Auodad in Texas

[Short Track]

Can you eat them?
I spoke to 2 guides that cape them where they fall, and say the meat is garbage.

I'm more of a meat hunter than a trophy hunter, and now I'm considering not hunting a Auodad.

 

[MikeB_318]

It is a very fun hunt and edible especially if you like summer sausage and Burger. But I find if you handle it and cook it properly most meat is good. My opinion

 

[easttex]

Young ewes and very young rams can make edible sausage. I don't think you can do anything with old rams. If you are a meat hunter there are lots of better choices, like Axis deer.

 

[Shane]

You can eat them. There are a few folks who actually claim to enjoy it. The vast majority of folks who eat aoudad agree that it's very tough and not much good at all. I've eaten several, from old rams, to ewes, to yearlings. I know how to care for and prepare wild game as well as anyone. I don't enjoy eating aoudad, regardless of the age or sex of the critter. Old rams are definitely the worst though. I think some people's taste buds are just different. Only thing I can figure to explain how a few people actually like it.

You can make jerky or sausage with it, and it can be tolerable. But just about any other kind of game is significantly better, no matter how you cook it.

 

[Felix40]

We eat quite a bit in my house. We like it as much as anything else.

 

[hunter4life]

Big old rams are very tough, but they taste fine. Just grind the whole thing (including backstraps) and make sausage and burger. Young rams and ewes make fine table fare. I just process them the same as I would a deer.

 

[Short Track]

I will definitely take the back straps & tender lions..

I guess it's luck of the draw. I got a tough old Cow Moose.. Very difficult to eat, but more difficult to throw it away.

 

[Indyal]

Can you eat them?
I spoke to 2 guides that cape them where they fall, and say the meat is garbage.

I'm more of a meat hunter than a trophy hunter, and now I'm considering not hunting a Auodad.

I just did an aoudad hunt in Texas last fall. No one that I met eats the aoudad except one ranch hand said he mixes it with beef and pork to make summer sausage. Seems analogous to the rock soup story.
if this helps you any, they are non native as seem to be able to outcompete desert sheep where the ranges overlap.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

Frankly I don't believe anyone that says "X tastes nasty" anymore they're so often full of it. How many folks have you heard talk down pronghorn? Maybe they just toss theirs in the back of a truck in 90F heat or something and its partly rotten, dunno, but what I do know is we eat multiple pronghorns a year and they taste just fine. No game meat is gonna be the same as their dry aged beef or such but doesn't make it dog food or something to let rot IMHO.

The one ram I've gotten so far (~19" so nothing that old), I've used the rounds in the rear to make up a curry that after 10hrs in the slow cooker was tender as anything I've ever eaten and of the 6 adults that ate it (happily) no one noticed any disagreeable flavor but we all joked with all the curry it'd be hard to. So on that side of spicing/softening cooking I know it can be easily enjoyed. When butchering up the backstraps they seemed soft as any other critter so I'll try actually grilling a piece out of curiosity here shortly (been hectic). I bulk froze most of the trim for now, but I'll thaw and grind some sooner or later and try out tacos, etc. and I anticipate it being just fine. I know I have a fallback (heavy spices and slow cooker) if needed. I took all the meat (rib meat and neck meat) and heart out, saw no reason to let anything lay in the field I'd eat of another critter.

 

[hunter4life]

The ewes and little rams <25" are usually really good.
The big old ones are super tough, but with fine flavor. I am talking from the experience of killing and eating a whole bunch of all age classes of aoudad over the last 30 years.

 

[camping1601]

Frankly I don't believe anyone that says "X tastes nasty" anymore they're so often full of it. How many folks have you heard talk down pronghorn? Maybe they just toss theirs in the back of a truck in 90F heat or something and its partly rotten, dunno, but what I do know is we eat multiple pronghorns a year and they taste just fine. No game meat is gonna be the same as their dry aged beef or such but doesn't make it dog food or something to let rot IMHO.

The one ram I've gotten so far (~19" so nothing that old), I've used the rounds in the rear to make up a curry that after 10hrs in the slow cooker was tender as anything I've ever eaten and of the 6 adults that ate it (happily) no one noticed any disagreeable flavor but we all joked with all the curry it'd be hard to. So on that side of spicing/softening cooking I know it can be easily enjoyed. When butchering up the backstraps they seemed soft as any other critter so I'll try actually grilling a piece out of curiosity here shortly (been hectic). I bulk froze most of the trim for now, but I'll thaw and grind some sooner or later and try out tacos, etc. and I anticipate it being just fine. I know I have a fallback (heavy spices and slow cooker) if needed. I took all the meat (rib meat and neck meat) and heart out, saw no reason to let anything lay in the field I'd eat of another critter.

The recipe or a link to one would be much appreciated.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

The recipe or a link to one would be much appreciated.

Based it off this (moved it into the slow cooker after doing all the prior steps). I believe I used 1 jalapeno rather than scotch bonnet due to some folks not being able to handle as much heat. Swapped chicken stock for the water if I recall right. Skipped the potatoes because we were serving it with rice instead.

This Saucy Jamaican Curry Is Fall-Off-The-Bone Tender

A recipe for slow-cooked, falling-off-the-bone tender goat stew in a Jamaican curry with allspice.

www.simplyrecipes.com

 

[Zbot]

We eat them all, great when made in guisados. No idea why people think otherwise unless they are trying to grill steaks from it. Smoker does them justice as well.

 

[MosquitoCoast]

I haven't eaten Auodad but have heard similar tales. The reason why they say that the meat is garbage is because it is usually killed in hot temps and if you don't take the correct precautions, then you will harvest gamey meat. If you are a meat hunter and are not dry aging game meat then you really are not taking advantage of all the meat that is out there. To do so requires no more than a large size refrigerator with the shelves and drawers ripped out and a plug in hand fan.

I told a friend of mine who kills Auodad every year this process and he now has great tasting Auodad meat. Its all in the prep.

 

[Felix40]

I just had 8 dozen tamales made. Half aoudad and half elk. The lady who made them for me said she couldnt tell the difference between the meat. She was very surprised since she has heard all the ridiculous stuff about sheep being no good to eat.

 

[PrairiePred]

In my experience it was amazing. One of the better wild meats I have eaten. Cool it and take care of it and you will not be disappointed. I took the meat of two other people that were on the hunt and weren't planning on taking it. It's a shame. They are definitely edible and worth the work of bringing them home.

 

[FLATHEAD]

***Slice it really thin and fry it up like backstrap.
***Pressure Cooker is your friend.
***Munching on a piece of Aoudad jerky as I type this.

 

[Short Track]

Big discussion with the outfitter. Rams are filled with puss pockets, which I saw with my own eyes. So they literally trash all the meat.

 

[S-3 ranch]

Big discussion with the outfitter. Rams are filled with puss pockets, which I saw with my own eyes. So they literally trash all the meat.

What the heck!
maybe cactus sores, our rams , buck deer usually have sores from cactus, I don’t eat that part with sore, but do eat the rest

edit
most of the caribou I have shot had some fly larvae and pus pocket under the hide, but never in the muscle tissue

 

[mitchellmountain]

Frankly I don't believe anyone that says "X tastes nasty" anymore they're so often full of it. How many folks have you heard talk down pronghorn? Maybe they just toss theirs in the back of a truck in 90F heat or something and its partly rotten, dunno, but what I do know is we eat multiple pronghorns a year and they taste just fine. No game meat is gonna be the same as their dry aged beef or such but doesn't make it dog food or something to let rot IMHO.

The one ram I've gotten so far (~19" so nothing that old), I've used the rounds in the rear to make up a curry that after 10hrs in the slow cooker was tender as anything I've ever eaten and of the 6 adults that ate it (happily) no one noticed any disagreeable flavor but we all joked with all the curry it'd be hard to. So on that side of spicing/softening cooking I know it can be easily enjoyed. When butchering up the backstraps they seemed soft as any other critter so I'll try actually grilling a piece out of curiosity here shortly (been hectic). I bulk froze most of the trim for now, but I'll thaw and grind some sooner or later and try out tacos, etc. and I anticipate it being just fine. I know I have a fallback (heavy spices and slow cooker) if needed. I took all the meat (rib meat and neck meat) and heart out, saw no reason to let anything lay in the field I'd eat of another critter.

Ever tried javelina, lol??