June 14th
Bison patties. My youngest daughter Chaney hunted a bison back in January of 2012..... Tonight the meal is on her! |
Ah the things I’ve eaten.
As a hunter there is a moral imperative to consume what you
have harvested. Well…at least
there is for me. That said, I will be
the first to admit this is a sliding scale….I might “Hunt” a rat with a trap or
shoot a coyote that is destroying livestock…both animals that I would have no
intention of consuming.
Still, when I hunt the end result is usually a freezer full
of protein, and a wardrobe full of skins and fur.
(Antlers, horns and skulls go on the walls)
Being married to a gourmet cook has its advantageous as
well.
Most hunters rely on a crock pot and some seasoning to make
“deer tacos”. I get some truly
exotic creations that far exceed the culinary repertoire of the fying pan or
microwave oven.
Sandy, (my wife) took to my sport with an enthusiasm a
husband can only dream of. Once
the meat hits the freezer is ceases being “my deer” and becomes hers. She has produced amazing entrees with
what some would say are truly bizarre meats. One of the chief tools in her arsenal is the cast iron pots
and skillets. These she wields as
an artist, mixing sauces and spices to recreate traditional dishes designed for
wild game, to more elegant concoctions replacing the recipes call for Beef or
Chicken with whatever exotics happen to be in the freezer.
Sandy's weapons. (I blacksmithed the pot rack...so I get some credit here) |
I made this coffee...the extent of my cooking talents...though I did drink it while watching Sandy cook. |
A partial list of our culinary adventures:
· Deer
(of course)
· Elk
· Moose
· Bison
· Rabbit
(you would be amazed at what can be done to these guys)
· Antelope
· Muskox
· Bear
(hands down one of my favorite)
· Pheasant
· Chuckar
· Duck
· Snow
Goose
· Wild
boar
· Goat
· Impala
· Wildebeest
· Nyala
· Zebra
· Oryx
Wild game has a taste far richer and deeper than
domestically raised meats. One of
the chief benefits of consuming wild game is the knowledge that what you have on your plate is the
ultimate in free range. That
said…what excites me the most is knowing that an employee of the pharmaceutical
industry had no hand in fatting up our filets or speeding up their aging
process in an effort to get them to market quicker.
When I eat an elk, I’m eating an Elk….not the US food industries' idea of what an elk should
look and taste like.
I remember the first time I took a wild boar and watched as
my guide skinned it. What
surprised me was how deep and red the muscle was.
“I thought a pig was white meat”, I said while inspecting
the shoulder muscles.
“It is, once the food color people get to it and color it
white.” My guide said, splitting the boars’ pelvic bone.
What the hell?
Now I’m not one to put on my tie-dyed shirt and Birkenstocks
and start rallying against the evil corporate food interests. Most people outsource their killing to
professionals who find it far easier to process their quarry with fattened
confined domestic animals.
Ok, I
get it…it’s more efficient and ultimately cheaper for the masses. Delicates who like their filet mignons
but don’t like to think that the cow was not thrilled about donating it, can
dine once removed from the unpleasantness.
Still….colored meat???
Sorry…that just doesn’t sit right by me.
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