New Smoking Opportunities

[Socrates]

Impressed with my current efforts, a hunting buddy reminded me that he has a couple of elk roasts left from his last hunting trip in Montana (a 5x5 bull).

He has offered me one to smoke. Do I dare at my junior level of smoking expertise? Any advice?

Soc.

[hollywood]

This could be good. I'm thinking elk might be lean so you would have to double your efforts to keep things moist--brining, basting, monitoring temp, etc.

[MatthewB]

Perhaps grill the elk? (As opposed to smoking.)

[davidthomas8779]

You need smoke it for a shorter period at a higher heat or it will dry out. How big a roast is it?

[col klink]

I haven't smoked or even cooked elk myself, but more than likely, it will be pretty lean. Unless it looks as marbled as a pork shoulder, consider it lean.

Elk is a red meat and it you brine it, you're basically corning it, but at a slower rate. I'd stick with rubs and marinades which won't dramatically change the character. Just treat it like you were smoking a beef roast. Have a thermometer and pull it off at your desired doneness.

Before you rub or marinade the elk, slice a little bit off of the roast and pan fry it in a little canola oil (the least flavored the better) so see how "gamey" it is. If it's not to your liking, marinade and rub the hell out of it. Also remember that more of the "elk" flavor will come out the more it's cooked.

The only question that remains is trich. I'm not sure how prevalent trich is elk, ask your hunter friend. If he eats it medium rare and his muscles haven't seized up on him, go ahead and eat your roasts medium rare to rare.

[hollywood]

Here's some elk info. http://elkmeatshop.com/elk_meat/cooking_elk_meat.html

[col klink]

That site recomends using vinegar to reduce the "gaminess" of the elk which I do not endorse. It makes the meat chewier and that's not something you'd like if it's already not a tender cut.

However, the salt solution certainly works and won't actually corn it in those amounts.

[Socrates]

That site recomends using vinegar to reduce the "gaminess" of the elk which I do not endorse.

I've eaten other cuts off this same animal--fully dressed it filled a 15 cubic foot freezer locker--and it isn't gamey at all. Elk tends not to have that real gamey flavor that deer or wild water foul tend to have. In fact, I find elk very mild in flavor. It is very lean and not sweet like pork, so I'm thinking that a little extra sweetness in the brine might be in order.

Trich. is not a problem on animals that are vegitarians; wild pig and bear have to be cooked well done.

Because of the leanness of this meat, should I brine it more, or less, than say a cut of beef? I was thinking about larding the meat with some pork fat for extra flavor. Anyone have experience with larding and smoking?

Soc.

[col klink]

If it isn't gamey, or you don't want to reduce the gaminess, I wouldn't brine it. Just use a marinade or rub and you'll be fine if you pull it at medium rare.

If you're really worried about the meat drying out (which isn't a problem if you pull it at 135, medium rare) larding is certainly a possibility. I would lard over bard (barding covers the meat and the fat will pick up the smoke, not the elk -- larding inserts fat into cuts) but if you use pork fat, you run risk of overpowering the flavor of the elk. Also, if you lard, the pork fat won't completely render out and you'll be stuck with big pieces of chewy pork fat in your roast, but you and your guest could easily pick them out.

My suggestion is to try both and then report the details!

[Socrates]

Also, if you lard, the pork fat won't completely render out and you'll be stuck with big pieces of chewy pork fat in your roast, but you and your guest could easily pick them out.

Xanthippe and I render pork fat for the lard. Usually, it's fairly liquid at room temp. and I'm also thinking about just injecting rendered fat into the mussel tissue.

Soc.