black bear
Looking for some great recipes to use all that bear meat you're hoping to harvest? (Photo Courtesy U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service/file)
Game cookbooks abound, and many are packed with wonderful recipes, but here are three of the best. And all three include great sections of recipes for bear.
Before we jump into the books and a sample recipe from each, PennLive.com would like to invite you to share any family recipes you particularly enjoy for bear meat, or venison. Please send them, with your name and town, to Marcus Schneck at mschneck@pennlive.com.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission's Pennsylvania Game Cookbook - Second edition covers all game species available to Pennsylvania hunters, including great sections on bear and deer. The 108-page book is available through The Outdoor Shop.
Among the bear recipes in the book is this one for Crockpot Bear with Gravy from K.S. in Marysville.
Ingredients
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2-3 lb. bear roast
2 32-oz. cartons of beef stock
1 pack French onion soup mix
1 pack egg noodles
3 Tbsp. butter
Salt
Pepper
Fresh Italian parsley
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup water
Combine garlic salt and pepper and sprinkle on bear roast. Let meat rest for five minutes. Combine beef stock and French onion soup mix in slow cooker. Place roast in slow cooker and cook on low for four to six hours or on high for two to four hours.
Prepare eggs noodle according to package. After straining the water off the noodles, add butter with salt, pepper and parsley to taste. Set aside.
Remove meat from slow cooker and let it rest. Carefully pour stock from slow cooker into a large cooking pot. Turn burner on high and bring stock to a rolling boil.
In a separate bowl, combine the water and cornstarch with a whisk. Slowly pour cornstarch into tock while constantly stirring. Once the stock begins to thicken remove it from the heat.
Trim bear meat of all fat and shred the meat. Combine it with the gravy mixture. Place buttered noodles on plate and pour gravy and meat on top of the noodles. Add parsley on top.
The L.L. Bean Game and Fish Cookbook was published in 1983, but it remains one of the best comprehensive cookbooks for hunters and anglers. Copies of the 475-page book are commonly available from most online booksellers.
Among the great bear recipes in the book is this one for Bear Loin Barbecue Sauce from the wife of noted Maine bear-hunting guide.
Ingredients
3 lb. bear tenderloin
3/4 cup vinegar
3/4 cup catsup
1 cup water
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. Worcester sauce
1/4 tsp. Tabasco
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. dry mustard
Slice meat in half-inch pieces and cook 30 minutes in oven at 350 degrees.
Meanwhile, mix the other ingredients together in a pan and cook 20 minutes over moderate heat.
Pour off liquid from meat, cover with barbecue sauce and cook one hour.
The NRA Members' Wild Game Cookbook ranks right up there with the L.L. Bean tome as a comprehensive cookbook of recipes for all game species. Its 390 pages are loaded with recipes field-tested by members of the organization. Although it was published in 2006, copies remain available through the NRA and many online booksellers.
Among the bear recipes in the book is this one for Bear Stew from Ken Gill in Binghamton, N.Y.
Ingredients
2 lb. bear meat, cut in 1.5-inch cubes, all fat removed
1/4 cup bacon drippings or vegetable oil
Flour
Salt
Pepper
1 bay leaf
1 pinch dried thyme
3 stalks celery, cut on diagonal
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry red wine
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
3 medium carrots, sliced into rounds
3 stalks celery, cut on diagonal
Butter
Coat meat in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Brown meat on high heat with bacon drippings or oil.
Add meat and all remaining ingredients, except chopped onion, carrots and second group of celery stalks, to slow cooker on low setting. Cook for six hours, then add chopped onion.
Saute sliced carrots and celery in butter until slightly tender. Add to pot and cook two more hours, or until desired tenderness.