Elk meat

[KuruPrionz]

I was given a couple of packages of elk meat. 

A friend got some too and he made elk and pineapple macaroni with Indonesian spices (he is from Holland).

It was really good, I want to make something else. 

 

Open to suggestions, one doesn't get elk meat often. A brother of mine is Lummi and allowed to hunt where and when others are not. It was kind of him to share his harvest. 

[Dave Bryce]

Never had it.  How's it taste?

 

dB

[KuruPrionz]

3 hours ago, Dave Bryce said:

Never had it.  How's it taste?

 

dB

Good!!! It tastes good! lol.

As is true when eating critters, the gender matters, the place where the animal lived matters, the age of the animal matters, which cut of meat you are eating matters, and how it was killed and butchered matters. It's more like high quality, farm raised beef than not but it isn't the same. 

 

Our brother Jason is an efficient hunter, one shot one kill. He prefers to shoot them in the head so they drop on the spot and you don't waste time trying to find the animal. He's done this all his life so his field dressing technique is no doubt efficient but probably pretty messy since elk are big critters with lots of entrails. 

I am fine with just eating the meat and avoiding all that other part. I'd do it if I had to, once life forced a dead horse upon us in an inconvenient location and there was no option but to dismantle it and re-locate all the parts. Gah!!!! 🤮

 

I will say this - of all the meat I've tried, the backstrap of an elk is the very best. This isn't a back strap, I haven't opened the packages to see what is in there. 

My friend was given ground elk and it tasted really good. I think that's probably what I have too. 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I’ve only had elk prepared in professional kitchens, usually in things like jerky or stews.  It’s a fairly beefy flavor, and like bison, tends to be very lean.  Mushrooms and onions would be obvious partners.

 

I read somewhere that elk’s lean character  means your target temp for dimness should be 130-150degF, but don’t quote me on that.

[Dannyalcatraz]

Coincidentally, someone just sent me a recipe for a bison chili.  Of note, the cook mixed some beef into the chili because of the leanness of the bison.  Since elk is similarly lean, that might be something to consider for certain dishes.

[KuruPrionz]

5 hours ago, Dannyalcatraz said:

Coincidentally, someone just sent me a recipe for a bison chili.  Of note, the cook mixed some beef into the chili because of the leanness of the bison.  Since elk is similarly lean, that might be something to consider for certain dishes.

 

My go to for adding delicious fat is to cut up premium bacon and fry it in the pan before adding the leaner meat. An easy, delicious way to perk up any meat dish and you don't have to add any salt since the bacon brings enough. 

[Mark Zeger]

Look up recipes for venison & treat it the same way. Bacon or pancetta can add an appropriate amount of fat to a very lean mean, and also flavor. 

 

When I was much younger & didn’t keep a kosher home, my dad had a friend who was a meat packer. He would package deer meat as a side gig during hunting season. He’d give my dad some venison leg steaks, sausages, and/or ground venison every season. We marinated the leg steaks for a day or 2 in red wine, whole garlic, peppercorns, & bay leaves. Take out of the marinate, Pat dry, & grill no further than medium rare.

 

Chili is a great use because the acid in tomato (like red wine) softens the gamey taste of wild red meat.

 

Fruit like dark berries, currants, or cherries go well with venison and probably elk. Ex, if you get dried cherries, reconstitute them in port to make a compote. I do that for duck, as seen here. 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Playing off of THAT, I came up with a “BBQ” sauce of cherries, black pepper, cayenne, a Serrano, a jalapeño, mustard powder, vinegar and a few other spices that works well with chicken, pork and beef.  So yeah, a fruit or berry sauce/compote, etc. could be a good pairing.  
 

Look at what kind of edible berries exist where elk roam, and I bet you’d find some great options.  Blueberries are a candidate, and I know they’re a common ingredient in homemade pemmican recipes.

[MAJUSCULE]

Blueberries, blackberries, yes, but Saskatoons if you can find them where you are. That's the play.

[Threadslayer]

On 4/20/2022 at 10:32 AM, Mark Zeger said:

L

 

When I was much younger & didn’t keep a kosher home, my dad had a friend who was a meat packer. He would package deer meat as a side gig during hunting season. He’d give my dad some venison leg steaks, sausages, and/or ground venison every season. We marinated the leg steaks for a day or 2 in red wine, whole garlic, peppercorns, & bay leaves. Take out of the marinate, Pat dry, & grill no further than medium rare.

 

Chili is a great use because the acid in tomato (like red wine) softens the gamey taste of wild red meat.

 

 

 

I used to live in central Vermont and every so often, a deer would jump out in front of the car - honestly - and not survive. Instead of calling the highway patrol - as required by law - (f* that) we would take the remains home and butcher them. All this talk about inventing clever means to disguise the " gaminess" of the meat is lost on me. The tenderloin of a fat white tailed doe in summer doesn't need any covering up. It is exquisite as is. Please note, I was not intentionally "jacking" deer and running them down intentionally with my vehicle. Anyone who has driven in the country at night will know about these critter's tendency to panic and jump out into traffic. All disclaimers aside, Mmm... venison

 

[KuruPrionz]

On 4/21/2022 at 2:04 PM, Dannyalcatraz said:

Playing off of THAT, I came up with a “BBQ” sauce of cherries, black pepper, cayenne, a Serrano, a jalapeño, mustard powder, vinegar and a few other spices that works well with chicken, pork and beef.  So yeah, a fruit or berry sauce/compote, etc. could be a good pairing.  
 

Look at what kind of edible berries exist where elk roam, and I bet you’d find some great options.  Blueberries are a candidate, and I know they’re a common ingredient in homemade pemmican recipes.

Try replacing the other peppers with a single habanero. If you fear the heat just remove the seeds first. Wear gloves or wash your hands before you forget and rub your eye, don't ask me how I know this!!!!!

[KuruPrionz]

4 hours ago, Threadslayer said:

I used to live in central Vermont and every so often, a deer would jump out in front of the car - honestly - and not survive. Instead of calling the highway patrol - as required by law - (f* that) we would take the remains home and butcher them. All this talk about inventing clever means to disguise the " gaminess" of the meat is lost on me. The tenderloin of a fat white tailed doe in summer doesn't need any covering up. It is exquisite as is. Please note, I was not intentionally "jacking" deer and running them down intentionally with my vehicle. Anyone who has driven in the country at night will know about these critter's tendency to panic and jump out into traffic. All disclaimers aside, Mmm... venison

 

Deer kill more humans in the USA than any other animal. How? They run out in front of cars moving at speed, get hit, fly up over the hood and through the windshield. 

Then they kick wildly and "bing", your neck is broken and so is your face. You die. 

A good friend had one jump out in front of his motorcycle. Luckily for him he wasn't going too fast and had all protective gear. He spent some serious time in the hospital getting patched up. He sold his motorcycle too, or rather what was left of it. No dings, we have woods with roads through them here in WA as well. Gotta keep your eyes open and your speed down. I had a buck charge my car once, he came from the side and knocked his head back on my rear view mirror. I had cars behind me and know better than to deal with a wounded animal so I just kept on driving. 

 

https://www.iii.org/fact-statistic/facts-statistics-deer-vehicle-collisions

[Dannyalcatraz]

2 hours ago, KuruPrionz said:

Try replacing the other peppers with a single habanero. If you fear the heat just remove the seeds first. Wear gloves or wash your hands before you forget and rub your eye, don't ask me how I know this!!!!!

Part of the reason for the variety of peppers is the difference in the kinds of burn they offer, as well as the different flavors the fresh Serrano and jalapeño bring to the mix.  
 

I’ve used your suggested technique in other recipes, though, so I know it CAN work.  One large jalapeño did a GREAT job of replacing cayenne and black peppers in a creole sausage & rice dish.

 

FWIW, I also suspect habanero was a secret ingredient in one of the best salsas I ever had.  Estela’s Restaurant served wicked hot salsa that nonetheless still let all the other flavors shine through.  It was hot as he

l, yet masterfully balanced so that the heat partnered with the other ingredients instead of drowning them out.

[KuruPrionz]

35 minutes ago, Dannyalcatraz said:

Part of the reason for the variety of peppers is the difference in the kinds of burn they offer, as well as the different flavors the fresh Serrano and jalapeño bring to the mix.  
 

I’ve used your suggested technique in other recipes, though, so I know it CAN work.  One large jalapeño did a GREAT job of replacing cayenne and black peppers in a creole sausage & rice dish.

 

FWIW, I also suspect habanero was a secret ingredient in one of the best salsas I ever had.  Estela’s Restaurant served wicked hot salsa that nonetheless still let all the other flavors shine through.  It was hot as he

l, yet masterfully balanced so that the heat partnered with the other ingredients instead of drowning them out.

Habenaro has a symphony of subtle chile flavors that come out if you use less. Too much will make your eyes water and your nose run. The seeds are the hottest part, it's a vegetable strategy to avoid the seeds being eaten. Iguanas still eat them but they are stupid and don't care. 😳

Serrano peppers have good flavor, especially red ones. Red jalapeño tastes better than green. I'll use green jalapeños to make things hotter but I don't use them for flavor, they taste harsh to me. 

 

If a whole habenaro is too hot, try half of one. Experiement to get the heat where you like it. You'll notice the flavor, they are tasty little death bombs!!!! 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I don’t usually work with anything hotter than Serrano or Jalapeño peppers.  While my personal heat tolerance remains pretty stout, my parents have lost some of theirs.

 

Mom is especially diminished in this regard.  After decades of being able to handle significant heat herself, a thrush infection virtually eliminated her ability to tolerate much of a burn.  There’s a few things she’ll tough out, but not many.  Mainly old favorites.

[KuruPrionz]

6 hours ago, Dannyalcatraz said:

I don’t usually work with anything hotter than Serrano or Jalapeño peppers.  While my personal heat tolerance remains pretty stout, my parents have lost some of theirs.

 

Mom is especially diminished in this regard.  After decades of being able to handle significant heat herself, a thrush infection virtually eliminated her ability to tolerate much of a burn.  There’s a few things she’ll tough out, but not many.  Mainly old favorites.

Understood. My point is that a small amount of habenaro will bring equivalent heat but more interesting flavor. 

It does take a sharp knife, careful hands and a good eye to slice whatever fraction of a habenaro is the right amount for a mild heat but it can definately be done. 

I always toss it in early and make certain it is well cooked. Interestingly, another thing that takes the heat down and brings up the flavor is refirgeration of the cooked peppers overnight. 

In fact, it's part of my recipe for the Bowl of Death and it makes a huge difference, not certain why that is but it is. 

 

Just about thte only thing I use jalapenos for anymore is poppers, just about everything tastes good if you dip it in batter and deep fry it! 😇