whitetail
elk
moose
bou
mule deer
black tail
prong horn
I have only had whitetail and likely won't ever get try the others
Moose in my opinion is the best on this list.
However, Axis deer takes the trophy for overall best eating animal I know of.
I hear that about the axis. taste sweet I hear.
Moose that has been properly taken care of is our favorite.
And as far as meat goes, it's our staple.
I've heard cougar has great favor.
another vote for moose
Interesting responses...
I'd have to say on each one, "IT DEPENDS".
Why?
Every animal's flesh is a product of several things
* diet (worst tasting mule deer was living in sage brush
* how it was killed (ie, dropped quickly or ran it's heart out)
* how it was handled after it hit the ground (skinned and cooled quickly, guts removed intact or all shot up and full of gastric juices
Those are just some of the factors I've found thru personal experience can seriously affect meat flavor and quality. We won't go into "tenderness" as that always seems to generate more heat then light...
That said, I never met a well handled ungulate that I didn't like, Moose, Elk, Antelope (from irrigated alfalfa ranches), Mulie (other then sage fed), and whittail.
Even small game is taste dependent on the fodder it's eating... grouse on varied diet is great fare, on juniper berries, not so much...
I have to agree with the Doc, diet, death, and handeling play a huge part! But for me it's
Scimitar oryx
Axis
Buffalo
Elk
Sitka
Whitetail
Mule deer
Pronghorn Antelope
Black buck
Never had moose
Moose - killed a couple a bulls - both excellent Elk killed several - all excellent Whitetails - we love em - aged 5 to 7 days they are mellow and tender never gamey and we eat 5 or 6 a year for many many years Mule Deer I have only killed a few but I have been lucky I guess cause they all were excellent all were high country Pronghorn I only got 1 and can't remember what it taste like - think it was early 90s and I think we grilled most over a fire and don't remember not liking it. Caribou I am not a fan - at least for me - I hit the migration and got a bunch of em several years - I recommend eating back straps fresh in camp - ok for sure - smoke the legs over elder fire - once frozen they taste too bloody like old liver. Axis are excellent - that is true.
Thanks - Cory<><
<-----------------<<<<<<
I forgot wild hog! Most any hog less than 150 lbs rates right up there with elk on my list! Some of the big ones ain't to bad but usually end up in sausage,
For me its a toss up between Moose and Axis.
I think the best tasting wild game is rattle snake.
I second what doc says about sagey mule deer
NZ FALLOW DEER TASTE REAL GOOD :goldtooth:
I have had whitetail, moose, elk, and black bear. I would take the bear I shot this spring over any deer I have shot. I have not had elk for some time now and I can't remember the taste very well. Marinated moose steaks were excellent on the grill.
I think of these whitetail would come in last.
Best I have had is pronghorn. Haven't had much moose but it wasn't good (not my animal). Elk, mule deer (sagey or not), whitetail, and hog are all good but any can be bad if not taken care of. Worst I have had was musk ox.
My vote would be Dall sheep as number one, and an interior Alaska blueberry fed black bear a close second.
I've had horrible meals of every one of the animals on the OP's list. The first time i had caribou and pronghorn i swore never again.
I've also had spectacular meals of every one of the animals on the list, which showed me that caribou and pronghorn can be excellent. As was pointed out above, how the animal died and how it was cared for after the fact makes or breaks the meat.
All i will say is that whitetail is near the bottom every time, and that well prepared black bear, cougar, and bobcat are underrated as game meat.
Elk and caribou for me out of those choices. But the best was my Bighorn ewe. Lotta hiking for a small amount of meat but oh was it tasty.
Have to say I had whitetail given to me that was shot in Iowa once. We gobbled that up FAST. Rank it 3rd. Tasted nothing like the whitetails of the rocky mountain west.
Moose,hands down in my opinion
Terry
I killed an axis buck in Texas. That is the best deer type meat I've ever eaten. We also killed several 60-100 pound hogs while there and after cooking them all day with mesquite wood there was no BBQ sauce required. Amazing meat. But you can't compare pork with any deer like critters. Not in the same ball park for me.
Moose followed closely by elk. And what little mountain lion I have had has been wonderful.
Grass or alfalfa fed antelope is good, sagebrush antelope would gag a maggot.
You need two lists.
1. Dall sheep
2. The junior varsity: Everything else you listed.
While I agree much has to do with diet and handling, I would also add how far I had to pack it. The harder I worked for it generally adds to the flavor. :)
Moose
Whitetail
Pronghorn
Elk
The rest all run together....
I have not tasted black tail or caribou that I recall, Of the other animals listed, the Moose that I can recall on a few occasions is my favorite. :)
I absolutely love elk backstrap...the 'boneless ribeye' basically.
I've had good everything on your list if I killed it...and I've had good and poor everything on your list when I got it from others.
I would add wild pork to your list....can be sublime.
Whitetail in Kansas, Iowa, Illinois- I think is right up there if they're feeding on grains, alfalfa, or corn. On my last KS trip I ended up buying a doe tag and taking about a 150 lber..and she ate like beef. packaged up, but kept unfrozen in a cooler for a week, to age. Fresh ground pepper, sea salt, seared in olive oil in a hot cast iron skillet, then grilled over a real hardwood charcoal fire till medium....it was unforgettable.
Terry Green gave me some dry pronghorn sausage once that I thought was abfab.
Wild hog done up by my favorite processor into sausage that contains jalapeño and cheese...day in and day out, I could eat those for lunch every day and never get tired of it.
I've had excellent meals from all on your list, except blacktail. I think more depends on how the meat is handled than on the species. I would say that grass fed bison and wild hog (around 100 lbs) are among my favorites. I've also had some outstanding meals from various antelope in Africa.
though I have only had elk and deer. I think a lot of people have stated a very good point. I think it matter more about what you do with the animal after the kill than the species. I have ate good coon and was tricked into eating a possum one time, but dang was it good! lol.
One of the things I have always heard is that a big catfish is not as good of eating as a smaller one, which I will agree to, but it can be better than what other guys do if they would take the time to prepare it properly. You have to remove ALL of the red meat and silver lining on it, marinate in milk, batter well, and dont drop in the grease until it is at least 350*. If you do these small steps, you wont know the difference.
My point being is you have to take the time to prepare your game properly. I'd bet any of those would taste good, if prepared properly.
Softshell turtle hands down the greatest tasting critter in my neck of the woods.
The only wild game I have had that was "bad" or strong was game handled and prepared by others.
The 1 1/2 old farm doe I shot Saturday was handled correctly, and in the freezer within 24 hours. Each piece was cut and washed off BY ME. She will eat excellent.
I have some elk in the freezer that someone gave me....I will probably mix it in with some sausage. I don't trust how it was handled. It doesn't look spoiled, but I wasn't there...
Oddly enough, my one and only mule deer was AWESOME, and it was from a sage flat. BUT, Mike Vines and I had killed deer the same evening, we had them taken apart and on ice within 2 hours.
so do most of you age your meat a few days say in the fridge or does it go directly to the freezer?
venison in the fridge for five days-sometimes six or seven.
I agree with Doc that how any game animal is taken, cleaned, and prepared makes a huge difference, as does what it has been eating. Since I live in Iowa and I'm getting too old an poor to wander about the country, my staples are whitetails, turkeys and small game, all of which are excellent if you do things right. If I had to survive on a diet of Iowa whitetail meat, I could happily do so for the rest of my days.
I have had elk, and it was excellent. Never tried moose, but have heard it is great as well. The only time I had black bear, it was taken and prepared by my buddy Tom Young (aka saltwatertom) from Homer, Alaska. Based on that meal, I would rank bear right up there with the best game meat out there. Even my wife, who turns up her nose at wild game, had seconds!
It is interesting to see the varied answers here. I've eaten just about everything that walks, swims, or flies here in Iowa, and the only thing I wasn't fond of was racoon. I skinned out a possum once when I was a kid, and after that slimy, stinking experience, I wouldn't touch the stuff!
Interesting thread!
Always age meat - 5 to 7 days is about right - I work mine directly IN ice and have outstanding results.
worst animal we ever ate was an 8 point I kilt 8am and had it skinned - cut - wrapped - and into the freezer by noon - a complete disaster
Aging is tricky. Beef is aged in a temperature controlled environment. I don't have a walk in cooler. I prefer to cut and package within 24 hours, quicker if it's warmer than 35. You can thaw it out in the fridge for a few days, that seems to age it just fine.
We have shot deer in the UP, had them hang for quite a while, with temp's fluctuating between freezing and the high 50's. The venison has always been great, but we are pretty good about cleaning and cooling quickly.
Yukon Moose Back Strap was Great. ( 10 years ago)
Fresh Elk Backstraps (Last Week ) a close second
Whitetails from the mid west are close third
Home State of PA Whitetails are good eating also
Had a Old Bull Elk from New Mexico several years back that was not fit to eat.
Animal Age along with the their diet makes a big difference along with the proper care and preparation of the meat.
Doc stated it better than I can:
QuoteOriginally posted by Doc Nock:
Interesting responses...
I'd have to say on each one, "IT DEPENDS".
Why?
Every animal's flesh is a product of several things
* diet (worst tasting mule deer was living in sage brush
* how it was killed (ie, dropped quickly or ran it's heart out)
* how it was handled after it hit the ground (skinned and cooled quickly, guts removed intact or all shot up and full of gastric juices
Those are just some of the factors I've found thru personal experience can seriously affect meat flavor and quality. We won't go into "tenderness" as that always seems to generate more heat then light...
That said, I never met a well handled ungulate that I didn't like, Moose, Elk, Antelope (from irrigated alfalfa ranches), Mulie (other then sage fed), and whittail.
Even small game is taste dependent on the fodder it's eating... grouse on varied diet is great fare, on juniper berries, not so much...
All things being equal regarding the care of the animal, my favorites of what I have had are, in order:
Big Horn
Bison
Pronghorn Antelope off an alfalfa field
Elk/Moose
Mountain Lion
Whitetail/Mule deer
Black Bear
Mountain Goat
I usually like it all but the best I've had was at the Carnivore Restaurant in Nairobi and that was Camel. It tasted just like veal to me. I always joke that I must have got a piece of the hump since it was so juicy and tasty.
Rabbit if fixed right
Same for squirrel
Deer
Turtle
Frog legs
Groundhog/Raccoon prepared right
young wild pigeon is very good
my Dad said muskrat fixed by a older southern lady when he was a kid was the best meat he ever ate..I could never bring myself to eat them when I trapped as they always smelled like wild onions.
Had Bear and Moose 35 yrs. ago but cant remember the taste..
Best is Moose followed closely by wildebeest.
Mike
Elk
my favorite is Pronghorn Antelope, but only if skinned and butchered the proper way.
They all taste great but elk and antelope are right at the top for us followed closely by mule deer. We've noticed that females consistently taste better than males but it doesn't stop me from trying to shoot big ones! I shot a bull calf moose on an antlerless draw tag one year and my wife still raves about him...LOL. When we had tons of deer I always made sure to get some doe tags and try to shoot one since they tasted so good. Haven't done that in a while since our deer numbers have crashed.
Dall Sheep
Moose
When I first moved here I met a Native Elder in Seldovia who taught me that black bear can be one of the very best meats available, but the key to determine a shooter is to look at the anus. I said what for? He says if the anus is purple it has been on the berries a while and is a shooter.
~CB
I really like mountain goat as well (based only on having it from several different animals.)
QuoteOriginally posted by Chromebuck:
Dall Sheep
Moose
When I first moved here I met a Native Elder in Seldovia who taught me that black bear can be one of the very best meats available, but the key to determine a shooter is to look at the anus. I said what for? He says if the anus is purple it has been on the berries a while and is a shooter.
~CB
Well I would have to say that would be stickbow close
We have a walk-in cooler and age our deer 5-7 days. We field dress as soon as possible and hang in the cooler with the hide on. Leaving the hide on, prevents them from drying out.
Lots of variables but if, somehow, all things could be equal including care and condition of animal and prep: I would say fall Black Bear that has been feeding on berries and acorns is about as good as it gets for me.
Moose followed by pronghorn ... most of my early season elk and deer have been mighty tasty also but my young bull Moose was certainly the best.
For me, This is the order I have from what big game I have eaten:
Bison
Red Deer
Elk
Hog
Whitetail
Javelina
Mule Deer
domestic hog
Beef
Exotic Sheep
All are great to eat for me. For the record, I can't stand lamb or goat, which probably explains the exotic sheep being so low on the list.
Not a long list for me, but hoping to add to it!
I had to read all the way to page 3 to find my favorite on anybody's list, and it was number two? Squirrel. Hands down.
I want Moose!
Elk
Bison
Sika Deer
Axis Deer
Sambar deer
White Tail
Love me some spanish goat also, when I was a kid growing up in Texas, all the ranchers that allowed me to hunt their land gave me the green light to kill any seen as they did not want them crossing with their angoras. Dad could cook up a fine barbeque goat.
Bighorn sheep is really good. A juicy young spike bull elk or cow is great too. Haven't tasted axis deer. But those who have say it is great.
Vanilla Ice Cream!
Seriously...I love free range Bison tenderloins! can't say that I've had "wild".
Kris
It has to be whitetail for me, I corn feed them, I put a halter on them, I tie them to a stake under my favorite tree stand, I hunt them for religiously for a month and still I miss.
Moose and elk are at the top of my list. I shot an Antelope in Wyoming back in the 90's that I thought was excellent eating......but I like sage as a spice. Whitetail and mule deer I can eat anytime......it's all good to me.
Mt lion was probably my favorite.
I eat Whitetail and rabbit all the time.
The rest of the list is what I have tried and I like it all.
bear
wild hog
caribou
elk
moose
ram
bison
quail
dove
The only that I didnt for was kangaroo.
I can't imagine anything better than a young farmland raised whitetail... but whitetail is the only thing I've tried from your list. I know for a fact that whitetail can vary from divine to pretty much inedible even if they came from the same area. A lot depends on how you handle it after the kill but there just isn't too much you can do that will make a big old rut crazed buck fit for anything except hat racks and summer sausage...but I still love hunting them..BeauJ
Moose and Elk for me! :D
My favorite is moose, but that's because I lived on it for a while and it has great sentimental value to me. I like most wild meats - like the animals themselves they all have their own personality. Best?? Whichever one I am eating at the time. :bigsmyl:
I killed a bear this fall and it was the best meat I've ever eaten - I rendered the fat and the cracklins melted in your mouth
(http://i59.tinypic.com/nbojza.jpg)
Mountain Lion is my favorite. I can't tell the difference between deer and elk. A good pronghorn is probably my second favorite.
In my opinion, the best tasting meat depends on where you are, how you got it, who you are with.
Crappy meat can be the best thing ever if you are really happy with your surroundings and in the moment!
The best meat we ever eat is whatever we bring to our butcher and cook on the open fire as we all help processing the meat.
Cream soda for the kids, 12 year old scotch for the adults, some home made beer......oh man is that fire cooked meat phenomenal!
Young deer with spots, they are milk feed like veal, or a cow elk.