Cape Buffalo - What does it taste like?

[Kevin Peacocke]

The buffalo fillet we had in the Save last year was the best meat I have ever eaten, game or beef. It was wrapped in tin foil and placed directly on the coals for 8 minutes, not 7, not 9. Four minutes each side. Then sliced and eaten with salt immediately.

 

[automagic]

My family just returned from Zim and we ate the backstraps on an old buff I took. We had it several evenings and our experience was similar. Not sure how our cook prepared our meat, but flavor was amazing. The cut was a little tougher than a good beef steak in our experience.

 

[Major Bonkers]

I ate half a guga once.

A guga is a fledgling gannet from the Outer Hebrides (in Scotland). My guga came in a vacuum-packed plastic bag, swimming in an unpleasant looking dark brown fluid. When the bag was opened, it stank out the kitchen. Much complaining from the wife. Very oily, with a diesel-y aftertaste.

I was talking about the experience later to my old stalker, who told me, with a completely straight face, that the flavour is improved by first washing the guga in washing-up liquid. Actually, I think that the thing is improved by throwing it away and buying yourself a chicken.

 

[Tally-Ho HUNTING SAFARIS]

Buffalo fillet on the braai
Medium rare
With a nice pepper sauce
Oh man its good !!!

 

[Mopani]

40 years ago buffalo got culled at Kruger National Park. One could buy the meat (canned goulash) in Kruger‘s shops. We often purchased some tins. My wife served the meat with mashed potatos, vegetables plus gravy. It was delicious!!!

 

[Charles de Ribeau]

I am in the final stages of booking a buffalo hunt. I have experienced a plains game bowhunt and we ate several of the animals in the evenings for dinner. I am wondering if the same thing will happen with buff.

What does it taste like?

Do you eat it fresh after the hunt?

I had cape buffalo tenderloin and it was awesome! It was possibly the best game meat that I have ever had. Of course, the kitchen was being run by a woman who used to have her own restaurant in Cape Town, so that says a lot. Most game meat can be good if prepared by a pro.

 

[Doug3006]

Buffalo reminds me of grass fed beef. Wonderful flavor but a wee bit tougher than beef, especially feed-lotted beef. Must be prepared rare…or medium rare…like most wild game. Buffalo is my 2nd rated wild game behind…well behind….Eland.

 

[IvW]

Old cow.....good for biltong wors and oxtail

 

[IvW]

Fillet yes but needs to be prepared properly and not over cooked....

 

[CBH Australia]

I don't think we ate Buff in Africa but I would be up for trying the beef part.
I think the meat would be good and I would leave the offal etc for those who appreciate it.

 

[Safari Dave]

I ate my last bull's tenderloins.
It was very good and tasted, to me, like good quality beef.


The chef knew they were not perfect, and ask my wife if something was wrong with the buffalo. (It had 2 poacher's bullets in it's abdomen).

I though it was great, and had dinner and 2 breakfasts from it.

 

[Safari Dave]

I don't think we ate Buff in Africa but I would be up for trying the beef part.
I think the meat would be good and I would leave the offal etc for those who appreciate it.

I'll eat liver, but the staff was washing out the intestines. I'll pass....

 

[cajunchefray]

Buffalo reminds me of grass fed beef. Wonderful flavor but a wee bit tougher than beef, especially feed-lotted beef. Must be prepared rare…or medium rare…like most wild game. Buffalo is my 2nd rated wild game behind…well behind….Eland.

Great thread for this old Cajun cook. I have often wondered what Cape Buffalo taste like. My experience with African game meat is only eating Eland once in a restaurant in Pretoria, many moons ago while on a business trip.
I need to rectify that with a Cape Buffalo hunt, and enjoy the tenderloin, liver, and tongue (lingua), maybe the heart, and oxtail soup, in memory of my Dad, a great Cajun cook.

Growing up on a cattle farm in my teens, we had these cuts from mostly grass-fed Angus cattle, and the natural flavor of environmentally fed animals is special.

The Eland loin was really good.

 

[Zambezi]

In the army we had a trommel (steel foot locker) in that you place a just weened warthog smothered in honey, garlic, chilli, salt and cracked pepper with rosemary and thyme (or other herbs and spices to taste). Chuck in whole or roughly chopped veggies and potatoes. Lashing of cooking oil/olive oil and a nice dollop of lard.

Dig a 4ft deep hole. place a bed of hot coals a layer of sand then a few more coals and place the closed trommel. Then all sticks and coals on top. Top layer is large banana leaves with sand to complete the over. Leave for 6-8 hours.

Dig it up, grab the piglet and give it a shake and watch the meat fall off the bones.

Not a bad meal.

 

[Doug3006]

Great thread for this old Cajun cook. I have often wondered what Cape Buffalo taste like. My experience with African game meat is only eating Eland once in a restaurant in Pretoria, many moons ago while on a business trip.
I need to rectify that with a Cape Buffalo hunt, and enjoy the tenderloin, liver, and tongue (lingua), maybe the heart, and oxtail soup, in memory of my Dad, a great Cajun cook.

Growing up on a cattle farm in my teens, we had these cuts from mostly grass-fed Angus cattle, and the natural flavor of environmentally fed animals is special.

The Eland loin was really good.

Oxtail Soup! Oh my, I forgot to mention that we enjoyed oxtail soup so much that we decided that in the future we judge Buffalo trophies by the size of their tail!