Pronghorn Meat Myths

[SDS14]

Hello guys and gals,

I recently listened to BigFin's Podcast where the HUSH boys were the guest on the podcast. I heard Bigfin and Casey say that antelope is some of the best meat that you can eat and that a lot of people told them that pronghorn meat is terrible. Well I have been told my hold life that pronghorn meat is disgusting and waste of time to hunt. However the more I hear HUSH and BigFin talk about pronghorn hunting I get excited and curious to hunt pronghorn.

My question to the forum is when I draw a pronghorn tag and kill one, what is the first thing I should do for the care and quality of the meat? What are some do's and don'ts of field dressing a pronghorn?

Thanks for your help and happy trails.
-SDS14

 

[NoWiser]

When we first tried hunting them my uncle told us to just dig a hole and bury them because they are inedible.

We each shot a couple that trip and immediately quartered them with the gutless method being extremely careful to keep the hair off the meat. We had one guy who just pulled the hide away while we skinned, and he didn't touch any of the meat. We packed them back to the truck and got them on ice right away, and cut, packaged, and ground them ourselves a few days later. Every single one of us agrees that it is our favorite game meat. We did the same thing on subsequent trips and have yet to have an antelope that wasn't excellent eating. After I made it for my wife the first time, she told me that I should go antelope hunting every year. She's not said that about elk, moose, mule deer, or whitetails.

I gave some to the same uncle that told me to bury it. He couldn't believe it was antelope. He said they gutted them like you would a deer here in Minnesota and butchered at the end of the trip.

Be sure when you put in for a tag you try to get a few doe tags as well. You'll be sad when that last package of antelope disappears from the freezer.

 

[FAIR CHASE]

Gutless method
Hide off
Quartered meat on ice in cooler.

 

[teej89]

Pronghorn meat is the worst meat I've ever had, I'll take it all off your hands to dispose of it

 

[2ski]

I don't do anything special. I gut it like I would a deer and throw it in the back of the truck. The last one I shot I did that to we shot ours and then they went in the back of the truck. We went bird hunting the rest of the day on the place we were on. They sat in the truck all night at the hotel, and then the next day we went pheasant hunting for part of the day, and then they went to the processor when we got home. They tasted great. So I don't know why people have this thing that they taste bad, because I didn't do anything special and they tasted fine.

Hunting is changing and to a lot of people shooting an antelope used to be drive around until you saw some and then drive as fast as you could to catch up, and then you get up close and then jump out and shoot them as they keep running. So you run them for probably at least a mile or two before you shoot them. Its a running shot that you just jumped out of the truck and took a hurried shot so it's probably a bad shot placement and maybe you even herd shoot. So it probably takes a follow up shot to kill it after you get back in your truck and speed up to finish off this gut shot animal. So all this comes into play when your meat doesn't taste so good. Now the last one I shot, we were driving around looking for a place to get out and walk when we came over a rise in the truck and they were there in front of us. We didn't know they were there before(we weren't out chasing a herd is what I'm saying), but we jumped out and shot running animals. Tried to make good shots and we put three in the truck. It was easier than expected, but sometimes they just fall into your lap. Meat tasted great.

 

[MThuntr]

My first antelope was miserable tasting. I shot it opening morning, gutted it (this was way before I knew any better) and had it on ice within the hour...single most disgusting tasting animal I have ever shot. To this day, I replay how I handled it and I don't know what I did wrong.

Every single antelope after that was delicious.

NOTE: the single most disgusting animal I've ever shot and attempted to eat was actually a goldeneye...I'll never be that hungry to do that again.

 

[opslt79]

I have always preferred antelope to whitetail or mule deer. The one thing I have found over the years in that whether you process it yourself or take to a meat packer, I would recommend butchering it bone-out. I'm not sure if it's the marrow or the bone itself, but I've noticed that removing all the meat from the bones before cutting up the steaks and roasts keeps the meat tasting the way I like it. Otherwise it can take on a bitter aftertaste.

 

[jtm307]

Pronghorn is easily my favorite meat. I've harvested 5. My first one, was killed in the middle of the day. We gutted it and threw it in the truck where it spent several hours in the heat dirt and sun. We hung it over night then butchered it the next day. It was definitely gamey, but wasn't horrible to me. No one else would touch it though. Since then I always skin, quarter and get the meat on ice ASAP. Everyone who has tasted it loves it, and it is superior to beef and elk in flavor and tenderness in my opinion.

 

[Big Fin]

Here's how we do it. I've had over 40 of them go through my freezer and every single one was excellent.

[video=youtube_share;Bvm7uyrgKeQ]https://youtu.be/Bvm7uyrgKeQ[/video]

 

[wytex]

I agree with 2ski, running them around before the harvest is the most detrimental to getting good meat. Sometime we do gutless but mostly quarter in the field for aging at home. When temps are right we get to age over a week sometimes only 5 days or so. Age your meat before you cut it up if possible. When conditions are prime for aging we even leave the skin on so there is less dry loss. Some years temps don't let us age but not often. Yes it may have a different taste than deer or elk but it's supposed to.

 

[sbhooper]

A lot of antelope are killed during warm periods. We have always field stripped them immediately and put them on ice. Warm weather and antelope do not mix.

My wife would rather give away elk meat, than antelope.

 

[406LIFE]

Antelope is my favorite, tender and sweet. As guys above have said get the skin off ASAP. I've shot them in hay, sage, and grass and all tasted just fine. They do stink something awful when you come up on them; I think that is where a lot of the poor taste starts, so get the hide off.

 

[Southwind]

It is definitely one of my favorites. I have always just tried to get hide off as quickly as possible to cool the meat.

 

[BlakeA]

I keep the tenderloins and backstraps for steaks and the rest of it is made into jerky which is my favorite. It's a sad day when I take the last package out of the freezer....

 

[LuketheDog]

Gutless method
Hide off
Quartered meat on ice in cooler.

This is all you need to do, and do it quickly if it's hot...

 

[Art Vandeley]

Same as others have said. Out of the 2 antelope I shot last year, 1 yearling elk, and a whitetail buck, both antelope were the best. Hide off ASAP, and cool.

 

[PJ0311]

This goes along with what 2ski was saying about chasing them down and shooting running antelope. Ive seen more horrible shots on antelope than deer or elk by far. I remember seeing lope at the check station missing a leg, gut shot with a hole I could put my fist in, carcasses that looked like they got hit with a machine gun, etc. A lot of them also looked like they were dragged through mud for miles. I think that's probably why some people thought they tasted terrible. If you just take care of it like you would a deer or elk during bow season you will be fine. Much better meat than deer in my opinion.

 

[Doublecluck]

I have yet to have a lope steak go in to my cast iron skillet that don't taste amazing. My kids could probably devour an entire antelope in one meal if allowed. Most important IMO, cook to medium and not a bit more. Used to follow all the myths skin em fast, quarter and cool, shoot only the ones in the grain field, etc. This past season we just gutted em and drove 2 hours back to belgrade and processed them then. Can't tell the difference. My daughter shot one that someone else had wounded and it taste the same as mine.

 

[Okbow87]

I think most people just overcook it. Antelope is by far my favorite.

 

[u1299]

Never had a bad antelope steak, just barely medium, then dip in yellow mustard!