Cooking Wild Game

Canadian Wild game cooking

Roated Wild Duck

Tender Moose Steaks

Canadian Maple Barbecue sauce

Wild Boar Bacon

FRUITY VENISON STEW

Lemon Wild Blueberry Scones

The Benefits of Eating Wild Game

1.Many people grew up eating wild game meat. Now there is ample evidence of the healthful benefits of eating wild game. It is even becoming fashionable to do so as evidenced by the offerings of wild game in fine restaurants around the country.

2.In general, game meat is leaner than meat from domesticated animals. The fat on game meat may have a slightly stronger taste, so you should remove it before cooking. For maximum tenderness, cook slowly – either braise in liquid, or roast and baste frequently with olive oil or other polyunsaturated cooking oil.

3.The nutritional value and quality of these meats depend on:

'Type of animal - Deer, elk, moose, caribou, or antelope.

 Age of the animal - Younger animals are usually more tender.

 Diet of the animal - Animals with access to abundant food sources have more body fat so their meat is higher in fat and calories.

4.Some game meat is higher in dietary cholesterol than domestic meats, but the combination of more lean body tissue, generally fewer calories, less saturated fat and significantly higher percentage of cholesterol-reducing polyunsaturated fatty acids makes game a heart-healthy choice.

5.Game meat also has a significantly higher content of EPA (Eico Sapentaenoic Acid, a type of omega 3 fatty acid, which is a good type of oil, often referred to as fish oil) than domestic meat. EPA is thought to reduce the risk of developing atherosclerosis, one of the major causes of heart disease and stroke.

6.Wild game contains more than five times the amount of polyunsaturated fat per gram than is found in domestic livestock, About 4 percent of wild game fat is poly unsaturated, whereas domestic beef has an undetectable amount.

7.Elk And Bison are loaded with vitamins and minerals for the nutritionally minded.

 Bison is listed as one of the five best and most healthful foods for women due to its high iron and low fat content.

 Bison has less fat and less cholesterol than skinless chicken, and is low in other fats.

Elk meat is low in Sodium. It is a good source of Niacin, Vitamin B6, and Phosphorus. Also a very good source of Protein, Vitamin B12, and Zinc.

8 Replacement of a serving of beef with a serving of moose would have the positive effect of 30.9% more of the good polyunsaturated fat, 21.3% less monounsaturated fat, and 9.7% less of the bad saturated fat per serving.

 The replacement of a serving of beef with a serving of elk would gave the positive effect of 16.7% more of the good polyunsaturated fat, and 18.9% less monounsaturated fat.

 Replacing a serving of domestic duck with a wild mallard duck would have the positive benefit of 2.25% less fat, 4% more protein and 28 fewer calories per serving.

 Replacing a serving of lamb with a serving of buffalo would have the positive benefit of 3.8% less fat, and 29 fewer calories per serving.

 The Best Part Of Game Meat Is Eating It.

9.The virtues of game meat are especially important to people with specific health conditions, including heart disease or kidney failure.

Following are some recipes

Roated Wild Duck

Serves 4.

4 small ducks (teal, wood ducks, wigeon) or 2 to 4 larger ducks (or small geese)
Lemon or orange wedges
Salt
2 to 3 celery stalks
Black pepper

1. 1.Preheat oven to 210 C or higher. 0ften cook ducks at 225 C. and small ducks are best cooked at these high temperatures. Let the oven preheat a good 20 to 30 minutes, and check the temperature before cooking. Let the ducks rest at room temperature while the oven heats up.
2. 2.If the duck is reasonably fat, use a needle to pierce the skin where there is a lot of fat under it: The front of the breast, between the breast and legs, at the flanks, and all over the back of the bird. Be careful not to pierce the meat of the breast.Rub lemon over the bird and dust it well with a salt,
3. 3. Stuff the spent lemon or orange wedge inside the duck.
4. 4.Place a few celery stalks onto an oven-proof pan, arranging them so you can rest the ducks on top. This prevents the ducks from sitting in their own juices.Roast in the oven as follows: About 10 to 15 minutes for teal or other small ducks, 13 to 20 minutes for anything up to the size of a gadwall, 18 to 25 minutes for a mallard or canvasback, and 25 to 45 minutes for a small goose.
5. 5.The key here is an internal temperature of about 65 to 70 C at the deepest part of the breast meat, which is in the front third of the breast. Ducks really need to be cooked medium-rare to medium. An overcooked duck is a sad thing.
6. 6.Take the duck out, move it to a cutting board and tent it loosely with foil. Let small ducks rest at least 5 minutes. Large ducks need to rest closer to 10 minutes, and geese up to 15 minutes.
7. 7.If you want a simple pan sauce, remove the celery and stir a 25 gr flour into the drippings, stirring well. Let this cook on the stove until this roux is the colour of coffee-with-cream.
8. 8.Add maybe a few drops of Worcestershire sauce, some wine or brandy and the juice of a lemon. If the sauce is too thick, add a little water or stock. Whisk everything to combine and taste for salt. Turn off the heat, add minced parsley and a knob of butter. Swirl to combine and serve it hot.

Tender Moose Steaks

2 bay leaves
20 ml dried onion flakes

500 gr moose round steak
600 ml Canadian Maple Barbecue sauce ( recipe to follow)

1.Place a steamer insert into a saucepan, and fill with vegetable syock to just below the bottom of the steamer.
2 .Add the bay leaves and onion flakes to the stock. Cover, and bring the stock to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium low to maintain a simmer. Add the moose, recover, and steam until fork tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours depending on thickness, adding water to the pot as needed.

4.Pour the barbecue sauce into a large sauce pan over medium heat; once warm, add the moose and reduce heat to low; simmer 45 minutes.

Canadian Maple Barbecue sauce

Ingredients:

Makes approx. 6oo ml. BBQ sauce
300 ml. Ketchup
75 ml apple cider vinegar
25 ml coconut oil
2 ml. Molasses
200 ml maple syrup
15 ml onion powder
10 ml ground mustard
3 ml. sea salt
4 ml garlic granules

Method

1. In a medium saucepan mix together all ingredients. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer
2. Simmer for 20minutes (uncovered), stirring occasionally.
   3. Pour jar and refrigerate untill needed

Wild Boar Bacon

2 good sized wild boar bellies

Brine:

6 liter of water

500 ml sea salt

125 ml curing salt

50 ml whole peppercorns

50 ml garlic powder

75 ml onion powder

75 ml Worcestershire sauce

225 ml brown sugar

Mix brine ingredients and soak pork belly for 2 days then take the belly out and rinse under cool water.

Hang meat in clean area and dry with a fan for 1 hours until pelicle forms

Cold smoke for two hours using apple wood chips.

Freeze, slice thinly and enjoy!

For a really great experience try making some home-made caramel candies and top each caramel with a bit of this Wild Boar Bacon.

FRUITY VENISON STEW

1 kg venison, cut into 5 cm chunks

1–2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, sliced
125 ml red wine
3 cooking apples, each cut into 6 pieces
125 ml parsley
2 sprigs oregano
250 ml cherry tomatoes, halved
10 prunes
salt and pepper to taste
oil for cooking

Iingretients

1.Brown the meat on both sides evenly. Add the onions and garlic and fry for a minute or two. Next add the parsley and oregano, giving it a few stirs, and then the rest of the ingredients.

2.Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and allow to simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, until the meat is tender. Stir from time to time to make sure the apples, prunes and tomatos aren’t being trapped at the bottom. You may need to add a little water as well.

Lemon Wild Blueberry Scones

8-10 scones

Ingredients

• 500 ml whole wheat pastry flour, plus more for dusting
• 15 ml baking powder
• 2 mlsalt
• 50 ml sugar, plus more for sprinkling
• 60 ml coconut oil, frozen
• zest of one lemon
• 110 ml plain Greek yogurt
• 180 ml milk, plus more for brushing
• 5 ml vanilla extract
• 250 ml Wild Blueberries

Method

1. 1. Heat oven to 200 C Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat.
2. 2.Combine whole wheat pastry flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl.
3. Add the coconut oil and cut with a fork until the oil is in pea-sized pieces.
4. 3.In a separate bowl, combine the lemon zest, Greek yogurt, milk, and vanilla.
5. Add the wet ingr. to the dry ingredients and stir until combined.
6. 4.Stir in the frozen Wild Blueberries, then pat the dough out onto a floured surface into a cm thick circle.
7. 5.Cut the dough into 8 wedges or cut with cookie cutters. Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet, brush with a small amount of milk, and sprinkle lightly with sugar.
8. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until the edges of the scones are browned and the centers spring back when touched.

Native Canadians Recipes

Recipes

Pemmican Cakes

Three Sisters Soup

Bannock Bread

Ojibwa Wild Rice

Strawberries Poached in Honey Syrup

1 GEOGRAPHIC SETTING AND ENVIRONMENT

The phrases "Native Canadians" or "Aboriginals" describe the descendants of the people who were living in what is modern-day Canada before European colonists, explorers, and traders arrived in the 1600s. Giving labels to these groups is complicated by emotional and historical issues. Aboriginals inhabited all regions of Canada and the United States, and lived, hunted, fished, and foraged (gathered native plants) all across North America. The provinces of modern-day Canada obviously did not exist when the Europeans arrived on the east coast of Canada.

2 HISTORY AND FOOD

In general, most Canadians agree that the approximately 800,000 Aboriginal Canadians counted by the 1996 Census of Population may be identified as belonging to one of three groups: First Nations (554,000), Métis (210,000), and Inuit (Innu, 40,000). The First Nations people are members of the approximately 50 recognized "First Nations" or tribal groups in Canada, and they inhabit all parts of Canada. The Métis are descendants of the intermarriages that occurred between the men employed by the early European fur trading companies (Hudson's Bay Company and Northwest Fur Company) and Native Canadian women.

The Inuit are the descendants of the Thule people who migrated from the Canadian arctic 700 to 800 years ago. They have been inhabiting the territory of modern Canada for thousands of years. They were historically hunters and fishers. Because of the harsh climate of their northern homelands, the Inuit diet included very few fresh vegetables or fruits. In the short summers, they would gather berries, both for eating fresh and for drying to eat during the long, cold winter. They would also gather seeds and nuts to store to supplement the winter diet. Grains such as corn, wheat, and wild rice were harvested and dried. Grains would sometimes be ground to produce flour, or mixed with water and cooked.

Pemmican is a nutritious, high calorie food that can be prepared in quantities and stored. The French and English explorers, trappers, and traders, bought large quantities of pemmican from the Aboriginals, and even learned to make pemmican. Pemmican would be sealed inside an animal skin or stomach cavity to preserve it. Europeans carried these pemmican stores on long furtrading expeditions.

Pemmican Cakes

Ingredients serves 12

300 gr beef jerky
300 gr dried berries, such as dried blueberries, cranberries, or cherries
300 gr chopped nuts
110 gr vegetable shortening
20 gr Honey
12-cup muffin tin

Method

1. Line muffin cups with paper liners (or grease cups well).
2. Grind or chop beef jerky into confettisize pieces to make about 250 gr Melt shortening in a saucepan.
3. Remove from heat, stir in beef jerky, dried berries, and seeds. Stir in honey.
4. Spoon about 85 gr of the pemmican mixture into each muffin cup. Press down firmly to make a cake, smoothing the top.
5. Refrigerate until well set.

Three Sisters Soup Serves 12

Ingredients

2 L chicken Stock
500 gr frozen corn, thawed
250 gr green beans or yellow wax beans
350 gr of butternut squash (or pumpkin)
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Pour the chicken Stock into a large saucepan or kettle. Heat until the broth begins to boil.
2. Add the corn, beans, squash, and bay leaves.
3. Lower heat and simmer for 45 minutes.
4. Add optional spices if desired, and simmer 15 more minutes.
5. Remove the bay leaves, and transfer the soup in batches to the blender to puree if desired. Serve with bannock (bread).

Bannock Bread

Bannock may be baked in the oven or over a charcoal or open fire

Ingredients

1 kg all-purpose flour
15 ml sugar
15 ml baking powder
3 mlteaspoon salt
500 ml milk (or water)

Method

1. Combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
2. Measure the milk (or water) and add it to the flour mixture, stirring with a fork to combine. A dough should form. If the mixture seems too dry and crumbly, add more liquid, few drops at a time.
3. Turn the dough out onto a surface lightly coated with flour. Knead for about 3 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to180°C .
5. Pat the dough into a circle about 2 cm thick. Transfer the dough to a well-greased cookie sheet. Prick the surface of the dough all over with a fork.
6. Bake about 20 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Man-O-Min (Ojibwa Wild Rice) serves 12

Ingredients

250 gr wild rice
1 lt water
5 ml salt
Method

Wash the wild rice in a colander or bowl, changing the water two or three times.
Measure water into a large saucepan; add salt. Heat the water to boiling.
Slowly add the rinsed rice to the boiling water. Lower heat to medium and simmer the rice, undisturbed, for about 40 minutes. (Do not stir the rice.)
The rice grains will swell to four times their original size.
Serve hot or at room temperature.

Strawberries Poached in Honey Syrup

1 lt fresh strawberries, washed and stemmed
85 mlhoney
30 ml sugar
85 ml water

Place honey, sugar, and water in a saucepan, and boil rapidly for 5 minutes.
Reduce heat, drop in whole strawberries, and simmer for 5 minutes.
Turn off heat and let the berries cool to room temperature in the syrup.
May serve warm or cold, ladling syrup over each portion.

Canadian East Coast Recipes

Eats coast menu

The Maritimes (east Coast )

The East Coast region of Canada has some unique foods; the region has foodstuffs that are indigenous to the area and cultural phenomena has brought non-native foods to the area. . On the East coast, the Maritimes as some of the cuisine has its origins in the foods of the indigenous peoples .

The traditional aboriginal cuisine of Canada was based on a mixture of wild game, foraged foods, and farmed agricultural products. Each region of Canada with its First Nation and Inuit people used their local resources and own food preparation techniques for their cuisine.

When we think of east coast we always think of seafood but here are some favourites that are not seafood as the following

Hodge Podge soup true East Coasters

Oxtail Stew very popular East Coast of Canada

Caramelized Onion Scalloped Red Potatoes

Boiled ham dinner

Atlantic Sticky Toffee Pudding

Hodge Podge soup (serves 6)

250 gr new small potatoes
250 gr new tender small carrots
250 gr peas from the garden
250 gr green beans
few samll pearl onion
75 gr blend of margarine or butter
Water enough to cover

Method

1.You can use any combination of garden vegetables you would like for a Hodge Podge, fresh from the garden are the best.

2.Prepare the vegetables, add salt and put in big pot with just enough water to cook them without burning. Start with the vegetables that will take the longest to cook and add the others accordingly so they are all done about the same time.

3.Drain most of the water off now. Add the blend margarine or butter, salt and pepper to taste and heat just to the boiling point. Serve hot.
4. This makes a complete meal with lots of vitamins and nutrition and taste so good.
5. Could serve with tea biscuts

Oxtail Stew East Coast of Canada ( serve 6 )

Ingredients

1.3kg oxtails with separated joints bone in
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
475 ml stock beef
475 ml of red wine
3 whole cloves garlic, peel still on
One bay leaf
Pinch of thyme
Parsley

2 carrots, cut into 3 cm segments, large pieces also cut lengthwise
2 parsnips, cut into 3 cm segments, large pieces also cut lengthwise
2 turnips or rutabagas, cut into 3 cm pieces
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Method

1. Brown the oxtails ,Pat dry oxtails with paper towels. Sprinkle oxtails all over with salt and pepper. Heat 1 15 ml of olive oil on medium to high heat in a Dutch oven. Working in batches, and not crowding the pan, sear the oxtails in hot pan on all sides until golden brown. Use tongs to remove oxtails to a plate, setting aside.

Saute add chopped Sauté onions, carrots, celery:add the chopped onion, carrot, and celery to the pan.

3.Cook for a few minutes until onions are translucent.Add oxtails, garlic, bay leaf, thyme, salt, stock, wine, then simmer:Add the oxtails back to the pan. Add the whole garlic cloves, the stock and wine. Add bay leaf, thyme, and half a teaspoon of salt. Bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook for 3 hours, until meat is fork tender.

4 Roast root vegetables:One hour before the meat is done, heat oven to175°C. Toss carrots, parsnips, and turnips in olive oil in a roasting pan. Sprinkle well with salt and pepper. Roast vegetables for 1 hour, or until lightly browned and cooked through.

5 Skim fat:When meat is tender, remove oxtails from the cooking liquid. Either skim the fat off the top with a spoon, use a fat separator to remove the fat, or chill the cooking liquid for several hours so that the fat solidifies, making it easier to remove. If you are making ahead, at this point you can just put the stew in the refrigerator (let come to room temp first), with the oxtails still in it, and let it chill over night. The next day, scrape off the fat, reheat and then remove the meat from the dish.

6 Strain solids from cooking liquid, reduce liquid:Pour the cooking liquid through a mesh strainer into a bowl, using a rubber spatula to press against the vegetable solids caught in the strainer. Discard the solids. Return the liquid to the pan and simmer until reduced by half.

7 Add back oxtails, roasted vegetables:Then add back in the oxtails, and add the roasted vegetables to the pan. Heat on low heat for half an hour for the flavors to meld.

Add some chopped parsley before serving.

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 10 min. Cook: 25 min.

MAKES: 4 servings

Boiled ham

Ingredients

• 1 piece boneless fully cooked ham (16 ounces)
• 6 medium carrots, halved lengthwise and cut into thirds
• 4 medium red potatoes, quartered
• 2 medium onions, cut into wedges
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns
• 1 garlic clove, halved
• 1/2 teaspoon whole allspice
• 1/2 medium head cabbage, cut into wedges

Directions

1. Place the ham, carrots, potatoes and onions in a Dutch oven. Place the bay leaf, thyme, peppercorns, garlic and allspice on a double thickness of cheesecloth; bring up corners of cloth and tie with kitchen string.
2. Add to pan. Add water just to cover the ham and vegetables; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add cabbage; cover and simmer 15-20 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender; drain. Discard spice bag. Yield: 4 servings.

Caramelized Onion Scalloped Red Potatoes

Ingredients

10 large red potatoes, thinly sliced
6 large spanish or vidalia onions, sliced
15 ml canola oil
15 ml flour
15 ml butter
540 ml cream
500 ml milk
500 ml gruyere cheese, divided
30 ml dijon mustard
3 sprigs fresh thyme
sprinkle salt and pepper

Preparation

1. Wash potatoes.
2. Keeping skin on, slice thinly into 2 cm thick slices.
3. Store in tub of water so they do not brown.

Caramelized Onions

1. Thinly slice onions.
2. Add 15 mlcanola oil to a pan on medium heat.
3. Cook onions for rougly 45 minutes-1 hour until brown and caramelized, stirring frequently.

Sauce

4. Melt butter in a medium pot, add flour and stir until slightly browned
5. Slowly add in milk whisking constantly.

6.Add in cream, mustard, thyme and salt and pepper and cook over medium heat until it thickens (about 8-10 minutes).
7 Add 1/2 cheese and stir until melted.
8.Pour cream sauce over top, sprinkle remaining cheese over top.
9.Grease deep 9 by 9 inch baking dish, layer potatoes and caramelized onions, seasoning each layer with salt and pepper.
10Bake at 190 C for 1 hour.

Perfect Atlantci Sticky Toffee Pudding

Ingredients

25 gr chopped pitted dried dates
325 ml cups water
90 ml butter
250 ml firmly packed brown sugar
10 ml vanilla extract
2 extra large eggs
50 ml molasses
30 ml golden syrup (or substitute dark corn syrup)
325 ml all purpose flour
3ml baking powder
5 ml baking soda

For the toffee sauce

125 ml whipping cream
60 ml butter
75 ml firmly packed brown sugar
15 ml molasses
30 ml golden syrup
10 ml vanilla extract

Method

1. Add the dates and water to a small saucepan.
2.Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat for only a couple of minutes. Let stand for a few minutes while preparing the rest of the batter.
3.Cream together the butter brown sugar and vanilla.
4.Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5.Add the molasses and golden syrup and beat well.6.Sift together the flour and baking powder.
6.Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture in three equal portions mixing until smooth after each addition.
7.Puree the date mixture in a food processor or blender before mixing in the baking soda.
8.Add this hot mixture immediately to the batter and mix until smooth.
9.Pour batter into well greased and floured muffin tins and bake for about 18 – 20 minutes at190 C until; the center is just firm.
10 .Serve warm with Toffee Sauce.

To make the toffee sauce

1.Bring all of the ingredients to a slow rolling boil for about 2 min before serving over the baked puddings.

Simple Pasta

Simple and Best Carbonara

100 gr Dry Spaghetti

2 Large Eggs

5-6 slices Bacon

100 ml Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 Garlic Clove, minced

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

Method

1. Cook spaghetti according to package directions.
2. Chop bacon.
3. While the spaghetti is cooking, in a skillet, heat olive oil and minced garlic. Cook over medium heat until fragrant. Add bacon and cook until crisp. Turn off the heat and set aside.
4. About 3 minutes before the spaghetti s cooked, heat the skillet again (low heat).
5. In the meantime, in a bowl, beat eggs and stir in parmesan cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. When the spaghetti is cooked, drain and add to the skillet. Toss to coat quickly. Turn off the heat and add egg mixture little by little tossing to coat well.
7. Place the carbonara on each serving plate. Sprinkle black pepper and parmesan cheese over the spaghetti.