I’m a pretty simple cook when it comes to cooking up wild game cuisine, but when asked if I have ever tried cooking wild game in a SousVide Supreme machine, my first response was… “What the heck is it?”

After doing a little research on the product, I found that it’s a culinary way to cook your food in controlled and precise water bath or water oven. First you have to prep your meats or poultry with seasoning and/or herbs then place in a bag and vacuum-seal the bag being sure to remove all air. Then set your food into the warm water bath to simmer. Cooking times may vary depending on the thickness of your selected cuts of meat, anywhere from a few hours to a few days.

It’s noted by other users that cooking with this technique produces an outcome that is unlike any other cooking method. Tough cuts of meat become fork tender and can be left for longer cooking times without over cooking.

I selected pheasant to be one of my first tests using the machine. Having no idea what temperature I needed to use, I found a recipe to work with on the Sousvidesupreme.com website. The information gave me an idea on what temperature I needed to set the water too and an approximate length of time to cook ensuring that my pheasant would be cooked through to the correct temperature.

Of course I decided to try my hand at this after a long work day… I filled my water oven up at 5pm and set my temperature for 146F/63.5C. The machine took approximately 25-30 minutes to reach the correct temperature which gave me the time to prep my pheasant.

I breasted my pheasant and simply seasoned it with garlic powder, salt and pepper. I placed the breasts in a vacuum-seal bag, added several sprigs of thyme and 4 tablespoons of melted butter. I then vacuum-sealed by pheasant breasts removing all air.

In a second bag I added the legs of the pheasant with the same garlic powder, salt and pepper blend of spices, a few springs of thyme and another 4 tablespoons of melted butter. Vacuum-sealed and set aside.

Having both bags sealed, the machine beeped letting me know that my water oven was now at the set temperature of 146F/63.5C. I placed the breasts and legs into the water bath making sure that they were completely covered and put the lid on. Using the timer on the machine I decided to cook the pheasant for 1.5 hours. So figured dinner would be around 7:30pm.

Having read other’s reviews on this cooking technique, cooking in a water bath can generate some juicy and amazing flavors but what it does lack is the outer crispness or grill markings that I’m pretty accustomed too. You know that outer crust on a pan seared steak or the perfect criss-cross on a BBQ steak.

Now you should have a towel handy when removing the lid because of the condensation that’s built up you can drip water all over the place. I’m still working on my best technique to avoid this from happening directly on the plug of the machine.

Removing my pheasant from the water bath, I placed in a large bowl, grabbed a pair of scissors and opened the bag removing the pheasant breasts. I was saving the legs for another meal the next night. (Pheasant mushroom orechiette pasta – Recipe coming soon.)

Let me say it smelled incredibly good. I placed the breasts on a cutting board and decided to take a quick taste. Unbelievable… the pheasant was so buttery and fork tender that I was ready to eat it as it sat on the cutting board, but I had one more step that I wanted to take.

Heating up a pan on medium-high, I added a few more tablespoons of butter, sliced up the pheasant breasts and did a quick sauté until the butter added a little more color. Quickly removed, plated and served with mashed potatoes and gravy.

It was all gone after about 5 minutes.

My conclusion is that I ended up buying a machine. Now granted it’s not a cooking method that I would use for a quick turn-a-round dinner but more of a fine cooking technique for weekends, holidays or days off.  Definitely worth the wait!

What’s next? Antelope Sirloin Steaks. (coming soon)

Do you have recipes for wild game cooking using the SousVide Supreme? If you do I’d be interested to hear how you’ve been using it for your home cooking. Thank you for sharing – Kristy

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I enjoy the challenge of combining ingredients that I already have in the pantry to avoid having to go to the grocery store too many times during the week. Soups just happen to be one of my favorite meals to create and tend to be the most flavorful and memorable without breaking the bank.

INGREDIENTS

• 1lb Elk sausage
• 2 – 14.5 oz diced tomatoes
• 1 – 14.5 oz water
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 2 cups dry Orecchiette Pasta (or other small pasta)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 cube butter
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped basil

Top soup with  fresh grated parmesan cheese and chopped basil.

DIRECTIONS

1) Add oil and chopped garlic to soup pan. Cook garlic being sure not to brown, add canned diced tomatoes and water. Bring to a boil and turn heat to low. Take a hand blender and blend tomatoes to create a tomato puree.

2) Add red wine, pasta, butter, oregano, salt, pepper and fresh basil. Cover and cook on low heat for 45 minutes or until pasta is cooked through.

3) While soup is cooking on low, add elk sausage to another pan and cook thoroughly. Add sausage to soup and stir. When pasta is ready serve immediately.

Top each bowl of soup with fresh parmesan cheese and chopped fresh basil.

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Try something different with your meatloaf… Make elk meatloaf with olives, onions, horseradish and a little parmesan cheese served up with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 pounds ground Elk
• 3.8 oz sliced black olives
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 cup seasoned italian breadcrumbs
• ½ cup chopped white onion
• 2 tablespoons creamy horseradish
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• Salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

1) In a large bowl combine ground elk, olives, breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, onion, horseradish and seasonings. Form into a loaf and place into a baking dish.

2) Cover with tinfoil and bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Remove tin foil and continue cooking for approximately 10-15 minutes or until your meat is thoroughly cooked. Remove from over, let rest for 5 minutes and serve with your favorite mashed potatoes and brown gravy.

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Watching your weight? Make these mini elk sliders using horseradish mustard and cornmeal. Then top off with a tablespoon of your favorite Barbeque sauce and you’ll be in heaven!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb ground elk
• 2 tablespoons Horseradish Mustard
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
• 1 tablespoon A1
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 cup corn meal
• 1 egg
• salt and pepper
• Cheddar and Swiss Cheese
• Killer Barbeque Sauce
• Hawaiian Sweet Rolls
• Cherry tomatoes
• Red onion

DIRECTIONS
1) In a large bowl, add mustard, cornmeal, egg, garlic powder, salt and pepper to ground elk meat. Mix all ingredients by hand and then form into small patties. Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to size how much meat to use when forming your patties. Place meat on tinfoil and press gently with your thumb creating a small indent in the center. This will help keep patties from shrinking when cooking.

2) Pre-heat the barbecue to high temperature.

3) I recommend leaving the elk burgers on the tinfoil while cooking on the BBQ. The elk meat is very lean and can have the tendency to dry out if overcooked. Cooking on tinfoil reduces the risk of overcooking.

4) Cook 7 minutes or until brown and then flip patties. Continue cooking on other side until brown – 7 minutes. Add smoked mozzarella cheese to the top of burgers during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Close lid and melt cheese.

5) Place elk sliders on Hawaiian Sweet Rolls, top with some killer barbeque sauce, a few cherry tomatoes, some red onion and you are set! Enjoy!

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INGREDIENTS

• 8-10 Chukar breasts (cut into bite size pieces)
• 4-6 Quail breasts (cut into bite size pieces)
• 3 eggs
• 3 green onions
• 4 cloves
• 2-3 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup Bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS

1) Use skinless chukar breast and quail breast (could substitute with chicken breast, pheasant or quail but we always have chukar in our freezer.)

2) Beat about 3 eggs. Add 3 sliced green onions. Toss in a couple of whole cloves. Add 1-2 cloves of minced fresh garlic. Marinate chukar and quail in egg mixture for at least 24-48 hours.

3) Pull chukar and quail from egg mixture then roll in fresh grated parmesan. (Could substitute with the canned stuff if that’s all you’ve got.) From parmesan, then roll in dried bread crumbs.

4) Heat skillet to medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter to heated skillet. Add the chukar and quail to the pan. Meat should sizzle lightly when added to the skillet. Sauté a couple of minutes on each side till golden.

5) You want it crispy and golden on the outside but still tender and dry on the inside so be careful not to overcook.

Enjoy with a side of Killer BBQ sauce or Pesto sauce. Be sure to get plenty because they go fast!

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Meat pies are such an easy item to prep and cook for everyone to enjoy. In this shepherd’s pie I added butternut squash and a red potato mash that really sweetened the flavor of the pie. Made in about 2 hours and devoured in less than 30 minutes.

INGREDIENTS

• 1.5 pounds ground elk sausage
• 2 cups butternut squash diced 1/2 inch cubes
• 3 celery stalks (chopped 1/4 inch or shredded)
• 3 carrots (chopped 1/4 inch or shredded)
• 1 medium onion (chopped)
• 2 shallots
• 1 slice bacon
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup shredded cheese blend
• 1 1/2 cup mashed potato (red potatoes)
• Fresh Tarragon
• Salt and pepper
• 2 Puff Pastry Sheets (defrosted)
• 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water

DIRECTIONS
1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2) Add 2 cups chopped butternut squash and 2 tablespoons water to microwave safe dish. Cover and microwave fro 5-6 minutes.

3) Add elk sausage to skillet and cook until browned. Remove meat from skillet and set aside.

4) Add butter to skillet and proceed to sauté chopped celery, carrots, onion, shallots and fresh tarragon. Approximately 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add mashed potatoes, elk meat and butternut squash to pan. Remove from heat and stir.

5) Sprinkle surface with cornmeal, roll 1 pastry sheet to be the size of your pie dish. Place the pastry sheet on the bottom of the dish. Transfer meat and vegetables into the pan.

6) Brush the outer edge of the bottom pastry sheet with egg wash.

7) Roll the second pastry sheet out on floured surface and cover the top of the meat. Press and close the edges of the pastry sheets together. Brush top of the pastry sheet with remaining egg wash. Season with salt and pepper. Cut an ‘X’ into the top of the pastry.

Bake for approximately 45 minutes. Cover with tinfoil for the last 20 minutes so the pastry doesn’t burn. Remove from oven when done and enjoy.

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Crockpot 7 Cheese Antelope Lasagna

7 Cheeses… Slow cooked… Antelope burger and sirloin… Garlic and onions… Savory tomato sauce… Need I say more?

INGREDIENTS

• 3-4 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 yellow onion diced
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1lb antelope burger
• .5 lb antelope sirloin (optional)
• 1 box lasagna noodles uncooked or pre-cooked

Tomato Sauce

• 30 oz tomato sauce
• 16 oz water
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon basil and fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon chipotle cayenne pepper (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Cheese

• 16 oz 6 Cheese Italian Blend; Mozzarella, provolone, Romano, Fontina, Parmesan and Asiago
• 32 oz Cottage Cheese

DIRECTIONS

1) Add 3 tablespoons oil to cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and onions and cook until translucent.

2) Add antelope burger and sirloin to pan and brown.

3) Add tomato sauce, water, bay leaves, fresh basil and all other spices to meat and cook on low for about an hour. (Remove bay leaves before adding sauce to lasagna.)

4) In a separate bowl combine all cheese and stir together. (Be sure to save a little cheese to add to the top of your lasagna during the last 30 minutes of cook time.)

5) Add sauce mixture to bottom of your Crockpot before layering the ingredients. Now you can pre-cook your noodles if you are limited on time or use uncooked noodles for this recipe if you can wait for 4 to 5 hours.

6) Add layer of noodles on top of sauce, add antelope tomato meat sauce and top with a layer of all 7 cheeses. Repeat the layers with all ingredients until you run out: Meat Sauce, Cheese, Noodles…etc.

7) Cover your antelope lasagna with the lid and set on Low for 4-5 hours. During last 30 minutes of cooking, add additional cheese cover and enjoy!

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Thank you to our good friends Danny and Leslie for sharing their ‘Secret’  Parmesan Chukar recipe. What I enjoy about this recipe as well as several of the other Big Game Recipes is that they are all flexible for other substitute game birds and game meats!

INGREDIENTS

• Chukar breasts
• 3 eggs
• 3 green onions
• 2 cloves garlic
• Parmesan cheese
• Bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS

Use skinless chukar breast (could substitute with chicken breast, pheasant or quail but we always have chukar in our freezer.)

Beat about 3 eggs.  Add 2-3 sliced green onions.  Toss in a couple of whole cloves.  Add 1-2 cloves of minced fresh garlic. Marinate in egg mixture for at least 24 hours.

Pound breast meat lightly with a meat mallet.

Pull chukar from egg mixture then roll in fresh grated parmesan.  (Could substitute with the canned stuff if that’s all you’ve got.)  From parmesan, then roll in dried bread crumbs.

Heat skillet to medium heat.  Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter to heated skillet.  Add the chukar to the pan.  Meat should sizzle lightly when added to the skillet.  Sauté a couple of minutes on each side till golden.

You want it crispy and golden on the outside but still tender and dry on the inside so be careful not to overcook.

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Simple, quick and flavorful peppercorn elk sirloin skewers with sweet onion and cherry tomatoes.

INGREDIENTS

• 6 elk sirloins steaks
• 6 slices pepper bacon
• McCormick Grill Mates Peppercorn & Garlic Marinade
• 1 large sweet onion
• 20 cherry tomatoes
• salt
• pepper
• olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1) Rub McCormick’s Grill Mates Peppercorn & Garlic seasoning on both sides of meat. Marinade for 1 hour.

2) Cut steaks into 1 inch peices. Cut bacon into 1 inch pieces. Skewer elk, bacon, elk, bacon until you fill the skewer.

3) Chop 1 onion into large 2 inch pieces and skewer. Skewer cherry tomatos. Season onion and tomatos with salt, pepper and olive oil.

4) Heat barbeque to high heat. Grille elk skewers, onion skewers and tomato skewers for about 4/5 minutes on each side. You might need to remove tomatos early. Remove from grille and serve up with your favorite side salad.

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• 1.5 lbs ground elk or venison burger
• 1/2 white onion chopped
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 bottle beer
• 2 – 7oz cans of salsa verde
• 1 – 7oz diced mild green chili’s
• 1 – 6oz chopped black olives
• 1 – 15.25oz kidney beans
• 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend
• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 cups crushed tortilla chips
• chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1) Cook elk burger and onion in heavy skillet until browned. Add ½ bottle of beer to keep elk moist while cooking. Stir garlic powder, cumin, salt, pepper and chipotle chili pepper. Remove from heat and set aside.

2) Combine 2 cans salsa verde, diced green chilies, kidney beans and salsa in a separate bowl. Add cooked elk burger to mixture.

3) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

4) Grease 9×13 casserole baking dish with non stick spray. Add 1 cup crushed tortilla chips to bottom of dish. Add layer of elk mixture on top of chips. Add 1 cup cheese to top of elk burger. Top cheese layer with 1 cup crushed tortilla chips. Add another layer of elk mixture. Add another layer of cheese. Top with remaining tortilla chips. Top with cheese and chopped olives.

5) Bake for 30 minutes until cheese melts.

Serve with sour cream and chopped cilantro.

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