WELCOME TO THE NEW
WILDEATS RECIPE COLLECTION
Dedicated For Those Who Appreciate
"The finer things in life AND are willing to work for it "
"Bridging the WILD and the Sophisticated"
brining pheasant breasts
Roasted wild turkey breast
Our new WildEats Recipe Collection is currently being assembled....stay tuned!
The first recipe in our NEW WildEats Recipe Collection has to go to our famous "Controlled Burn" Bohemian Chili. This version is with venison, but it can be made just as successfully with any (properly handled) game meat. Over the past 14 years I can't tell you how many hundreds or even thousands of gallons of this chili we have served to our loyal fans. That amount may seem impossible but when you consider all the National Conventions, Seminars, Sporting/outdoor Expos and literally tons of chili I've served up at the Bohemian Grove over the years, this dish has touched a massive amount of people and has a cult like following. Special thanks has to go to my very good friend - Pat Gilligan for his endless supply of these prized stashes of fabulous game meat. The boys up at VOM have been spoiled for many years, thanks to you......and my Bohemian Chili recipe.
Enjoy!
"Controlled Burn" BOHEMIAN VENISON CHILI
3 oz. cooking oil 5 lb. coarse ground or diced venison, elk, moose, wild boar, etc.3 oz. CONTROLLED BURN CHILI BLEND
1 - #10 can, or 5 - 15oz. cans of diced tomato in juice
1 - 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 bottle good quality Californian Zinfandel or Merlot
2 large onions, diced
1/2 bunch celery, diced
1 large bell pepper, red or green, cut into small dice
8 good shakes of Tabasco
3 tbs. salt
GARNISHES
1 large red onion, finely diced
1 bunch scallions
2 - 4 jalapeno or serrano chilies, finely chopped
shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Make sure you have allowed enough time for the meat to defrost slowly and is drained of excess blood. Heat the oil in a heavy gauge sauté pan, season the meat with the salt. Place small batches of the meat into the hot oil, allow to brown thoroughly. Remove to a large pot and repeat the process until all the meat is browned. Add the tomato product in with the browned meat. Place the celery, yellow onions and CONTROLLED BURN CHILI BLEND into the sauté pan and sauté until wilted, deglaze with the wine. Be sure to scrape any remaining residue from the bottom of the pan and add it to the browned meat. Place the pot on a low flame, cover and allow to simmer for 3 hrs. Stir frequently. Remove the cover and simmer for an additional 30 minutes. I recommend you serve your chili the next day, as this will give the flavors a chance to blend. Re-heat your chili over a low flame. When completely heated add your remaining garnishes. Adjust the seasoning with salt and Tabasco and dig in!
Chili is one of those dishes that freezes very well, in fact any meat item that is cooked in a sauce can be stored very well in zip lock bags in the freezer for up to a year. So make a big batch and enjoy it for a long period of time
BRINING MEATS
By Chef John McGannon
I’ve come to realize that we are a “soak-minded” group when it comes to handling our meat. Most of us believe that if we submerge our aggressive flavored meat in some creative concoction the good stuff will go in and bad will be removed.
As with most rules, there is always an exception, or two – Bringing is one of those exception (when dealing with white meats- upland birds, poultry, pork, boar, etc. and red meats if smoking is involved)
Brining is a process in which meat is soaked in a salt solution before cooking. Brining makes cooked meat moister by hydrating the cells of its muscle tissue before cooking, via the process of osmosis, and by allowing the cells to hold on to the water while they are cooked by denaturation. The brine surrounding the cells has a higher concentration of salt than the fluid within the cells. The salt enters the cell and the increased salinity of the cell fluid causes the cell to absorb water (and flavor) from the brine. The salt introduced into the cell causes the proteins to coagulate. This coagulation creates a matrix which traps water molecules and holds them during cooking. This is what prevents the meat from drying out, or dehydrating. Thus, a very moist end result.
If you’ve never brined white meat, you will be amazed at the results. Use this technique after a little dry aging and you are well on your way to high level cuisine.
As you can tell I’m a big fan of brining white meats. Meats such as pheasant, quail, wild turkey, chukar, boar, and even domestic poultry and pork get tremendous benefits from bring for the above described reasons. We’ve all experienced dry, tough upland game birds, this IS how you eliminate that.
GINGER CITRUS BRINE
FOR BIRDS (poultry & upland), PORK & BOAR
2 gallons warm water
1-cup kosher salt
3/4-cup sugar
1 jalapeno. Chopped into small pieces
1 lemon, cut into slices
½ cup WILDEATS Ginger Citrus & Pepper Rub (you can also use the Lemon Garlic & Sage Rub with fennel)
2 bay leaves
1 onion, cut into slices
6 cloves of garlic, bruised15 – 16 lbs. of meat
Mix ingredients thoroughly, place meat product into brine.
Refrigerate for –
Pork/boar - loin roast 2 days
Pork/boar chops – overnight
Turkey (whole) – 3 days
Chicken, grouse, chukar, pheasant whole – 2 days
Chicken, grouse, chukar, pheasant, pieces – 1 day
Quail, overnightAllow the meat to dry on a rack, uncovered in the refrigerator- the larger cuts should dry overnight, the smaller ones for a couple of hours. When you are ready to cook these items all you need to do is brush them with a little oil and cook as usual. There is NO need for additional seasonings. The brining of the muscle structure locks in the natural moisture of the meat, yielding a very moist, succulent final result. The results will have you brining all your white meat items.
You can cook brined meat by grilling, pan roasting, roasting, sautéing and broiling,
As is the case with any “just cooked” meat item it needs to be allowed to rest before slicing or cutting. This resting period allows the redistribution of the internal moisture throughout the muscle, giving you a more tender, evenly cooked product.
Want a different way to serve your elk meat, try this one at your next cocktail party. Your sure to raise an eyebrow or two.
“ASIAN ” Elk Tartare
yields about 30 hors D’oeuvres
1 lbs. elk sirloin butt, or top sirloin
(Completely cleaned of tendon and silver skin, chopped or ground fine)½ bunch finely chopped scallions (whites)
reserve the greens for garnish
1 tbsp. pickled ginger, minced1 tbsp. sesame oil
2 tbsp. red chili oil1 tsp minced fresh garlic
1 tbsp. toasted white sesame seeds
¼ cup chopped wakami (Japanese seaweed) optionalSalt and Pepper to taste
For the true adventurer add a ½ tsp of wasabi to the mix
Apr. 30 croustini, crackers or for authentic Asian fare try frying won ton skins cut into triangles for won ton crisps
Place the meat and all the seasonings into a mixing bowl. Blend well and allow to sit in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Adjust the seasoning and place a small dollop on your cracker or won ton crisp. Top that with slivers of scallion greens and serve.
LEMON, GARLIC & SAGE BRINE
For POULTRY, UPLAND BIRDS, PORK, BOAR, TURKEY, even RIBS
*** This formula is for 1 gallon, the actual amount that you will need is dependant on the size of
your meat product
1 gallons warm water***
1/2-cup kosher salt 1/3 cup sugar 1 sliced apple (OPTIONAL) GREAT WITH TURKEY!
1 lemon cut into slices,1/2 cup WILDEATS Lemon, Garlic & Sage Rub with fennel
2 bay leaves
1 small onion, cut into slices
This amount will be enough for approximately 7 - 10 lbs. of meat. Make sure all the meat is submerged. Mix ingredients thoroughly, ALLOW BRINE TO COOL then, submerge meat into brine. Brining times will vary. See chart for recommended brining time.
BRING TIME CHART
Pork/boar - loin roast 2 days
Pork/boar chops – overnight
Turkey (whole) – 3 days
Chicken, grouse, chukar, pheasant (whole) – 2 days
Chicken, grouse, chukar, pheasant, (pieces) – 1 day
Quail, 4 - 12 HOURS or overnightAfter brining allow the meat to dry on a rack, uncovered in the refrigerator- The larger cuts should dry overnight - the smaller ones for a couple of hours. When you're ready to cook these items all you need to do is brush them with a little oil and cook as usual. There is NO need for additional seasonings. The brining of the muscle structure locks in the natural moisture of the meat, yielding a very moist, succulent final result. The results will have you brining all your white meat items.
You can cook brined meat by grilling, pan roasting, roasting, sautéing and broiling,
As is the case with any “just cooked” meat item it needs to be allowed to rest before slicing or cutting. This resting period allows the redistribution of the internal moisture throughout the muscle, giving you a more tender, evenly cooked product.
“Attitude Adjusting” Elk Stuffed Bell peppers
yields apr. 20 stuffed bell peppers (halves)5 lbs. Ground elk meat (which has been allowed to drain in a colander overnight)
1 med. Onion, diced finely
6 oz.V8 juice (from the 3 qts. below)
1 cup raw basmati rice (you can also use regular whole grain rice)
1 cup dried breadcrumbs
½ cup WildEats San Francisco Pepper Rub (optional, but recommended)
6 eggs
a couple of splashes of Tabasco & Worcestershire
Salt & Pepper to taste10 red or yellow bell peppers, cut in half and seeds removed
3 qts. V8 tomato juice
garnish – optional – sprigs of fresh thyme or oregano
Mix the meat thoroughly with all the other ingredients in the first section. Arrange the cut bell peppers in a shallow roasting pan, season the inside of the peppers with salt and pepper and fill each one with the meat filling. Place the stuffed peppers in a pre-heat oven @ 350° F and roast for 45 minutes or until the filling starts to turn a golden brown. Top the peppers with the V8, cover the pan with aluminum foil, turn down the oven to 325°F and continue to cook for another hour.Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving.
This type of dish can also be frozen and served at a later date. Let me tell you, this year while at archery elk camps in Montana and Wyoming this dish turned the frowns of frustration into smiles of pleasure that certainly contributed to maintaining a positive approach to our hunt.