Bear Meat

[galensmom]

My son is going on his first bear hunt!!! We are both excited. We will be keeping some of the meat, but are unsure of how to cook it. Do we put seasoning on it?, do we marinade it? fry it?, bake it? We have been told that we probably will not like it..but we still want to atleast try it.

[kenman]

Whoever told you that you wouldn't like it has never had it, or did not prepare it properly. Bear meat blows venison out of the water, as a matter of fact, my wife would prefer me to get a bear every year as opposed to a couple deer.

The secret to cooking it is marinading it for a couple days. Any olive oil based salad dressing will work, add whatever you like (teryaki, liquid smoke, garlic, soy sauce, worcesteshire sauce, etc) and let it sit. I then grill it to medium and chow down.

I can't count the people I have cooked bear for that have said "I would have said it was beef"...

[MikeVT]

Amen kenman - bear meat rocks!!! I usually just mix up italian salad dressing with worcestershire sauce or bbq sauce- depending on how spicy I want it. Another easy way is to slow cook it in the oven or crockpot with whatever marinade you want. Love it. One thing to add, if you take a bear that has been living on corn, beech nuts, acorns, etc., it will almost always be great. If he has been eating out of a garbage dump his whole life the meat will not be nearly as great.

[galensmom]

Thanks for the advice, I will definatly try it. I highly doubt the bear will be corn fed...comming from the mountains in California. I know I can surely tell the difference in Deer between Eastern and Western South Dakota. Eastern deer are corn fed, and Western deer taste sagey and pineconey.

[Phil from Maine]

Whoever told you that you wouldn't like it has never had it

I live in the heart of bear country he in Maine, ( Washington County )I have tried it more then once. I can not get myself to like it at all. However my wife loves it, and wants me to shoot one for her. But, I wouldn't as I do not like them ar all. Some here also use some sort of a tomato baised marinade but, I am not sure excatly what they use.

[SaskBushMan]

Well I have to disagree with the statement that if the person who told you it wasn't good has never had it of didn't cook it properly. I have had bear meat and it has been cooked many different ways and I can not stand itfall bear is more tolerable(sp?) than spring bear but man I have to tell you I would personally rather eat S&%t sandwiches[:'(]. Also if anyone tells you bear meat blows venison out of the water hasn't had it or hasn't cooked it properly. But either way enjoy the hunt.

[pharmer1]

I have eaten California bear a few times and it was really good. I marinated in soy sauce, basalmic vinegar, citrus juice, olive oil, garlic, pepper and what ever herbssound good(thyme, oregano, basil). Grilled it up told the kids it was mystery meat and they werelining up for more.
I've also had with just BBQ sauce of choice and it was really tasty.

[rbduck]

One of my favourites! I agree with some of the folks above me.
To most folk...bear is like pork, so....cook it well. If you are adventurous, smoke the sucker...tastes like ham, a nice red meat. Jerk it or smoke it, turn it into sausage.
I just loved BBQed bear burgers


DF

[farmcntry]

SIMPLY ELEGANT BEAR STEAK AND RICE
1 1/2 lbs. bear steak
1 1/2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 large onions, cut into 1/2" slices, rings
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 (4 oz.) can sliced mushrooms
drain & reserve liquid
1/2 cup dry sherry
1 1/2 tsp. garlic salt
3 cups hot cooked rice
Cut steak into thin strips. In a large skillet (oven-proof, if desired), brown meat in oil, using high heat. Add onions. Saute until tender crisp. Blend soup, sherry, liquid from mushrooms, and garlic salt. Pour over steak. Add mushrooms. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 1 hour or until steak is tender. (Or cover and bake at 350 degrees.) Serve over beds of fluffy rice. Makes 6 servings.

COUNTRY STYLE BEAR
Slice bear meat into serving size portions about 1/4" thick. Tenderize with a meat hammer. Dredge in seasoned flour. Brown quickly in a small amount of oil. Add enough water to cover meat. Cover pot tightly and simmer until tender over low heat. Thicken gravy to desired consistency with flour. Season to taste. Dehydrated onion soup may be used to flavor, as may fresh onion slices.

BRAISED BEAR WITH SWEET POTATOES
4 lbs. bear steak
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 med. onion, minced
3 stalks celery and leaves, chopped
6 raw sweet potatoes, sliced lengthwise
Cut bear meat into one-inch cubes, as for stew. Brown meat in bacon drippings or vegetable oil and put in roasting pan. Add 1/2 cup water and the minced garlic, minced onion, and chopped celery. Cover the stew and bake in oven at 350 degrees F. Add water as needed during cooking time. How long the meat needs to cook depends on the age of the animal. However, after 2 hours, check for tenderness. When the meat begins to get tender, add the raw sweet potatoes. Add water as necessary. Cover and cook until meat and potatoes are done.

[kevin1]

If you have to marinate it to make it taste good then how good could it have been to begin with ? Besides , I refuse to hunt anything that considers me to be a food group ....