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Bison, Boar, Elk and Ostrich meat - found a shop in Canada that sells online

Luc

"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".
Staff member
So, as strange as it might sound, wild meat is not easy to get up here and it's not cheap either. I mean, things like elk are native but go for a fortune.

I love trowing a Bison (or Buffalo) steak on the Weber. Costco (Canada) has some but I always wait for the special that occurs once a year during spring time. Costco does a great job on that but you have to wait for their special.

I looked around and found, what I think is, one of the main distributors in Canada. That's a place where you can get Elk, Bison or Buffalo, Boar and Ostrich.

So, I ordered this morning after calculating how their economy boxes rate against buying the items one by one and versus Costco. There are things are really worth it and some that are not. The economy boxes are really worth it. So, I build the basket of stuff that I wanted and bought (via paypal) a couple of things.

Now, some may say that I was excessive as the BBQ season is almost over. I say, I will be ready for next year if I can't cook everything (I probably can't). Everything is supposed to be shipped on ice and sous vide. So it will got in the freezer once it lands.

Total, with shipping, minus a $10 discount, I got a $345 CAD bill which is fairly good for what I got (I got steaks, mince, burgers, roasts, ribs)

So, I think they ship to the US but since they are local (Canada), I thought it would interest anyone in Canada. I am not affiliated with them and I will post back here once I receive my box.

https://www.northforkbison.com/
 
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simon1

Self Ignored by Vista
That looks like some good stuff, Luc. I've been wanting a buffalo roast for quite awhile but the ranch up by where Mom used to live closed down several years ago.

How were you grilling your steaks? I've tried over high heat and low heat, and only taking them to medium-rare but still a bit tough...at least the ones I've done. Roasts in the smoker always turned out great though.
 
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Luc

"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".
Staff member
That looks like some good stuff, Luc. I've been wanting a buffalo roast for quite awhile but the ranch up by where Mom used to live closed down several years ago.

How were you grilling your steaks? I've tried over high heat and low heat, and only taking them to medium-rare but still a bit tough...at least the ones I've done. Roasts in the smoker always turned out great though.

I would usually do a sear over direct heat for 1 min max and leave them 3-4 mins indirect per side. That usually gets me a medium rare steak. I found that the New York cut works best.
 

simon1

Self Ignored by Vista
I'll try that on steaks next time, Luc. I also thought about trying a reverse sear. There's a place about 7 or 8 miles from me that carries buffalo and wild pork but the buffalo rotates from water buffalo to bison at times. I called them a few minutes ago and the lady said they had water buffalo right now but she'd check and see when they were going to have some bison and call me back.

There's also a buffalo ranch in Denton but their website doesn't say if they still sell meat. I'll have to call them sometime and if they do I'll stop in when we are in that area visiting relatives.
 

Luc

"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".
Staff member
In doubt just say: MONEY!
 
Crazy that it's hard/expensive for you to get! Lucky for me, I'm in the heart of Bison country and it can be found at pretty much every shop in town. Prices tend to flip flop with beef for some reason. I'm friends with some crazy hunters, so I get a pretty good supply of elk and deer, along with various bird derived meat which I don't care as much for. Both the wife and I have ranchers in the family so we keep well stocked with all kinds of beef. I feel bad for people who can't or won't try more "exotic" meat. I'll have to give ostrich a try some time.
 

simon1

Self Ignored by Vista
Reverse sear? I'm curious, is this done after the indirect cooking?

Yeah, ya dumb Okie. :lol:

Just kidding my brother in blue...I was raised at the other end of the state and am still real close to the river. I've never had snapping turtle, but have had some some turtle in the Caymans that was great!

MrGuy...since you have surfaced here you have inspired me to use my gem open comb micromatic again.
 

Luc

"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".
Staff member
Crazy that it's hard/expensive for you to get! Lucky for me, I'm in the heart of Bison country and it can be found at pretty much every shop in town. Prices tend to flip flop with beef for some reason. I'm friends with some crazy hunters, so I get a pretty good supply of elk and deer, along with various bird derived meat which I don't care as much for. Both the wife and I have ranchers in the family so we keep well stocked with all kinds of beef. I feel bad for people who can't or won't try more "exotic" meat. I'll have to give ostrich a try some time.

Surprisingly, I can find horse at nearly every grocery store, but things like Bison go for 2-3 and even 4 times the price of beef. Around here, there's a lot of places that raise Duck. Duck is fairly expensive versus a chicken. I know, Duck ain't chicken but still, it's comparable in terms of shapes and size.

Ostrich is interesting. They had a promo around 15 years ago here where subway (yes sandwich subway) had an ostrich sandwich. It was the same price than their average sandwich. It was up for 3 months and we never saw it again. I was able to try it a few times.

Whenever I can try something new, I do. If at a restaurant, I ask for sauce on the side to really taste the meat.
 

Luc

"To Wiki or Not To Wiki, That's The Question".
Staff member
So's Lamb. :censored:

Lamb goes on special at a few places a few times a year. I can get a leg for around $30-$35 CAD. I have a few middle eastern groceries that sell lamb for a better price than the regular grocery. The Asian grocery has lamb on special 4 times a year. It's frozen and comes from New Zealand. What they sell was transformed in New Zealand.
 
Yes the meat is expensive up here.
We used to have a local Ostrich farm but they aren't in business anymore.
I thought Ostrich was pretty good. Boar is easier to come by but not by much.

Now I want some.
 

OkieStubble

Dirty Donuts are so Good.
I knew a guy in El Reno Okla many years ago, who had Ostrich and Bison. Hadn't seen him in over 15 years or so. I remember him saying even back then that one day, there would be a demand for exotic meats.
 

simon1

Self Ignored by Vista
Alas, I got a return call from the people that handle the buffalo meat here. She said they only have water buffalo in the foreseeable future.

Guess I need to go by the Denton ranch next time I'm there.

Hate it that the ranch in Adair closed down.

Oh, just a minute. I just did my expert google fu and found something. I need to call them and see if it's the same place that opened up under a different name. If it is I need to go by there when I go to see Mom over Thanksgiving. That looks like the place I went to many times.

http://www.travelok.com/listings/view.profile/id.8248
 
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