This article/video kicks off our second Wild Game Friday here at the goHUNT office. Each Friday, we are going to bring you some of our favorite ways to cook wild game.

Disclaimer - We are not professional chefs, but we love cooking. So our goal with these is to showcase not only our favorite ways to cook wild game but these are also going to be recipes that are easy to make and with ingredients that are readily available.

Grilled teriyaki elk backstraps

I am a big fan of efficiency and simplicity, so for this Wild Game Friday I went with a personal favorite of mine for when I want to cook something quick and delicious. This time around I am using backstrap steaks from my 2018 Arizona elk, but you could do this recipe with backstraps from any big game animal.

It takes just a couple of minutes to prep and a maximum of 10 minutes on the grill.

In the video, I cooked the backstraps for 5 minutes on each side on high, and the steaks were cooked through more than I typically like, luckily they were still tender and delicious. The key to this recipe is the teriyaki sauce. The brand that makes it is Soy Vay, they have either Veri Veri Teriyaki or Island Teriyaki. Both are delicious, but if you are looking for a sweeter taste I would go with the Island Teriyaki. I know you can find it in Smith’s and Costco. I am sure other grocery stores carry it as well.

Items needed

• Grill
• Elk backstrap steaks (or any backstrap steaks)
• Teriyaki sauce
• Plastic bags or tupperware
• Additional seasonings (Wilde Spice Co. Coffee Rub, Garlic Powder, Traeger Prime Rib Rub)

If you're a visual person, be sure to check out the video below on how to cook these burgers.

Step 1

Thaw the steaks. You can do this the night before, or if you put them in warm water and they aren’t too thick they, will thaw in about 45 minutes.

Step 2

Put the steaks into a plastic bag or tupperware and add teriyaki sauce so that the steaks are all sitting in sauce. I like to massage them in a ziploc, just to make sure the steaks are separated and are completely covered in the sauce.

Step 3

Let the steaks marinate for 1-2 hours. It's really up to you how long you marinate them. Personally I like that timeframe, but if you are hungry you could cook them after 30 minutes or so.

Step 4

After marinating the steaks, heat up the grill. I like using a pellet grill, but this works just fine on a gas grill as well. I like cooking them at about 400 to 425 degrees. 

Step 5

Place the backstraps on the grill and add any of the additional seasonings if you want some extra flavor. You can do this recipe with just the sauce and it turns out great that way as well. Typically, I shoot for about 5 minutes on each side. The steaks cooked faster than normal this time around and were a little overdone, but were still pretty tasty. Personally, I like medium-rare to medium.

Step 6

Pull the steaks off the grill and enjoy! I like eating them right away when they are nice and hot, so if you are going to have some sides, I recommend you prepare those beforehand.

Click HERE to watch last weeks Wild Game Friday - Ep. 1 - Antelope, blue cheese, egg, avocado burgers with Brady Miller.

Here are some other wild game recipes you might enjoy:

• Fire-roasted elk stuffed peppers
• Grilled wild game jalapeño poppers
• Elk stroganoff with a kick