36: Elk "Steak" / Relish of Leeks, Wild Mushrooms & Zucchini / Sweet Potato Fries

My plan was to make elk burgers with an onion and roasted garlic mayonnaise, but I didn’t have enough garlic, onion, or buns. Instead I made “steaks” from ground elk with a relish of leeks, wild mushrooms, and zucchini, topped with aged white cheddar, made complete with sweet potato fries – all ingredients I already had in my refrigerator.

Elk is low in fat, calories, and cholesterol, while being high in protein and richer in flavor than beef. The texture is also heartier than beef. I’m happy to see different meats I cook are so popular on this blog. A quick peek at the Popular Posts section on the right side of this blog reveals that the veal chops and goat recipe are very popular. In fact, both recipes have been on the top since I posted them – that’s out of over 30 meals I’ve posted on here.

These elk “steaks” were admittedly pretty big once they cooked. I should’ve made three patties, but I went with two because we were pretty hungry. I was thinking they would shrink down a little when cooked, but they actually plumped up. The savory “steak” is a nice contrast with the heavenly sweetness of sweet potato – one of my favorite vegetables, along with kale.

By the way, I get all my “exotic” meats through my farm club, Arganica Farm Club. Check your local farmer’s market as well. Try these elk meatballs braised in red wine sauce as well.

Ingredients and Directions:

1 lb ground elk, room temperature (or actual elk steaks if you can find them)

1 leek, diced

1 sweet potato, peeled and sliced for fries

1/2 cup wild mushrooms, diced (I used creminis and shiitakes)

1/4 cup zucchini, diced

2 slices aged white cheddar, room temperature

1 tbs each of basil, mint, and parsley

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine elk and herbs with about a tablespoon each of salt and pepper, and use your hands to mix together well. Form patties as big or as small as you like. Arrange sweet potatoes in an oven safe dish with a light coat of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes, turning once halfway through the cooking process.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium heat in a large pan. Add leeks to the pan and sauté for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add oil to a cast iron plate over medium high heat while the leeks are cooking. Add mushrooms and zucchini to leeks, reduce heat to low, season, and sauté for the duration you cook the elk, stirring occasionally and adjusting seasoning as you like. Add elk to the cast iron plate, and cook to desired doneness. I cooked the elk for about 7-8 minutes on each side, plus 2 minutes in the oven to melt the cheese on top, giving it a nice medium profile. Fries should be done at the same time you are ready to transfer elk to melt the cheese. Remove fries to cool while melting cheese in the oven. Add vegetable relish to your steak when cheese is melted to your liking.

Enjoy!