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utilization of elk meat

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utilization of elk meat

Postby snowbank » 03 02, 2019 •  [Post 1]

I recently read a number of articles on elk processing. Most say a bull elk will yield about 100# of meat. My experienc of many years is that a bull in quarters will run as high as 420 # and a cow will run about 280-300 #. when I pitch the bones I might lose 25-30#. I rarely lose more than 10-15 pounds of bloodshot and fat. My math says the deliversable to the freezer is a lot more than 100 #.

What I have seen in the field is that todays hunters don't take the shanks, rib or neck meat or anything else that will make burger or roughly half of the elk feeds the ravens. A friend of mine (outfitter) that his biggest dilema is how to get rid of the meat because his clients only want the head.

Am I part of the last generation that hunts elk for the meat and eats all of it? It's getting pretty hard to be proud of what hunters have become.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 03 02, 2019 •  [Post 2]

100#s? What are the articles “promoting”? Straps, loins, and some of the hind meat? That’s looney tunes at best. All the hunters I know relish the meat they harvest from their elk.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby snowbank » 03 02, 2019 •  [Post 3]

dial up quartering elk. Most of the comments especially those on the gutless method outline the procedure.. Last year I found a calf where only the backstraps were taken. The kill over the hill took the backstraps, hams, and tenderloins. It's kind of sad. I'm glad you stillnvalue the resource. I wish there were more.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 03 02, 2019 •  [Post 4]

Yep. No doubt they are out there. Ran into a couple of backcountry hunters in a WA wilderness area a handful of years ago who were camped in there. Noticed blood on their packs “after” they said they hadn’t gotten into much. They recanted and said they helped a buddy pack out a cow down lower the day before. Affter I found a calf pretty close to their camp with only the straps, loins, and a chunk of hind quarter removed, I reported them to the game warden. Ya, they do exist and it makes me sick.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby Swede » 03 02, 2019 •  [Post 5]

A spike or small cow will net about 120# of meat. A large bull will net up to 250#. A large cow will come close to 200#. These are my estimates only and I have not actually measured what I have taken from the butcher shop. Now if we are talking Roosevelt elk, I believe you can take those numbers considerably higher.
I find gutless field butchering nets very little loss of meat. I don't work out the meat between the ribs, but get everything else.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby Elkhunttoo » 03 03, 2019 •  [Post 6]

Good topic.

I do all of my own butchering, I shot a young bull this last year with my rifle. I ruined 10-15 pounds with blood shot. Guessing I would say I have around 135 pounds that I put in the freezer. We eat lots of hamburger, I think we had right around 70 packages that were just over a pound a piece and then a bunch of roast and steaks. We barbecued steaks off of one back strap the night we packed it out (that would of been about 3-4 more packages of steaks) I do the same as Swede and leave the meat in between the ribs. I do my best to get everything else out. I trim out as much as I possibly can and we don't add any fat to our hamburger.

So I guess what my rambling is getting at is with a perfect shot (no blood shot) and not eating any before I froze it. I would of been around 150 ish pounds of red yummy elk meat
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby Tigger » 03 04, 2019 •  [Post 7]

I have never come across someone who wastes any elk meat. We take it all except between the ribs also. In fact, my freezer is getting low on elk meat and that bums me out!
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby BrentLaBere » 03 04, 2019 •  [Post 8]

My personal experience has shown the opposite. Seems with the more information and cooking techniques the more people are willing to try different recipes. Valuing the meat more.

Only 100 lbs on a bull? seems pretty light.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby DWBMontana » 03 04, 2019 •  [Post 9]

I have always been told a good rough estimate of the meat you will garnish off any animal is a third of it's live weight.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby Lefty » 03 04, 2019 •  [Post 10]

While I know of a few waterfowl hunters who don’t want to keep the meat
I only suspect two elkhunting families who don’t eat elk.


Years back the one family had plus have their elk processed
By December they were giving it away some of those years we revived 50 -150 lb

My father in law has always given away his game
He announce after he was a working man he was eating beef because he grew up eating fish and game he killed . So early in our marriage years my wife and I were getting his processed elk
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby Swede » 03 04, 2019 •  [Post 11]

I too give away a lot of my elk meat. As long as it is not wasted, I am pleased. I would guess I could give away a ton of elk meat, cut and wrapped, if I had it to give. :D
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby six » 03 05, 2019 •  [Post 12]

meat1.jpg
meat1.jpg (205.26 KiB) Viewed 4854 times


I lost sleep over leaving this meat on the mountain over night. It was midnight when we got the first load back to camp and hung over the river. We were exhausted and hungry. I worried it wasn't hung high enough or far enough from the carcass. I was very glad to see the game bags still in tacked as we approached the next morning at daylight. Meat in the cooler means a happy wife when I get home.
Elk are where you find em...
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby elkstalker » 03 06, 2019 •  [Post 13]

I pack and process all my own meat, on my largest bull I packed out 2 100 lb or more boned out packs and then the head, straps, tenderloins and scraps. Smaller bulls can be really variable, between maybe 120 and 180 pounds boned out. Cows 100-200 pounds boned out. We use it all, and if I have any leftover the next year and I harvest again I usually grind last years and use it for sausage, or sometimes give some away to family or friends who need it. Aside from a good beef steak every once and a while; elk, deer, antelope, goose and duck is the only red meat we eat.
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 03 06, 2019 •  [Post 14]

Can't remember where I found this but I've had it for a while. Seems pretty close to being correct.

elkmeatyield.jpg
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby ishy » 03 06, 2019 •  [Post 15]

So I have taken a liking to Pure Trophies Sound of September videos on youtube. They are a bunch of Asian brothers and friends that I can hardly understand half the time, but they do really good in tough country (looks like my neck of the Northwest) and on film to boot. Anyway I think I saw them cutting intestines and saying it was one of their favorite meats!? Maybe I just misinterpreted that scene but I will try to find it again to be sure. So I will have to keep looking to be sure I heard what I think I heard. It just seems to ironic that what most of us avoid like it has ebola is another hunters favorite cut!
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 03 06, 2019 •  [Post 16]

ishy wrote:So I have taken a liking to Pure Trophies Sound of September videos on youtube. They are a bunch of Asian brothers and friends that I can hardly understand half the time, but they do really good in tough country (looks like my neck of the Northwest) and on film to boot. Anyway I think I saw them cutting intestines and saying it was one of their favorite meats!? Maybe I just misinterpreted that scene but I will try to find it again to be sure. So I will have to keep looking to be sure I heard what I think I heard. It just seems to ironic that what most of us avoid like it has ebola is another hunters favorite cut!


:shock:
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Re: utilization of elk meat

Postby BrentLaBere » 03 07, 2019 •  [Post 17]

WapitiTalk1 wrote:Can't remember where I found this but I've had it for a while. Seems pretty close to being correct.

elkmeatyield.jpg


Interesting chart. My bull from this last year was estimated by game and fish to be 6 years old (had ear tags) at the time of harvest. Bone in weight was 265 lbs. I did keep the tenderloins and a part of a back strap for camp meat.
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