Ground Elk fat %

[CoStick]

Pigs are the nastiest animal on earth. Why take their nasty fat & add it to anything ???? !!!! ????? 1/2 the Texas ranchers don't even eat the nuisance hogs, they leave them for the buzzards.

No doubt, no swine in my house.

 

[Ridge Ghost]

I used to go 100% elk, and it still works great for making tacos. I added 10% beef fat to my ground this year though, and it took my burgers to a whole new level.

 

[Doc Holliday]

I had my bull from last year cut with 12% beef fat, and the burgers are the best burgers I have ever had, bar none. The next elk I kill I'm getting the whole thing ground this way, except for the inner loins.

 

[Wapiti1]

I add 7-10% beef fat. I've done it without, and find it more useable with it. I don't think it changes the flavor of the game at all and allows for more leeway in cooking it.

If making sausage, I add beef, pork, or lamb fat to match the style of sausage I'm making.

Jeremy

 

[rob86jeep]

It's funny to read comments about how they'll never cut their elk burgers with any fat because they love elk and don't want to mask the flavor. Except they'll then add buns, vegetables, cheese, sauces, etc (which all can be said to mask the flavor).

Most people add fat to wild game burgers not to alter the flavor, but to help keep the burger intact and keep it from drying out during the cooking process.

 

[bsnedeker]

It's funny to read comments about how they'll never cut their elk burgers with any fat because they love elk and don't want to mask the flavor. Except they'll then add buns, vegetables, cheese, sauces, etc (which all can be said to mask the flavor).

Most people add fat to wild game burgers not to alter the flavor, but to help keep the burger intact and keep it from drying out during the cooking process.

I'm not seeing the contradiction you seem to be. If you are adding all those things to your burger (i generally put a bit of mayo on the bottom bun to catch the juice and call it good) all the more reason to keep the wild game flavor to the maximum.

If you know how to form a burger properly and don't overcook it you also dont need to worry about the burger falling apart or being dry. I promise you this is true.

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[Zappaman]

Pigs are the nastiest animal on earth. Why take their nasty fat & add it to anything ???? !!!! ????? 1/2 the Texas ranchers don't even eat the nuisance hogs, they leave them for the buzzards.

And the other 1/2 of we "Texas Ranchers" enjoy hunting AND eating our feral hogs because they taste WAY better than market pork. It's true we sometimes have to do an eradication hunt when they get so thick they compete with our livestock for resources-- but I'll take a hog (any time of the year, BTW) to the freezer and feed my family a meat I'd put right up there with venison and elk (which I can only hunt a few months out of the year). That said, there is no doubt the buzzards in Texas eat WELL

 

[Elkmagnet]

10% beef fat added to my ground meat

 

[rob86jeep]

I'm not seeing the contradiction you seem to be. If you are adding all those things to your burger (i generally put a bit of mayo on the bottom bun to catch the juice and call it good) all the more reason to keep the wild game flavor to the maximum.

If you know how to form a burger properly and don't overcook it you also dont need to worry about the burger falling apart or being dry. I promise you this is true.

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I was just saying it's funny. People seem to get all righteous about wild game meat when it comes to adding fat but don't seem to care how many other ingredients you add (such as seasoning, vegetables, sauces, etc).

 

[Doodle]

I'm not seeing the contradiction you seem to be. If you are adding all those things to your burger (i generally put a bit of mayo on the bottom bun to catch the juice and call it good) all the more reason to keep the wild game flavor to the maximum.

If you know how to form a burger properly and don't overcook it you also dont need to worry about the burger falling apart or being dry. I promise you this is true.

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I see his point. I don’t see a ton of them in this thread, save for various cheeses, but I don’t know how many posts I’ve read about adding A1 or BBQ sauce. I don’t think there’s anything that masks flavors more than those two sauces (and really, A1 is basically bbq sauce anyway).

I do find it curious that so many folks think of game as superior to beef or pork. I’d challenge anyone to say that a 90 day dry aged chunk of prime grade (or wagyu, since it’s already been brought up in this thread) grass fed beef is somehow inferior to elk. Different, yes. Superior is a different story. The same goes for a pastured pork or wild boar Ragu; They satisfy a different itch, and they all have a place on my dinner table.

 

[bmrfish]

Bacon. Add ~10% bacon and thank me later.

What he said


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[cnelk]

Man, it sure would be boring if everyone did the same.

 

[Deadfall]

If you worried about burgers falling apart, add a egg

 

[dreamingbig]

What kind fat or meat/fat do you use for ground Elk, Pork, Beef or other or nothing. And what % do you use. I have heard some guys will get 70/30 ground beef and and it to the Elk in different percentages. I know if you plan on using some of the ground for burgers you will most likely need a higher fat percentage just so it doesn't fall apart. Some say just and egg and bread crumbs. What's your take?

0%. I add 1/4 cup breadcrumbs for every 2lbs burger when making patties.


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[CCH]

Bacon. Add ~10% bacon and thank me later.

Have not tried that, but everything is better with bacon. Until that suggestion, I was with 5% beef fat.

 

[scotbradly726]

What kind fat or meat/fat do you use for ground Elk, Pork, Beef or other or nothing. And what % do you use. I have heard some guys will get 70/30 ground beef and and it to the Elk in different percentages. I know if you plan on using some of the ground for burgers you will most likely need a higher fat percentage just so it doesn't fall apart. Some say just and egg and bread crumbs. What's your take?

I use beef Fat. 10% for burger and 20% for pepperoni or summer sausage

 

[doakes]

I go buy some of the fatty burger from the grocery store and mix it with mine to give it a little fat to make it stick together.

 

[bsnedeker]

I see his point. I don’t see a ton of them in this thread, save for various cheeses, but I don’t know how many posts I’ve read about adding A1 or BBQ sauce. I don’t think there’s anything that masks flavors more than those two sauces (and really, A1 is basically bbq sauce anyway).

I do find it curious that so many folks think of game as superior to beef or pork. I’d challenge anyone to say that a 90 day dry aged chunk of prime grade (or wagyu, since it’s already been brought up in this thread) grass fed beef is somehow inferior to elk. Different, yes. Superior is a different story. The same goes for a pastured pork or wild boar Ragu; They satisfy a different itch, and they all have a place on my dinner table.

This thread is about burgers...not dry aged steaks. A couple of times a year I will buy a really good porterhouse for me and the wife to split but there is nothing on a wild game animal that is even remotely comparable to that.

Personally when we are talking burgers I will take a 100% deer or elk burger over beef every single time, so I do think it is superior. I appreciate the flavor that venison brings to the table and I've been eating it for so long that I find beef burgers kind of boring.

 

[Rob5589]

No doubt, no swine in my house.

More bacon and pork belly for me

 

[nphunter]

30% beef fat for me. I like the fat, I grew up on 100% elk grind and prefer the extra fat. Pork is OK too but I prefer beef, my kids like bacon mixed in but personally I just like beef fat.