what's the definative answer? cow elk meat better?

[pointysticks]

i rallied my troops last night..

like always. the question, the same question goes shooting around. "what animal are you willing to take?" big trophy bull? anything?

one guy without hesitation said.."cow elk, no doubt" i just want the meat".

that said, in general...is cow elk better as table fare? our last bull was so delicious! never eaten a cow.
i do know that a sow is tastier than a UN-nuteured mature boar.

you cant call in a cow..so it is all spot and stalk on the girls?

[Swede]

It depends on the animal and when you kill it, but a good bull is as good eating as any cow. Most of the quality of elk meat has to do with how it was cared for. A good animal, that is healthy and gaining weight is going to be good. If you shoot an old bull that has lost a lot of weight in the rut, then he would be tougher. Enjoy your trophy.

[>>>---WW---->]

If a trophy bull happened to walk by and present a shot, I don't know of anyone that would pass up the chance regardless of what they tell you However, for the best taste, nothing beats a calf. Yearlings are great also regardless of sex. Some bulls are good and some aren't as good as others. But almost any elk is OK. Farmers don't butcher beef bulls. But they do get rid of them after they can no longer produce. Places like McDonalds always has buyers looking for hamburger critters. So your example of sow v bore is also true.And by the way, you can call cows.

I've seen you mention pig hunting several times. Could you recommend a good place for a few Colorado hunters to go? We have tried 7-bar and Dos Plumas in the past.

[cnelk]

Who says you can't call in cows?!
I've had cows almost run me over!
They can come in so fast you barely have time to draw

[elkmtngear]

Some of the 5 year old bulls we've taken have been just as good as a first year cow. Its all good!

[elkmtngear]

you cant call in a cow..so it is all spot and stalk on the girls?

We've called in many cows over the years...and killed several of them

[Jaquomo]

Cows are easy to call in.

Last year I killed a big mature 6-7 year old bull. Shot him the night before but we didn't recover him until the next morning, and the night-time low temp was maybe 50. He's as tender and tasty as any yearling dry cow I've ever killed. We quartered and packed him out, drove 90 minutes to a walk-in cooler, and I aged him for 12 days before butchering. Wonderful meat, didn't lose a scrap.

[Huntrgathr]

It's all personal preference. I think most guys prefer cows because they are generally milder in flavor and usually more tender but the biggest variation will be based on the age of the animal. Cows are too mild for my taste. I like a little "gaminess". Personally, I think spikes are the best eating ( but not as much meat). Cows are smaller than bulls of the same age and so have smaller muscles. For me, the best elk for a meat hunter is a 3.5 year old bull- Lots of meat, not too tough, just the right amount of elk flavor...

That being said,I'll take any elk over an empty freezer. On the years I didn't score an elk, every beef meal I had was a reminder of my unsuccessful hunt. And that's tough meat to swallow...

[pointysticks]

If a trophy bull happened to walk by and present a shot, I don't know of anyone that would pass up the chance regardless of what they tell you However, for the best taste, nothing beats a calf. Yearlings are great also regardless of sex. Some bulls are good and some aren't as good as others. But almost any elk is OK. Farmers don't butcher beef bulls. But they do get rid of them after they can no longer produce. Places like McDonalds always has buyers looking for hamburger critters. So your example of sow v bore is also true.And by the way, you can call cows.

I've seen you mention pig hunting several times. Could you recommend a good place for a few Colorado hunters to go? We have tried 7-bar and Dos Plumas in the past.

haha..you dont know some of my friends. my bud had a cow elk targeted. before he left he declared.."cow or nothing". him and his son went to unit 51 in NM. son arrowed a small bull..done. dad..went after his cow. they got to a low point in the fence where the elk were crossing..he said it was a parade. (there is some video). a big 6x6 got in the way..and you can hear them whispering.."Shoot dad!. no..i need the bull out of the way.. no dad..shoot the bull..no, i want a cow. it was awesome. in the end..there was a 50 something yard shot..and cow down.

my friend told me he was so frustrated with his dad..now they can laugh about it. awesome hunting family.

pig hunting for you.. $600, tejon ranch, north of LA. i think they have an annual "pig o rama" that happens every time around now. if you bowhunt..i can tell you another more difficult place..but pratically free. ($30 plus your tags and stuff)

i have a guy that keep stiffing me on hunts. he promised to take me on a guided hunt soon..on his dime. haha. we will see. if i find out, i will tell you.

[pointysticks]

Who says you can't call in cows?!
I've had cows almost run me over!
They can come in so fast you barely have time to draw

i did not know this!! wow.

[Trophyhill]

I've killed both and one hasn't been better or worse than the other! It's all about being opportunistic for me. Or at least it has been up to this point. My goal is to some day kill a monster herd bull but cows are always on the menu. I know too many guys that have passed cows and end up with tag stew. I love eating elk no matter what sex it is.

[atfrith]

I've yet to eat any elk we've killed that didn't taste as good as the next. I'm a believer in it's all in how you take of the prize after the shot is taken.

[Indian Summer]

It depends on the animal and when you kill it, but a good bull is as good eating as any cow. Most of the quality of elk meat has to do with how it was cared for. A good animal, that is healthy and gaining weight is going to be good. If you shoot an old bull that has lost a lot of weight in the rut, then he would be tougher. Enjoy your trophy.

Ditto.... every word!

Huntrgathr... you like gamey? Huh, never heard anyone say that before. If I liked gamey I'd be a mad deer hunter. I eat nothing but elk because I don't care for gamey at all.

I hate it when I call cows in. Can lead to getting busted and blowing the whole deal. Yes.. they come in!

[Huntrgathr]

Huntrgathr... you like gamey? Huh, never heard anyone say that before. If I liked gamey I'd be a mad deer hunter. I eat nothing but elk because I don't care for gamey at all.

Yes I do prefer a game flavor to my meat. That's what it's supposed to taste like. I'm not talking gamey like poorly handled or overaged meat - just the natural gaminess that game animals have. And I do prefer deer to elk. I won't spend the $ on beef because it just tastes so bland to me after living on game for so many years.

It's true that post harvest handling has the biggest effect on overall quality but there is still a difference in bulls vs cows and young vs old animals.

[Indian Summer]

Huntrgathr... you like gamey? Huh, never heard anyone say that before. If I liked gamey I'd be a mad deer hunter. I eat nothing but elk because I don't care for gamey at all.

Yes I do prefer a game flavor to my meat. That's what it's supposed to taste like. I'm not talking gamey like poorly handled or overaged meat - just the natural gaminess that game animals have. And I do prefer deer to elk. I won't spend the $ on beef because it just tastes so bland to me after living on game for so many years.

It's true that post harvest handling has the biggest effect on overall quality but there is still a difference in bulls vs cows and young vs old animals.

I totally agree with your take on beef. I guess it all comes down to what a person is used too. I haven't eaten a whole lot of anything but elk for the past 15 years. But regardless of what you're used to everyone has different tastes too. You couldn't pay me to eat liver while some love the stuff. I hunt deer. My dogs eat every bit including the backstraps. But even for them I clean every single tiny piece of fat and connective tissue off like I was going to eat it myself. Do you do that Hunrgathr or does a little enhance the taste you like? I guess the key sentence to your post would be "not game as in poorly handled" You're just talking about the difference in the actual meat. I agree with that for sure.

To answer the question though... back to Swede's post.

[JGH]

I agree ... beef is rarely flavorful.

To get really good beef, it takes aging, and some sort of salt/pepper/spices ... corn-fed beef is totally bland, IMO. Not "bad", just bland.

As for game meat, I don't think there is a good answer on how to predict which animal will taste good, and which won't.

The worst antelope I ever had was a very young buck shot off of alfalfa. The worst whitetail was a very memorable fawn, shot with a muzzleloader in the snow at about 10 degrees and gutted within 10 minutes of death.

I remember one older whitetail buck shot 5 times over about a quarter mile (it wasn't pretty) and he tasted excellent.

Who knows?

[Jaquomo]

Plains muleys are wonderful eating. I only shoot mature bucks during the rut, and will put that meat up beside any game meat I've ever eaten, including caribou. We're rationing the meat form the one I killed last year because it's so special. I feed it to others and they won't believe it's mule deer.

[Indian Summer]

I shot two caribou in Quebec and did all the processing myself. It was hands down the best meat I have ever eaten. Then I had a friend give me some bou and I was extremely disappointed as it wasn't very good at all. I've heard it said that moose was the best. I've eaten that too and still thought elk was better. But I always felt that if I shot my own moose and did it myself it would probably be better than the moose meat I ate.

[Bowhunter]

I shot two caribou in Quebec and did all the processing myself. It was hands down the best meat I have ever eaten. Then I had a friend give me some bou and I was extremely disappointed as it wasn't very good at all. I've heard it said that moose was the best. I've eaten that too and still thought elk was better. But I always felt that if I shot my own moose and did it myself it would probably be better than the moose meat I ate.

The reason yours tastes better is because with every bite you taste success and it tastes great.

[Washington Wapiti]

It's like pizza . . . hot or cold, new or old, it is ALL good! I've only killed a bull as of now, but I've eaten a lot of elk taken by friends or co-workers or what have you. I have yet to have a bad cut whether it is male or female. Like others here, I do believe good care in every step from field to table is essential to the quality of the end product. Bowhunter, for sure there is NOTHING like the taste of hardwork and victory!

[Jaquomo]

Joe, I wish I'd done my own caribou processing on the first trip. I let the processers behind the hotels in Montreal do it and flash-freeze it. Not sure whose meat I got, but it had bone fragments in the meat and some sand mixed in, and I was hunting with a longbow.

Second trip I brought the meat back boned, and it was definitely MUCH better quality.

As far as elk, a spike is as good as it gets. Back before I started hunting herd bulls, I shot six of those little buggers. Wonderful.

[jswbga]

some might be better than others, but I've never, ever had anything I'd call "bad" elk off a fork.

it makes sense to me that cows would be better than bulls, because of the testosterone.

I will say this..... you're unlikely to kill a 10 year old bull (we dont let them get that old.....) whereas a lead cow may be that old or older, and I've heard that a genuinely old lead cow is a tough chew. I've never had any, but thats what I heard from a Colorado guide who eats elk every year, so I'm inclined to believe him.

shane

[Indian Summer]

I guess there's an equal and opposite story for every one told. One year I killed a huge lead cow. Ivories worn down flat to the gums. I had my doubts for sure but it was very good eating. But I did everything right and fast too.

[Bullnuts]

Worst elk I ever had was a wet cow. Holy moly - like chewing on an old boot. I guess the milk production takes a lot of the nutrients and flavor out of the meat. Best elk I ever had was a young bull. That dude had steaks that cut like butter! My family will go through an entire elk in about 6 months - steaks, roasts, even the stew meat - so we eat every bite and I try to get one in the freezer every year. I will not, however, ever shoot another wet cow.