Elk Burgers

A friend gifted me with some elk meat and so I searched around online for recipes. People that Ive talked to about game out here have said elk is even better than beef. Well of course in my mind, elk is game and beef isn't. So I'm figuring its gamey. Not that's not an issue with me, I love strong flavored meats. But I wanted to be sure how to handle this meat and not ruin it. Elk is very lean.

And so after wandering online and reading about it, I decided to just make burgers the first time using ground elk. I didn't want to mess with the flavor too much. I made tacos the night before and my guy asked me did you use the elk? I said no because I felt the spices would just change the flavor. I wanted to really taste it to find out if I would like it.

And so there's really no recipe. I mean most of us can make burgers. I took bits from a few and came up with this one. But I thought I'd post if for those who might one day get some elk themselves. Some said wrap with bacon because elk is very lean. I didn't have any bacon in the house so I cooked mine in a cast iron pan with some bacon fat. I save it to use for making my re-fried beans and cooking potatoes and onions to have with eggs and many other things. Just pour it in a container when its cool but still liquid and store in the refrigerator. It lasts forever.

My first bite was, wow, this is good!
My second bite I was amazed at how juicy it was and not greasy. When you make a burger that's what your used to.
My third bite and my bf was just sitting down to have his and asked how it is. I said.......I don't think Ill ever eat another BEEF burger again. The flavor is mild, not gamey and its a cleaner taste than beef.
My bf never said another word,,,,,,,just chowed down on his.......two of them :)

Elk Burgers Makes 6-8 depending on the size you like

about 2lb. ground elk
1 tb. Dijon mustard
2tsp. Worcestershire
1tb. A-1 sauce
1/2c. bread crumbs
S & P
Bacon Fat


Mix all ingredients except the bacon fat and shape into patties. I made 6 because I had large burger buns. I was stuffed after one tho so you could make them smaller if you don't eat much. This size and making 6 is perfect for guys tho.

Put a couple tbsp. of bacon fat in a cast iron frying pan on high and heat till it just starts to smoke a bit. Put patties in and fry for just a couple min. till it browns then flip over and do the same.  At that point I put cheddar cheese on them but you don't have to. I shut the gas off and put a lid on the pan to finish cooking the burgers and melting the cheese. Better to under cook these than overcook or they could end up dry. They continue to cook awhile in the remaining heat in the pan while the cheese is melting......maybe 5 min. more. Toast your burger buns if you like to do that in that time. Then serve with whatever you like on them. I make a special sauce for regular burgers but this time I just wanted to be classic to taste the elk so I only used Ketchup.

I had a few burgers left that I knew I would end up with since theres only two of us here. So I took those out even sooner so they were not completely done and wrapped and froze them for another meal. Ill just thaw them later and heat quickly to serve.