Elk Egg Rolls... first attempt

So, I am experimenting with Elk meat and trying to come up with new ideas for a friend with an abundance.  I have added the ground meat tacos, eggs, quesadillas, etc. I cooked the steaks and sliced them, diced them, and was thoroughly enjoyed it all.

The meat is tender, mild flavored, and extremely low fat.

Species	Protein %	Fat %	Cholesterol (mg/100g*)	Calories (Kcal/100g*)
Beef (USDA choice)	22.0	6.5	72	180
Beef (USDA standard)	22.7	2.0	69	152
Lamb	20.8	5.7	66	167
Pork	22.3	4.9	71	165
Wild Boar**	28.3	4.38	109	160
Buffalo	21.7	1.9	62	138
Whitetail Deer	23.6	1.4	116	149
Mule Deer	23.7	1.3	107	145
Elk	22.8	.9	67	137

 
Source: http://www.elkusa.com/Elk_meat_nutrition.html

I asked around and found that a lot of people really like elk compared to other wild game. Several individuals use it in place of beef in all of their recipes. 

I wanted to try something new and I had just ran my wonton experiments (wonton wrapped cheesesticks, bananas, apples and cinnamon, etc.) so I thought... egg rolls. Now I have never made really rolled egg rolls or made the mixture to roll. So I was flying blind... but I had ingredients. I had elk steak, I had a bad of pre-shredded coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots, no dressing), I had extra fresh carrot for more low calorie bulk, I had  rice wine vinegar, chicken base, wasabi powder, and I had the drive to make something tasty!

So I used the my grill pan to sear the elk to a medium rare and set it aside to rest. I added the slaw veggies to the hot pan with the juice from the elk (mostly water since there is so little fat). As it was cooking down I added 1 teaspoon chicken base (Better than bullion) to a 1 cup of hot water mixed thoroughly and then added 1 tsp wasabi powder (be careful it can be potent).

After it cooks down for a few minutes and cabbage starts to soften, add a tablespoon of rice wine vinegar to the mixture and continue cooking until the veggies look like sauerkraut.

Add the meat back in the mixture and stir to combine.

At this point I let the meat cool (actually I stored it in the refrigerator for a couple of days because of my hectic week).
Follow instructions on egg roll wrappers to fill and roll.

I used the process for baking (brush with olive oil instead of cooking spray). I flipped them over about 10 minutes in to the baking to ensure that they would crisp up on both sides.

I will make them again and I will tweak the recipe a little to make the flavors pop a little, more wasabi, soy sauce, maybe sesame oil... who knows?


Now go cook a wild animal!


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