Jägare Ltd - TasteOfTheWoods.com

09/12/2021

Getting the animal down is only half the work. A true hunter will meticulously take care of the animal in the field, shepherding through labor and skills the muscles' journey to meat.

Whether you are in Alaska, Colorado or Montana the task and mission stays the same. Honor the animal by taking as good care of it as you can

Nick Jans writes that the real work of hunting begins after the animal is down, in the diligence needed to properly take care of the meat.

05/09/2021

Elk sirloin smoked honey glazed “ham”. Inspired by Hank Shaw’s honey glazed ham and adjusted for elk

Smoke it at 200F until it hits 120F internal, then remove from the smoker, crank up the heat till 375. Once the smoker is hot, put it back in and keep brushing the sirloin with honey every 20 minutes. The heat will caramelize the honey. Once the internal temp is between 135-145F take it out, rest it for 15-30 minutes and serve.
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Full writeup below

Use an EQ brine. I.e ingredients based on metric weight of both the meat and the water. In my case I used the following:

Water: 2/3 weigh of the meat.
Add meat weight+water weight together for the % calculations:

0.2% cure #1
2% kosher salt
1% brown sugar
0.03% whole black pepper
1 bay leaf per 1000g
0.03% crushed juniper berries
0.03% garlic powder
0.05 yellow mustard seeds

Cook up the brine with the ingredients. Let it cool down. Inject the brine all over the ham. Put ham and water in a bag and vacuum pack it (or as close to vacuum as you can get without making a mess)

Leave the EQ brine in the fridge for 3-4 days up to 3 weeks. Since it’s EQ (equilibrium) it won’t get too salty.

Turn the bag every day or every other day.

This elk was aged of course prior to being smoked. About 2 1/2 week of aging for an approximate 60 Cdg (Celsius Day Grades). I.e well aged for wild game

Rinse off, pat dry. Let it dry up in the fridge for a few hours to overnight.

Smoke it at 200F until it hits 120F internal, then remove from the smoker, crank up the heat till 375. Once the smoker is hot, put the sirloin back in and keep brushing the sirloin with honey every 20 minutes. The heat will caramelize the honey.

Once the internal temp is between 135-145F take it out, rest it for 15-30 minutes and serve

01/17/2021

If you like fennel salami then you probably like this Italian spicy fennel “jerky”. Coppiette

Similar to biltong you can dry it in well ventilated room temperature. My preference is to dry it cold in 35-40F until if bends with resistance (40-50% weight loss)

Use a lean meat. Traditionally coppiette is made with horse meat or pork loin. I usually make it with elk or deer bottom round.

Howto
Meat cut in 1 - 1.5 inch strips WITH the grain
% based on the meat weight

salt 2.25%
coriander 1.00%
fennel 1.00%
crushed red pepper flakes 1.00%
red wine 2.00%

Sprinkle dry ingredients over the meat. Add the wine. Mix with you hands for a minute. Vacuum bag or ziplock bag and put it in the fridge for 3 days.

Remove from bag and hang to dry until ready

01/17/2021

If you like fennel salami then you probably like this Italian spicy fennel “jerky”. Coppiette

Similar to biltong you can dry it in well ventilated room temperature. My preference is to dry it cold in 35-40F until if bends with resistance (40-50% weight loss)

Use a lean meat. Traditionally coppiette is made with horse meat or pork loin. I usually make it with elk or deer bottom round.

Howto
Meat cut in 1 - 1.5 inch strips WITH the grain
% based on the meat weight

salt 2.25%
coriander 1.00%
fennel 1.00%
crushed red pepper flakes 1.00%
red wine 2.00%

Sprinkle dry ingredients over the meat. Add the wine. Mix with you hands for a minute. Vacuum bag or ziplock bag and put it in the fridge for 3 days.

Remove from bag and hang to dry until ready

12/29/2020

When I hunt rabbit during winter I prefer to keep the pelt on well until rigor has passed. This helps to avoid muscle cold shortening and gives you a higher quality meat (and more options for how to cook it)

Of course you still want to clean the rabbit to avoid the guts souring the meat.

Enter the “toothpaste method” ;)
Enjoy and Happy New Year

To avoid meat waste we want to clean a rabbit quickly after the kill.When it is cold we want to avoid muscle cold shortening for the best meat quality.Using ...

12/26/2020

https://www.tasteofthewoods.com/blog/glove-magnets-a-navigation-disaster/2020

How to get lost in one easy step/Why Magnetic Mittens are not a great choice for the woods.

12/05/2020

https://www.tasteofthewoods.com/blog/makeshift-gaiters

Given enough trips every single piece of equipment will get forgotten. Chapstick, rifle magazines, ammo… This article will give you the knowledge you need to create gaiters in the field that can last all day and keep your feet nice and dry.

11/19/2020

My favorite author explains in a short article why he hunts, kills for food.

“It is a cold fact that no matter what your dietary choice, animals die so you can eat. Just because you choose not to eat the flesh of animals does not mean that their homes did not fall to the plow to become acres of vegetables and soybeans, wheat and corn. Habitat, more than anything, determines the health of a species. ...
I have nothing against vegetarians, and the vast majority I’ve met understand what I do and respect it. But to those few who do not, I say this: We all have blood on our hands, only I can see mine.”

https://honest-food.net/on-killing

What does it mean to kill your supper? When you are a hunter, you face the fact that something must die if you are going to eat meat.

11/17/2020

What better way to celebrate a birthday than a simple curry that has simmered for many hours, reduced until it is a flavor bomb ?

It is January. Tomorrow afternoon there will be nice and cold outside. Inside the curry will be simmering and a cold Baltic porter is already waiting in the fridge for when the curry is ready. What’s cooking in your kitchen this weekend?

11/16/2020

Rabbit season is upon us. What’s more fun than hunting jacks with a 22? Maybe serving your family an amazing dish of ragú with papperdele noodles

Jackrabbit is an overlooked game animal for many. Due to failure and knowledge on how to process the jackrabbit properly it has gotten a bad reputation for being tough and stringy.  With the proper care jackrabbit will be delicious.   Here is a favorite recipe of mine for jack

11/11/2020

The Making of Amazing Venison

After a successful hunt we trim the meat, age it for 40C day grades in our controlled aging space (a converted, frost free freezer) and only thereafter do we break down the individual cuts, vacuum pack and put it into the freezer.

How many days to age for the best result? It depends on the temperature. For consistent result follow the tried and true Scandinavian method of aging meat - taking into account both time and temperature.

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