Elk Roast

The other day I headed out into the mountains to procure some of this. Elk meat. I really like elk but I'll be honest, cooking the roasts has been a little difficult lately. It seemed to always turn out dry and tough but I have a few left over from an elk I shot a couple years ago and I need to use it. The steaks are almost gone and the ground meat is something that gets used up pretty quick as well but those roasts; they're the only thing I hesitate to use because I'm almost always disappointed. I even thought of cooking one with a pork roast just to see if the combination of the two would somehow add moisture and flavor to the elk. (My mom actually used to do that all the time with beef roasts.)

So before heading out into the mountains, I loaded up the crock pot with a frozen elk shoulder, some veggies, cream of mushroom soup and about a cup of cooking wine. I seasoned the elk with salt and pepper. I used to try doing rosemary and tarragon and some other stuff but I realized over-seasoning the meat wasn't good. I forgot to put garlic with this roast, which was the only thing I think I would have changed.

I set the pot to low heat and headed out. I knew I would be gone for about 8 hours before getting back home. I hiked for about 5 hours and covered roughly 4 and half miles. Every once in a while, I'd think about that roast. I was getting hungry. I remembered how my mom's roasts would taste and then I would think back to previous elk roasts as to not get my hopes too high.

I heard an elk bugle and went after him. He was pretty intent on answering my calls until I got about 300 yards out and then he went silent. As I walked away, he started talking again. That's been kind of the deal so far because the bulls just aren't ready to get after yet. But at least I located one. I hiked back to the truck thinking about that roast.

It takes me an hour and a half to drive back to Helena from where I was hunting. I was fricken starving. I brought some snacks but I really wanted that roast to turn out.

I parked my truck and didn't even unload my stuff before unlocking the door and heading into my house to be greeted by Cutter and the aroma of that roast. It smelled absolutely amazing. It was all I could do to let Cutter out and feed him before diving in.

I dished up a plate and cautiously took a bite. It melted in my mouth. It was unbelievable and makes me motivated to put some more roasts in the freezer. Apparently, less is more and you just gotta let it cook.

I went out last night to another area where I'd had some success in the past. I was going to make a video of the hunt but my mic wasn't working so all the video I took was useless. I will say though, that the elk are getting restless. Right at the end of shooting light, I heard three different bulls and they started sounding like they were getting to another level of frustration and urgency. This week should be good.

Keep 'em where they live...