Meat, It’s What’s for Dinner – But Which Meat?
I was thinking about my “dream hunts” post, and I realized something.
For me, a key requirement of all of my dream hunts was to do the hunt in a place where I can bring home the meat. Whether it’s Alaskan moose, Newfoundland Caribou, or Rocky Mountain elk, part of what makes every successful hunt special is not the trophy antlers, horns, or hides, but the meat that comes from each of these animals.
I’ve eaten an awful lot of wild game through my life… everything from snapping turtle to frog legs, to tree squirrel to rabbits. I’ve had several different kinds of deer (whitetail, blacktail, mulie, axis, fallow, and elk), as well as antelope (pronghorn and blackbuck) and wild sheep. When it comes to fowl, I’ve eaten pheasant, bobwhite quail, mountain quail, valley quail, mourning dove, pigeons, turkeys, ducks, geese, and a couple of other birds I’ll not mention (some were very good, and some…well, not so much). The list includes bear and bison as well. And, of course, I’ve had a lot of wild pork.
But despite the extent of my list, there are still a bunch I’d like to try. I’ve heard that caribou is awesome, as is moose. Both are high on my list of dream hunts, in part for this very reason.
So… of the meat I’ve eaten so far, what would be my favorite? That’s a tough one. I guess, in order to make it fair, I should draw a line between truly “wild” game, and ranched exotics.
There’s no question (and no surprise) that when it comes to pure, quality meat, the ranch-raised animals get the edge for several reasons. These animals generally live high on the hog, cared for with feeders full of high quality grains, plentiful water, and a general life of leisure. For me so far, it’s a real close race between axis deer and fallow… with the nod going to the fallow buck I shot at Native Hunt last year.
That meat was everything beef wishes it could be. It was very flavorful (but with a mild flavor instead of that stronger venison edge) and tender, even though the buck was pretty mature. I imagine a younger buck or a doe would be even better… if better is possible.
Of the truly wild game, I’m really on the fence. A nice, fat whitetail doe certainly gets high marks. Properly cared for in the field and in the kitchen, it’s hard to beat the flavor and tenderness. However, a healthy, young hog can sure bring a smile to my face as well. If I had to choose, I’m not sure I could. I suppose the tie-breaker is the fact that more of my non-hunting friends seem to like the wild pork better than venison, so if I’m serving friends I’ll usually default to the hog.
What about the small game, you might ask (you probably won’t, but you might)? Cottontail rabbit, hands-down! I’ve probably eaten more squirrel than any other small game animal, and I like it well enough, but if I had my pick, a nice coney is how I’d go.
Anyway, that’s kind of where that train of thought runs out of track… so now I leave it to you folks. What’s been your favorite wild game (or exotic) so far? If your dream hunt were based on the pursuit of meat as well as a trophy and experience, would that change your list?
Posted on 3rd December 2009
Under: general hunting, wild game cooking | 15 Comments »





A while (a very long, while) back, I got an email from a gentleman promoting a new sauce,
I don’t have a lot to write about today, but I did want to mention that I’m finally getting the hang of this Bradley smoker. However, this success did not come without tribulation…

