Tatume
.400 member
Reged: 09/06/07
Posts: 1091
Loc: Gloucester, Va USA
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Hello Folks, I'm planning my first plains game hunt in South Africa. To me a trophy sits on a plate surrounded by gravy. I’ll be bringing back my memories, but no heads or rugs. One of my objectives is to eat some delicious game. Which animals should I seek for culinary value? Thank you.
Take care, Tom
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9.3x57
.450 member
Reged: 22/04/07
Posts: 5561
Loc: United States
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Quote:
Hello Folks, I'm planning my first plains game hunt in South Africa. To me a trophy sits on a plate surrounded by gravy. I’ll be bringing back my memories, but no heads or rugs. One of my objectives is to eat some delicious game. Which animals should I seek for culinary value? Thank you.
Take care, Tom
How come no heads/rugs? Where exactly are you going?
As for the grubsteak, dang near anything.
You won't get offered it anyway, but avoid zebra in my opinion. Waxy yellow fat, yuck.
But you can buy biltong from a whole variety of game critters and of course if you are hunting what you shoot will be prime table fare assuming it isn't taken from you immediately to the abattoir for eventual sale, etc. And don't forget road kill! I once wounded a duiker with a Classic Big Bore {...a Toyota pickup... } one night. Killed it with my pocket-knife and enjoyed several delectable meals as a result!
I just plain miss ostrich biltong, and steaks, chops and various prepared dishes from bushbuck, warthog, duiker, gemsbok, blesbuck, impala, etc, etc, etc are hard to beat. Man, it is hard to go wrong.
And really, for an American who grew up being taught the taboo of "market-hunted" meat, I found the species variety of commercially-available meat most amazing. My freezer right now is full of home-grown lamb, chicken and pork and locally shot elk, deer, bear, grouse and turkey so we relish it all. If you are similar, you'll really enjoy the culinary choices of southern Africa!
-------------------- What are the Rosary, the Cross or the Crucifix other than tools to help maintain the fortress of our faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
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Kalunga
.333 member
Reged: 16/06/06
Posts: 328
Loc: Germany
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For my taste, Oryx and Roan are delicious and hard to beat. Bushbuck is also nice. Of course Ostrich is worth a try.
Kalunga
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Ripp
.577 member
Reged: 19/02/07
Posts: 16072
Loc: Montana, USA
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Quote:
Hello Folks, I'm planning my first plains game hunt in South Africa. To me a trophy sits on a plate surrounded by gravy. I’ll be bringing back my memories, but no heads or rugs. One of my objectives is to eat some delicious game. Which animals should I seek for culinary value? Thank you.
Take care, Tom
There are MANY good choices IMHO.. personally I really liked Eland and Kudu---Springbok was also very, very good.. Not sure if buffalo is on your list as you are going to S Africa--but if you have a chance at it, it is AWESOME...
Ripp
-------------------- ALL MEN DIE, BUT FEW MEN TRULY LIVE..
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armbar
.300 member
Reged: 25/05/05
Posts: 201
Loc: So Cal USA
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It's all good IMO. The Buf biltong is great, you could live on it for days with nothing else. But for the finest meat of all, my vote is for Giraffe tail. Something like Ox tail, it has lots of fat that keeps it moist and tender, which some of the other animals lack.
Let us know your favorites.
Armbar.
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xausa
.400 member
Reged: 07/03/07
Posts: 2037
Loc: Tennessee, USA
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In my experience, virtually everything in the antelope family is not only edible, but very tasty. The one exception being waterbuck, which has a fat which congeals as it cools and is in the opinion of many, inedible. (The African staff doesn't mind it, however.)
I have heard that elephant trunk roasted over a slow fire tastes like brawn, but I have no experience of it. One buffalo can furnish a lot of biltong, and if seasoned correctly is very tasty for a daytime snack.
I suppose my favorites were eland, kudu and Thompson's gazelle, although klipspringer chops are quite a treat.
Don't worry about anything gong to waste. The local tribespeople will take anything you don't want and seem to especially relish zebra. Also, the Egyptian vultures ans hyenas will gladly clean up the mess for you.
We once drove away from a buffalo carcass after removing all we wanted and five minutes later there was nothing left but bones. We drove by the same spot later in the day and all we could find was a pile of grass representing the stomach contents. All very efficient.
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mikeh416Rigby
.450 member
Reged: 24/02/03
Posts: 6051
Loc: The beautiful Oley Valley, PA....
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I too disliked Zebra, until I tried Mountain Zebra. It is excellent. Not at all like the Burchell's.
I didn't care for Ostrich. It was too dry for my taste.
Among my favorites are: Eland, Gemsbok, Impala liver w/fried onions, Bushbuck, and Nyala. A young Warthog slow turned on a spit can be very good as well.
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Charles_Helm
.333 member
Reged: 09/11/05
Posts: 337
Loc: Dallas, Texas
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Another vote for mountain zebra.
-------------------- Some pictures from Namibia
Some pictures from Zimbabwe
An Elephant Story
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DPhillips
.375 member
Reged: 09/10/03
Posts: 819
Loc: Alaska
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Eland is quite possibly the best table fare I've ever tried. Impala is excellent as is kudu. Warthog is great. Wildebeest is good.
I'm not much of a soup person, but Ox tail soup is probably very good to a soup person.
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NitroX
.700 member
Reged: 25/12/02
Posts: 40645
Loc: Barossa Valley, South Australi...
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How many people here have eaten elephant?
I asked to eat it last year and had some savoury spicy thin bits of biltong but they said it was too tough and chewy for normal meals. Any comments?
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I like crocodile. I have eaten and liked kudu, eland, warthog, ostriche, impala, springbok, thompson gazelle, and probably others.
Zebra was about the only I found tough and too closely grained. But it may have been the beast if it was an older one. Who knows?
One of my favourite is guinea fowl and everytime I have had it , it has been spectacular, but I have also heard it complained about as being tough and very long to cook!
-------------------- John aka NitroX
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Govt get out of our lives NOW!
"I love the smell of cordite in the morning."
"A Sharp spear needs no polish"
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Charles_Helm
.333 member
Reged: 09/11/05
Posts: 337
Loc: Dallas, Texas
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We had elephant twice, served as appetizers. I thought it quite good but you can marinate and grill choice cuts of just about anything and it tastes fine.
I would eat it again any time so long as it was prepared properly.
My mountain zebra was supposedly a tough old stallion (he was certainly scarred up) but the meat was fine. It may be some difference either genetically or in their diet but I would eat mountain zebra again without any problem.
-------------------- Some pictures from Namibia
Some pictures from Zimbabwe
An Elephant Story
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NitroX
.700 member
Reged: 25/12/02
Posts: 40645
Loc: Barossa Valley, South Australi...
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African Hunter magazine had a casserole/stew recipe once for elephant.
-------------------- John aka NitroX
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Govt get out of our lives NOW!
"I love the smell of cordite in the morning."
"A Sharp spear needs no polish"
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