.

What you'll need:

1.5 lbs. of ground venison
1 - onion chopped
1/2 - a green bell pepper chopped
3 - jalapeños sliced length wise into strips
3 - tablespoons of chipotle pepper
2 - 15 oz cans of Bush kidney beans
2 - 14oz cans of whole tomatoes
1 - tablespoon of oregano
1 - tablespoon of ground cumin
2 - tablespoons of chili powder
6 - garlic cloves
1 - tablespoon of mango habanero seasoning
1/2 cup of brown sugar
Large Dutch oven

·       Preheat GMG to 200.
·       Chop onion and bell pepper and slice the jalapeño.
·       Once grill reaches 200, place the Dutch oven onto the smoker with about a 1/2 cup of vegetable oil.
·       When the oil heats up brown the venison then remove from heat to add the rest of the ingredients.
·       Set the Dutch Oven to the back of the smoker with the lid off for about 2 hours. This will give it a good slow-smoke without overheating and causing it to boil over. Give this a good stir every 20-30 mins.
·       Increase heat to 300 and let cook for another hour or so.
·       Remove from grill once heated thoroughly and beans are cooked. Dump all the contents into a slow cooker as you wait for your guest to arrive.

*Best garnished with chives, a dollop of daisy, and sprinkle of your favorite cheese and served with a slice of cornbread with chunks of quail.*

Now that the grill is fired up it’s time to make hot quail and quail poppers. Hot wings are also a must for any good Super Bowl party. Thaw out quail if you have it and enjoy this delicious rendition of hot wings. I had a dozen birds but you can adjust the ingredients and use chicken if you don’t have any game birds. Make sure when you clean your birds to spatchcock clean while keeping the legs intact!

Quail Poppers

What you'll need:
6 quail
jalapeños
12 pieces of thin bacon
Cajun seasoning or your favorite magic dust
Cream Cheese

·       I removed the breast of six of the birds giving me 12 medallions and saving the legs for later.
·       With 12 halved jalapeños, place quail on top of cream cheese and wrap with bacon.
·       Secure with a soaked toothpick to help hold together. Add a dazzle of Cajun seasoning per popper.
·       Place on grill at 300 and occasionally turn until bacon is done! Set on table to cool and then devour.

Hot Quail

With the 6 leftover spatchcock quail and 12 legs from the poppers combine the seasonings in to a larger mixing bowl.

Seasoning Ingredients:

1 zested lemon
1 zested orange
1 zested lime
1/4 cup of mango habanero seasoning
1/3 of a packet of ranch dressing seasoning

·       Place the quail pieces in a mixing bowl and mix it thoroughly coating each piece of quail.
·       Place on grill belly down at first at 350.
·       Turn often and glaze with honey occasionally until thoroughly cooked. The legs left over from the poppers will cook quicker.
·       Remove and let cool down. Once cool, spin larger pieces in a bowl with your favorite hot sauce and serve with ranch.

SAVE THE LEGS FOR CORNBREAD! Debone quail from legs and add in with your corn bread mixture. (I just used a box of Jiffy). Enjoy!

GAME DAY APPS!