Ingredients:
- Elk backstrap
- Salt and pepper
- Sage and rosemary
- Optional: 1 tsp paprika
- Optional: 1 tsp onion powder
- Optional: 1 tsp garlic powder
- 3 crushed garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon butter
Topping Ideas: Worcestershire sauce, BBQ sauce, gravy
Prep time: 15 min.
Total time: 30 min.
When we want to feel fancy in the Prime Revolution household we cook up some elk backstrap. Wild game elk steak is like a venison filet mignon! These scrumptious little medallions are so flavorful and a family favorite.
This particular elk was a late-season tag and boy, could you taste it! He must have been bulking up for the winter on Northern Nevada foliage and there were just all kinds of flavor profiles in this elk tenderloin game meat.
Seasoned elk backstrap. All photos property of Prime Revo.
As with most steaks, this cut of meat is best cooked first at room temperature. Then, season it with whatever herbs and spices you desire. We used salt and black pepper, and sage and rosemary from our garden.
Living in Northern Nevada means we have sage and rosemary growing everywhere. Perfect seasoning!
After seasoning the backstrap with the spices we let it sit for a bit while the cast iron skillet got hot. We had cooked bacon for breakfast so the cast iron was nicely seasoned. We added a little bit of olive oil too over medium-high heat.
When the oil was hot, we put the backstrap in the pan and let it cook for a few minutes. We turned it every two to three minutes until all sides were seared.
Cooked in bacon grease is a plus!
When searing the final side of the backstrap, we added a chunk of butter and 3 crushed garlic cloves to really get some good flavor going. Scraping the bottom of the cast iron made a nice, little gravy too!
Crushed garlic adds great flavor.
After about 10 minutes of cook time, we let the meat rest a bit and then cut the backstrap into medallions. Some people like cooking venison backstrap in medallions from the start but we find that cooking the backstrap as a whole keeps more juices and flavors in.
We all like our meat medium-rare, so we temped it at 130 Fahrenheit. We suggest taking it off between 130-150 Fahrenheit so the meat doesn’t get too tough! But cooking it to your desired doneness totally works.
Temp it to 130 Fahrenheit for medium-rare meat.
We served our meal with asparagus, broccolini, some grilled peppers, and nice bottle of red wine. Putting some Worchestire sauce on the backstrap steak is a great idea too! Next time we have venison steaks, we will make mashed potatoes as the side.
What a meal!
This simple pan-seared recipe is great for any wild game steak like deer, antelope, moose, and more. We will do another recipe soon!
Prime Revolution | Elk in Northern Nevada
Elk thrive in our Northern Nevada hills. And they get enormous! There’s a reason many outdoorsmen flock to the Battle Born State to chase elk. Plus, our flora and fauna consist of plenty of rosemary, sage, and wild rose which makes Nevada elk meat pre-flavored.
Check out these past Prime Revolution episodes of our elk hunting adventures!
- Season 3 Episode 10: GIANT Nevada Bull Elk Hits the Dirt
- Season 4 Episode 4: Michelle’s Big Nevada Bull Elk Hunt
- Season 4 Episode 6: Big 7×7 Bull Down! Late Season Elk Hunting
More Prime Revo Wild Game Recipes:
