Elk Taste
Contributors to this thread:Elk
From: thedude
17-May-22
I am revisiting ideas for a sagey elk. It was gutted and skinned within 2 hours and it was -17 that night. It was on dry ice the next day and chilled all through processing. It was an ancient cow in a sage flat.
What tricks do you use to cut the sage flavor out.
From: Beendare
17-May-22
Ive had mule deer like that…but never elk. Those elk should be eating grass, you must’ve got a weird one.
I’ve never had any luck getting the CG in this out of Mule deer, those I just feed to my dog. I’m all ears on this one if somebody has a good suggestion.
From: JohnMC
17-May-22
Get the China Virus and lose your sense of smell and taste???
From: thedude
17-May-22
It was in November in NM. I am sure it was a weird one because a bull from 2018 that I had was outstanding and had less prudent meat care. I even tried both side by side. It should have been eating grass but they were definitely hitting the sage bushes. I don’t remember much grass in that area. It was getting hammered by cattle.
From: wytex
17-May-22
You froze it too soon, sage is there to stay. Make Italian sausage out of it. Maybe soaking in milk before you cook it would help.
From: Tilzbow
17-May-22
Taste probably had more to do with the age than what you think they were eating. 2020 I shot an old cow in a sage flat and she was gamey tasting. 2021 I shot a young cow 200 yards from the spot the old cow was taken and she’s sweet and mild.
Try soaking in skim milk for a few hours before you cook.
From: Mule Power
17-May-22
Con Yeager Black Nugget marinade.
From: Norseman
17-May-22
Put a little ginger root juice in your marinade right before you cook.
From: LINK
17-May-22
I killed a dry cow that I shot I think 4 times with a muzzle loader. Hauled her back to my home state in the back of the gator covered in ice. It tasted great. I’m with the guy that mentioned sausage or brats.
From: walking buffalo
17-May-22
Only those that have had a sagebush flavored critter really know just how officious it is.
Sorry for your loss.
From: txhunter58
17-May-22
If I kill an elk or deer in the sage I save backstraps and tenders. Save a couple roasts but most of the rest goes into smoke rings, sausage and flavored ground meat. Only way my wife will eat it.
From: LUNG$HOT
17-May-22
Yep. Partially thaw her out, cut in chunks, grab some pork fat and sausage her out. Maybe some cube steaks for chicken fried steaks would be ok too but I agree that sage taste is hard to conquer in steaks.
From: DonVathome
18-May-22
Marinade in oil for 1-2 days. Or sausage or grind into burger and mix with pork fat then 50/50 beef when cooking. I cannot comment specifically on sage, sorry. Above has worked well to mask gamey taste.
From: DanaC
18-May-22
Anyone here use buttermilk - 'ranch' - dressing as a marinade? Works great to keep chicken moist while grilling, not sure if it would help with 'sage-y' elk.
From: Cotton
18-May-22
If you had to shoot it 4 times with a muzzleloader then it died really hard, you didn’t say how long between shots. There was a guy that arrowed a huge buck on our farm, we found it the next day at the bottom of a gulley still alive and finished it off for him. He said the meat smelled so bad they couldn’t eat it and this was from a farm that grew soybeans and sugar beets. The meat normally from deer there is fantastic.
From: SlipShot
18-May-22
I have a couple comments, first, this will effect the meat taste more than anything else, make sure you remove any and all fat and sinew from the meat. Second age the meat in the refrigerator for several days, as mentioned earlier, you froze it too soon. The last suggestion, soak the meat in buttermilk for at least 4 hours but I like to do it for 24 hours before cooking it. I have no idea how the buttermilk works, but it works.
From: goyt
18-May-22
I had an antelope that tasted the same way. Of course, there was not as much of it. We thawed the meat one package at a time and ground it to make spaghetti sauce as needed. There the sage taste added to the sauce.
From: DanaC
18-May-22
DanaC's Link
" I have no idea how the buttermilk works, but it works. "
"Here’s how soaking deer meat in buttermilk works - The ph level in buttermilk helps to break down the tissue to tenderize the meat and aid in moisture retention resulting in potentially more tender and juicy meat. The protein found in dairy, casein, also binds to the meat potentially helping to rid the animal of a powerfully “gamey” or wild/iron-like flavor."
From: deserthunter
18-May-22
My brother lives in sagebrush country in Wyoming. He soaks all his game meat in buttermilk. Roasts steaks etc. It takes the sage and gamey flavor out. Roasts usually a couple days soak.
From: thedude
18-May-22
Thanks for the input. I'll try the marinades. Next time I'm not shooting a 10+ year old cow
From: SlipShot
18-May-22
Thanks DanaC
From: Beendare
18-May-22
I say soak it in buttermilk and while it’s soaking……….. throw yourself a couple of prime rib eyes on the grill and give the other stuff to your dog. Grin
