elk
Elk Medallion
Rounds cut from the elk loin. Elk carries almost no intramuscular fat, so there is nothing to melt and nothing to cover a mistake — the gap between medium-rare and dry is a few degrees wide. Sear hard, pull at 125–130°F, and put fat in the pan, because the meat brings none.
In one line
Beef flavor without the fat that forgives you.
Buy it if
You cook steak with a thermometer and want something far leaner than beef that still eats like a steak.
Why it is unforgiving. Marbling is what makes a ribeye tolerant of an extra two minutes: the fat melts, the meat stays moist, and you get away with it. Elk loin has essentially none. Between rare and dry there is nothing but a few degrees on a thermometer, so cook it by temperature rather than by clock or by feel.
Pull early and rest. Take medallions off the heat at 125–130°F. Carryover keeps working for several minutes, so what leaves the pan at 128°F settles at medium-rare. Rest them five minutes and never take them past 135°F.
Add the fat the animal didn't. Oil the pan generously, finish with butter, or wrap the medallions in bacon — all three are doing the same job, which is supplying the fat a beef steak would have brought itself.
About the word gamey. Most of what people mean by it comes from diet and from handling in the field: an animal that was not cooled quickly, or fat that has oxidized, since game fat carries strong flavors hard. Farm-raised elk on a controlled diet, processed like beef, tastes clean and mild — closer to a very lean beef than to anything most people would call gamey.
Where it comes from on the animal
| Species | elk |
|---|---|
| Subprimal | loin or tenderloin, cut crosswise into rounds |
What else it’s called
How to cook Elk Medallion
| Best methods | Pan sear Grill Reverse sear Sous vide |
|---|---|
| Skip | Braise |
| Cook to | Pull at 125–130°F and rest 5 minutes. Never past 135°F. |
If Elk Medallion is sold out
Cooks like
Filet Mignon
The beef equivalent, cut from the tenderloin. Milder and fattier, so it tolerates a little more heat.
Common questions
What does elk taste like?
Like a lean, slightly sweeter beef. It is the mildest of the common game meats — milder than venison and well short of anything strong. If you like a very lean sirloin, you will recognize it immediately.
Why was my elk tough even at medium-rare?
Check which way you sliced it. With almost no fat, the grain does all the work, and a lean loin cut with the grain instead of across it chews like rope. Give it a full five-minute rest too — cut early and the little juice it has runs onto the board.
Can I cook elk medallions well done?
You can, but there is nothing there to save them. Past medium the muscle fibers tighten and no fat renders to compensate, and you get something dry and faintly livery. If you need meat cooked through, braise elk instead of searing it.
Should I marinate it?
Not for flavor, and not for tenderness — the loin is already the tender part. A short marinade with oil in it is worth doing for exactly one reason: it puts fat on a surface that has none, which helps the sear.
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