bear hams

[ratherbefishin]

we had a bear ''ham'' couple of nights ago-been in the freezer for YEARS-I was ready to throw it out,figuring it would be freezer burned but decided,what the heck,put it in the oven and see whats its like....couple of hours later,the kitchen was smelling AWFUL GOOD,and it was delicious.,not a hint of freeze burn,....served it with saurkraut and sweet mustard.Last night we sliced some, made a raisin sauce with orange concentrate and the drippings from the roast-and it was excellent! its makes great ''ham on rye'' sandwiches too.

The next bear I see is in serious trouble- and I'm trying to remember who I got to cure the bear ham and make sausages for me....I do all my own game butchering-but never tried cure hams or make sausages.Anybody in Victoria area still doing that?

[warnniklz]

Personally I think bear meat is underrated

[tomahawk]

Personally I think bear meat is underrated

Nothing is truer then this statement!!

[hunterdon]

Bear meat is one of the best kept secrets. Most people when they hear "bear" think oooouh no. Bear meat is one of the tastiest meats and healthiest also. Like you I do all my own butchering. We make our own sausage as well. If you get a bear, don't throw away the fat.

When butchering, simply slice the fat off and cut in strips or small chunks. Put in large skillet and heat (on low heat only). You don't want to burn the fat, just melt it. When done, let cool, strain and then put in ice cream pails or whatever you have and store in the freezer. It will keep for years.

Bear fat is the best shortening you can use. My wife bakes with it often. Besides using it for making bear sausage, we use it for making deer sausage, moose sausage, etc. Absolutely no pork fat added to my sausage. If you make sausage like salami, then it is too light. I'll use beef fat in that case.

As I have taken many bears over the years, the best eating bear is young September bear. They have just come off eating berries for the last several months. Old bear is not so good. Too strong for me. My wife says she wishes we could take 3 or 4 bears a year. She loves it that much. Young September bear is certainly the best.

One more thought. As I don't have a meat cooler and most hunters don't either, this year I managed to pick up a second chest freezer for free. The people were going to take it to the dump simply because it was an older model and they wanted a more energy efficient model. This year, I took a September bear and immediately put it in the freezer, with the hide on. The hide helps to moderate temperature fluctuations. Set the thermostat so that it just comes on. Put a portable thermostat inside to monitor temperature. The temperature hovered between minus 5 and 3 above. Kept it in for 3 days and then butchered. The meat never froze but kept just above the freezing temperature. The meat turned out simply awesome and super tender.

I'll try that next year for September deer. Can't wait.

[ratherbefishin]

yes-I render down the fat in a big cast iron dutch oven pot on low heat and use it for baking-its a hard,white ,odourless lard.Mixed with beeswax,it makes a good leather boot dressing,and I've used to to lub cast bullets as well