Eat Wild Game: It’s a Natural Health Food
Want a healthier diet?
Buy yourself a rifle or bow, take a hunter safety course, apply for a license and a big-game tag, and go shoot an elk.
Or a moose, or a deer . . . whatever suits your fancy.
If hunting isn’t your bag, find a friend who is a hunter and place your order. Chances are, the meat he or she brings home will be much better than what you’ve been getting at the market.
Wild game is not only meaner, but a lot leaner and less apt to clog your arteries and send you to an early grave.
“Wild game is generally much leaner and lower in total fat than any meat produced domestically, said Jennifer Anderson, professor of nutrition at Colorado State University’s Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. “Though dietary cholesterol levels are about the same [as domestically produced meats], saturated fats are considerably lower.”
Some examples, based on a 3 1/2-ounce serving:
* Elk, 146 calories, 1.9 grams of fat, 73 milligrams of cholesterol, 0.7 of a gram of saturated fat.
* Moose, 134 calories, .97 of a gram of fat, 78 milligrams of cholesterol, 0.3 of a gram of saturated fat.
* Deer, 153 calories, 1.4 grams of fat, 89 milligrams of cholesterol, 1.1 grams of saturated fat.
* Bison, 143 calories, 2.4 grams of fat, 89 milligrams of cholesterol, 0.59 of a gram of saturated fat.
* Lean roast beef, 239 calories, 14.3 grams of fat, 87 milligrams of cholesterol, 7.2 grams of saturated fat.
* Lean ham, 153 calories, 5.8 grams of fat, 58 milligrams of cholesterol, 7.7 grams of saturated fat.
* Chicken (without skin), 163 calories, 3.5 grams of fat, 85 milligrams of cholesterol, 1.3 grams of saturated fat.
* Salmon, 163 calories, 5.8 grams of fat, 87 milligrams of cholesterol, 1.9 grams of saturated fat.
There is a drawback to eating wild animals, however.
Not only does it require putting a bullet or arrow into a wild animal (which any hunter will point out is no less humane than leading cows to the slaughterhouse or beheading chickens), it requires a special touch in the kitchen.
“Wild game is lean by virtue of exercise,” Anderson said. “These animals expend a tremendous mount of energy foraging and staying alive, and develop very muscular, lean tissues.”
Translation: Wild animals lack the fat that makes domesticated animals taste so good.
Therefore, any chef will explain, there are basically two ways to cook prime cuts of wild game: searing on a hot grill, and slow-cooking with moisture. Lesser cuts usually end up in a stew.
EAT LIKE A WILD MAN
That’s the title of a new book (Willow Creek Press, $25) featuring “great game and fish recipes” that have appeared on the pages of Sports Afield magazine over the last 110 years, and giving ample guidance in the kitchen for whatever you might drag in.
Rebecca Gray, a noted food author and avid hunter one reviewer describes as “Martha Stewart with a shotgun,” not only compiled what she believes are some of the most creative and delicious recipes, she included, in many cases, the origin of the recipe and a brief biography of its creator.
Some of the titles alone are enough to make your mouth water: venison bracciola; roasted wild turkey; pheasant Kiev; soft tacos with duck, avocado and fresh salsa; pike pate Dubonnet; broiled woodcock; salad of grilled quail with papaya and mango. . . .
Then there are those that make one seriously consider turning vegetarian: yearling bear roast; shish kabunny; mouse stew; fried deer heart; brain (deer); cougar casserole, and fruit bat, simmered in coconut milk until tender and served whole, including head, tail, wings and feet.
Should anyone choose to try any of this, make sure you check out the final chapter first: It features recipes for dandelion beer and wine, which will give you something to wash it down with.
THANKSGIVING TUNA?
Don’t laugh. There’s a strong possibility the fish still will be biting at month’s end, and a fair possibility that a few stragglers still will be around come Christmas.
It was bizarre enough to be catching yellowfin tuna locally during the summer months--a phenomenon credited to El Nino--and now this: limits by 7 a.m. this past week for anglers aboard San Diego’s overnight boats fishing only 40 miles out; 40 yellowfin in one day and 50 the next aboard L.A. Harbor’s Matt Walsh, a half-day boat fishing only a few miles from shore; 19 yellowfin of 30-40 pounds aboard Santa Barbara’s Seahawk, a three-quarter-day boat; scores of 100-plus yellowfin for party boats making the overnight run to Cortez Bank.
Says Don Ashley, owner of Long Beach Sportfishing: “Until you look at that weather [page] of yours and see the mother of all storms developing off Alaska, you can count on catching tuna down here, because they’re not going anywhere until something drives them out.”
WEAPONS CHECK
Going south for the fall and winter hunting seasons in Mexico?
If so, you might want to consider this recent correspondence from Larry Colbert of the U.S. Consulate in Chihuahua, Mexico, to American Rifleman magazine, forwarded to The Times by Quail Unlimited:
“Here at the U.S. Consulate General in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, we have been quite busy lately helping Americans who were arrested and jailed by the Mexican authorities for inadvertently bringing a gun or ammunition across the border into Mexico.
“Unauthorized possession/importation of a firearm of any type is a felony in Mexico. At a minimum, this kind of mistake will result in a stiff fine and seizure of the gun. Possession of a ‘military caliber’ arm may result in confiscation of one’s car and a lengthy jail term. This whole process can be particularly traumatic for a person who speaks no Spanish and is unfamiliar with Mexico. Bail is not usually available for weapons charges.
“We strongly recommend that those intending to hunt in Mexico contact a Mexican Consulate in the U.S. to learn the details of the firearms importation process. The trip outfitter can help with getting the required permits.”
BACK AT THE HELM
Seattle’s Karen Thorndike, determined to become the first American woman sailor to circumnavigate the globe solo, picked up last Saturday where she left off last February, setting a course from Mar del Plata, Argentina, to Australia, 7,700 nautical miles away.
“I’m thrilled with the prospects of going to sea again,” she said in a phone interview before shoving off.
Hard to believe, considering the ordeal Thorndike went through in February when her 36-foot vessel nearly capsized in 20-foot seas and 60-knot winds 300 miles off the Falkland Islands.
Suffering from severe flu and dehydration, she was able keep her boat afloat until help arrived in the form of a 340-foot British warship. She since has regrouped and recovered, having waited out the Southern Hemisphere winter, and was in good spirits after receiving a favorable weather report.
“It’s about 70-72 degrees with beautiful sunshine,” she said. “The lowest winds are expected to be about 18 knots and the highest about 30 knots. And that’s a lot better than 60 knots.”
Thorndike, who began her journey from San Diego in August 1996 and already has rounded Cape Horn, expects to round Africa’s Cape of Good Hope and reach Australia in about 3 1/2 months. From there she hopes to sail to Tahiti, to San Diego and then home to Seattle.
CASINO NIGHT
The Sportfishing Assn. of California, celebrating 25 years of representing the Southland’s fleet, is holding its annual Casino Night fund-raiser on Nov. 21 at Balboa Pavilion in Newport Beach. Cost is $55, which includes dinner and $100 worth of scrip, and gambling with local skippers and industry leaders.
Scrip will be cashed in for raffle tickets at the end of the night, and Pete Gray and Marty Milner of the radio show “Let’s Talk Hook-Up” will conduct a drawing and award prizes ranging from passes to Sea World to long-range fishing trips, including a package to Baja’s East Cape.
Tickets can be obtained through SAC at (619) 226-6455.
ON THE WILDER SIDE
In Colorado, hikers and mountain bikers are heeding beware-of-cat warnings after a mountain lion took a swipe at a man riding in the hills west of Boulder.
“After the lion realized the biker wasn’t typical prey like a deer, it stopped and began snarling with its ears laid back,” said Rick Basagoitia, a Colorado Division of Wildlife area manager.
The cyclist responded by holding his bike up for a shield until the lion backed off. He got back on his bike and began pedaling away, only to have the lion reappear on his trail briefly before disappearing back into the brush.
