Bacon Wrapped Smoked Elk Shoulder Recipe
This recipe was fun to throw together because it’s incredibly simple, and with a little time in the crockpot it can be used to make great elk taco meat as a bonus. I’m going to keep this one short and sweet, and let the pictures do the talking.
You will need:
4-6 Lbs of elk shoulder (or other roast cut)
Salt, brown sugar, and black pepper for rub (to taste)
Red pepper flakes (optional)
Bacon (about 2 lbs used in pics below)
Smoke (I used Post Oak)
Begin by letting your meat come to about room temperature in your kitchen. I usually take the meat out, then start the smoker, and by the time the smoke temp is right the meat will be ready (assuming you are using a traditional smoker, not electric). For the rub you should liberally coat the outside of your meat with a salt, brown sugar, and black pepper rub. I like to make a small saucer of rub and taste it until it’s the flavor profile I want. My preference is heat, so I go a little heavy on the pepper. Don’t be afraid to REALLY coat the meat, since each bite will rely on the outer layer having lots of flavor.
Once you have the meat covered in the rub, it’s time to do the bacon wrap. It doesn’t have to be fancy, just make sure the bacon covers the top and sides of each piece. My rationale is the fat will render into the meat. Does science back that up? No clue, but it sure tasted good and there wasn’t a whole lot of fat in my drip pan. Once your smoker is maintaining an internal temperature of 225F, it’s time to put the meat on. Every smoker is different, and you’ll have to adapt to your situation, but just make sure the bacon side is face up.
Allow the meat to smoke until the internal temperature is 140F. You can play with this, but I found the temp and texture to be perfect once we let it rest. Speaking of resting the meat…let it rest! If you slice the meat too soon you will find all that glorious juice pooling on your cutting board instead of keeping your meat juicy and savory.
I let ours rest for a little over 20 minutes and it is perfectly tender and maintained most of it’s moisture. The next night we popped the leftovers into the crockpot and let them cook until the meat fell apart. The bacon pretty much rendered down into nothing and the smoky flavor really took the tacos to the next level. This is definitely a recipe that will go on the shortlist for our household.
Kevin Johansen, Fall Obsession Pro Staff