Elk tenderness

TNHUNTER

TNHUNTER

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Joined
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Location
Nashville, TN
I've seen some posts around elk flavor recommendations but not seen any about elk tenderness (may have missed them). Any specific recommendations on best way to assist meat tenderness in the field or shortly after the shot? I assume some of the better recommendations for meat care may assist in this as well but thought I'd ask. Obviously there are products that help tenderness immediately before cooking but considering the time/money we put into the game I want the best meat (flavor and tenderness) possible and hoping someone may have some recommendations on what to or not to do in this regard. Many thanks.
 
Get it cooled quickly, age for a week, dry if possible, but semi-wet aging on ice in an ice chest keeping out of the melt water as much as possible works fine too. Elk is fantastic, but it will never be as tender as a perfect chateaubriand.
 
I pull a package or 3 from the freezer and lat them thaw over night then leave them in the fridge for a few days. I’ve even left them for a couple weeks at times. Makes a huge difference. The blood will seep out and smell sour. Rinse the steaks and then you should smell nothing. Ready to cook. Also make sure you cook hot and fast. Searing is my preferred method on the grill or in cast iron.
 
TNHUNTER said:
I've seen some posts around elk flavor recommendations but not seen any about elk tenderness (may have missed them). Any specific recommendations on best way to assist meat tenderness in the field or shortly after the shot? I assume some of the better recommendations for meat care may assist in this as well but thought I'd ask. Obviously there are products that help tenderness immediately before cooking but considering the time/money we put into the game I want the best meat (flavor and tenderness) possible and hoping someone may have some recommendations on what to or not to do in this regard. Many thanks.
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Don’t shoot an old cow! I’ve had two cows now that I wish I would have gotten aged. The taste was great but they were tough and chewy no matter how you cooked them, aged them, or pulled out the stops.
 
Admittedly I am very nervous about food safety so something like what @wyoboypt would never work for me. I’m sure it’s phenomenal, just a personal thing.

This year the bull I shot I deboned and froze (early October was pretty warm here). After the CWD results came back, I thawed and finished processing. Definitely seems tender. They guesstimated him at 3.5 I think. The first cow if I recall correctly I processed right away as I was low on freezer space and needed the finished product to fit. She was also aged at 3.5. The third cow I was able to hang the quarters for about 2 days in the garage before I started cutting it. Made me very nervous even checking temperatures at the bone multiple times throughout. She was aged at 1.5. This third one was definitely the most tender. I have eaten from all three elk, I think they are all pretty darn good, and every person I’ve given some to has told me they are very good eating as well.

Always want to maximize quality and yield, personally I just don’t know that I’m willing to age for the necessary time that it takes to do both.

Really fascinating topic.

I don’t care how tender that steak was if I spend a night on the toilet with it coming out both ends.
 
Great responses - thank you. Traveling from TN out west it becomes a bit harder to age ( or at least coordinate). From what I’ve seen processors are very busy and don’t have time to age meat (I don’t really blame them) so you have to put some age on the meat before the meat is processed?? I’d imagine most hotels/cabins frown upon hanging meat in the room. Anyone have a minimum time they like to keep quarters in a tree before they take in? I know temps are likely a huge factor. Any recommendations or rules of thumb you use?

Processors locally will not take anything quartered/deboned so can’t bring home and have processed. Could process myself but that’s a lot of meat for a 1st timer.

Any recommendations prior to cooking to help? Can steaks be “aged” effectively after processing? ( I did see the recommendation on thawing and keeping in the fridge a few days and removing the blood). If that’s effective I’ll just have to plan well.
 
Processing yourself isn't as bad as you may think. All you need is a knife, table, a way to keep your meat cold, stuff to package it in, and time. Cut off the parts you don't want to eat, start with big pieces for roasts and steaks and work your way down with small chunks for stew and then grind the rest for burger.
 
As @Dave N said, processing game animals yourself is not that bad, but that said, I'd learn first on a little TN whitetail first. One thing that I have heard is that meat that is left on the bone through rigor will tend to be tenderer than meat that is boned out immediately. Haven't really experienced that yet though. The biggest thing is how it is cooked, period.
 
I think leaving it on the bone helps. If you debone in the field, all those muscles and tendons that are kept stretched out by the bone contract, making the meat tougher in my mind. I'd try to age it for at least a week if possible as well. Processing yourself is a good habit to get into. Rally up a couple of friends and make a day of it. It can be pretty fun. And exhausting.
 
Makes sense - can't bring meat with bones/brain into TN so meat will have to be de-boned one way or another before bringing home.
 
I do my own elk. Ditto what Dave N says.
I'll hang quarters in the shade of pinions IF the temps are cool. For a day or two. Cold nights and cool days.
Few years back I had some that froze and I just would bring in a quarter at a time to thaw and work on.

Only elk that was ever near tough was an OLD cow. Biggest elk body wise too, huge.
 
If you've got the time, I like to let mine quartered in a cooler for 3-4 days before taking to the processor. I'd check around locally about processors taking quarters, I've never had issues in PA, MT or WY. Maybe it's a regional TN thing. If you can get it processed at home I'd just drive it home on ice, if you're flying timing gets tricky.
 
I think something nobody has mentioned is proper cutting techniques and knowing what to do with each cut. If you take a boned out shoulder and get as many steaks as you can from it without knowing what you're doing, probably going to have a lot of tough steaks. Honestly in my experience most game animals are fairly tender to start and don't really require aging. Proper aging in my opinion mostly improves the grain feel of the meat, but if you do end up with a tough animal it can help. I've found a couple few years in the freezer if well wrapped can provide an aging effect as the ice crystals slowly break the muscle fibers down, don't want freezer burn though so needs to well wrapped.
 
CWD is the issue - not allowed to bring in any meat with bones or brain. Slightly ironic as we already have it in west TN but do understand why it was put in place. Suppose I could try to leave in a tree if cool, debone after a few days and process at home. I do agree the proper cutting technique concerns me.
 
Obviously take as good care of it as you can and hang if temps allow. Other than that, depending on the animal, some are just tougher than others. Understanding cuts of meat and how to prepare and cook goes a long way. I’ve been separating and packaging whole muscles a lot lately and prepping them differently depending on the muscle.

Years ago I’d never believe you could prep a round from a bull elk killed post rut, for example, to be tasty and tender… but you can if you do it properly. Cuts like this, I marinade, use my pellet grill to cook to an IT of about 130, rest, and slice thin… serve these thin slices in the au jus so your family or guests don’t have to chew through large chunks of meat… you’ll be getting compliments.
 
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We pretty much live off game meat> This year 2 elk, oryx and a deer.
Too many factors Animal-How its cooked-butchering-marinated if any- rest time
> I do believe cooler time on ice as long as the meat is kept dry might help tenderize a bit
 
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