Just curious how the meats would blend. I'm working through the black bear I harvested last fall and was thinking of mixing in some ground elk with the next batch. I've been eating black bear chili all week (doesn't get any better than that) and was thinking of ways to be creative with the next batch. The bear was mine (and I processed the meat at home) however the ground elk is farm raised locally (no elk to hunt in NH). Any input would be appreciated.
This was the bear from last season. Not huge at 267# but not bad for the area. The kicker was when I found out the age of the bear this year (F&G pulls a tooth in NH when they register the bear so the state biologists can track age kills). Based on the amount of gray on the bear I knew it was old however it came back as being 16 1/2 years old! I've had younger bears where the meat was tough but the meat from this bear is perfect. It definitely had a good natural diet.
I suggest taking out the bear meat then mixing most anything like moose, elk, caribou, venison, etc. If you haven't guessed, I definitely do not like bear meat!
You must have had a bad experience with bear meat. I've met quite a few people who won't eat it (other than the obvious ones who cringe at wild game) however I bet most had bad experiences due to how the meat was processed and/or how it was cooked. I've seen too many people over the years that want to parade around with their bear (or other wild game) to show it off so by the time the meat is processed, it's already going (or gone) bad. Mine are in the freezer by the day after they're killed and I can cook bear meat so you would never know it was black bear. I agree that it can have a strong bold taste sometimes however if properly processed and cooked in a crock pot, you would never know.
I've tried it 3 times in my life and it was sworn to be great and taken care of good. I'll probably never try it again but most wild game meat is great.
So by not eating bear meat, that would make your forum name "Backwoods Savage (with some exceptions)"?
Nice bear, I hunt with my camp in bear season and almost every year we get one or two bears. A 267# bear would be a great kill here in central PA. We have had bears killed off our drives around the 500-550# mark before, but not in a while.... Speaking of bears and camp, my wife and I had supper up at camp last Friday, and on the way home a sow and two little cubs ran right out in front of my truck, nearly killed the cubs but I got stopped in time!
And FWIW some of the best ring sausage and kielbasa I've ever eaten was made from bear meat here in our area.
I'm one of those that can eat breakfast food for all three meals, and to me, just about anything can go in an omelet. I had a small amount of black bear chili left over from the batch I cooked last Sunday. Not enough for a meal but perfect for an omelet. Warmed up the chili while I cooked some potatoes and got the eggs going. Once the eggs were started, in goes the bear chili and some shredded 3-blend cheese. Topped off the finished omelet with some hot picante sauce, a couple sliced jalapenos, and some sour cream. With the home fries, pumpernickel toast, and hot coffee, the bear chili omelet was a perfect way to start the day and think about the upcoming bear season!
Our bear season starts early Sept. and can be quite warm. Quick kill and get it cooling off as soon as possible is key to good table fair with any game. Most bear have very thick layers of fat and can spoil from the inside out if not field dressed and cooled asap. We always filled the body cavity with bags of ice and get it in a walk in cooler right away. Extended recovery time, especially overnight and all bets are off on quality table fare. To me, bear meat tastes like a mix of beef and pork together. With bear having a higher fat content like beef I often mix it with venison for whatever I'm making. My best bear so far was 365lbs bow kill.
That's the way I was born and raised. Gut it quick and have it in the freezer by the next day at the latest (sooner depending on the ambient outdoor temperature). Our season starts Sept. 1st however I prefer not to hunt when it's hot, both because I don't like hot weather, but also as you mentioned if a recovery goes wrong and the carcass sits out overnight. A mix of pork and beef is a good way to describe the taste. I usually just say it has a very strong beef flavor and that if someone likes good German or Hungarian food, they'll appreciate bear meat.
I meant "camp"........dang big thumbs on this little cell phone screen... I apologize folks but I misspell all the time, I'm not that illiterate, I promise.... ..
No worries. I didn't know if you were referring to CMP (Civilian Marksmanship Program) or something to that effect. I had images of a bunch of hunters out bear hunting with M1 Garands and Carbines.
I got this bear out of a Colorado peach orchard in 2017. Some of the best wild game meat I’ve ever had. Made a bunch of brats & slim Jim’s & breakfast sausage. The rest I kept as steaks.