A few vinegared veggies thrown in on the side.
Yak meat is hot damn.
this post was submitted on 21 May 2026
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pretty accurate, it has the fullness of beef and the grass-fed spiciness of venison, so a combo if they added up to more than the sum of their parts.
Yak jerky is my favorite kind of jerky and I started eating that in China, but up here instead of beef you'll probably get yak with a lot of dishes, and it's all grass fed because they take a lot of pride in their meats, and super super fresh because it's cold most of the time and very dry so food doesn't spoil as quickly.
It's really interesting because it's a very dense meat and it does have fat, but there's no strings of fat or gristle running through it. So it's super tender, delicious lean meat.
i was kind of thinking it has a little, organ-y blood taste to it a little bit, but that might be because it's so dense while still being easy to bite through.
Hot damn indeed! That sounds incredible! How would you compare it to bison or beefalo, even?
I bowhunted in the upper E of N. Am in my teens & 20s, and love preparing venison for any reason, especially for others. It's just π€πΌ
It takes a couple of changes to how one might be used to cooking red meat (and maybe a bit more attention to the process, for some), but mmmm mmm, it's my favorite red meat.
Until yak, it seems... π΅
I find yak more rich and easier to bite through than bison, but I've had both rarely, so maybe I got lucky with yak dishes and less so with bison dishes. As for beefalo, I'm not sure I've had it. Sounds good, I think I'd like the middle ground. Is it in supermarkets in the states?
Were you pretty successful during deer season with a bow? I am a big fan of venison as well, although a few years ago there was a store selling venison jerky in Colorado and I ate a crazy amount of that compared to all other freshly prepared venison I've enjoyed.
Definitely give yak a shot when you have the chance, you'll dig it.
That makes sense, yep. I've seen beefalo (such a marketing term, ugh) in areas that either farm them or specialty shops otherwise, but it seems to be spreading? Keep an eye out, you might get lucky!
The way I was taught to hunt, I took one a season on average βunless a friendly local farmer have me a crop tag (license to harvest doe to help cull herd, safeguard fields), and that was always enough for me. Hell, I gave away cuts most times, too. That said, a key difference for many between bow and firearms (nevermind blinds, bait piles, etc.) when hunting deer is simply that the deer don't often hear the latter, unless one's a terrible shot.
On top of that, if one's bowstring twangs upon release at a mere 20yds (one of the last possible sounds in that action), a whitetail deer has enough reaction time to duck below the trajectory of an arrow *and then jump past it before it reaches the space they were in a fraction of a second prior. With a gun, they never hear the sound. (again, if one is properly, sufficiently trained) π΅
[PSA (not @ you) : if one can't yet reliably, confidently make kills humanely, don't fucking go huntingπ₯²]
Hahah "beefalo" is rough. I'll keep an eye out though, I have to head back to the states next month, so I'll have a fun scavenger hunt.
What do you think the max range is for a deer to hear the bowstring creak?
Thanks for the info, way out of my wheelhouse and very interesting to hear about. You switched from bow to firearms eventually?
Nope, I've never killed anything with a firearm, as a matter of fact.
Technically, though, because I did have an unfortunate experience once while pheasant hunting on a father & son weekend:
Hiked, walked, stalked, tracked for hours every day; but no viable targets for 2/3 days βuntil the last day, just as the sun eased into early evening (witching hour, low contrast, much better odds for stealth).
Trekked back to camp so proud, and then it was time to learn how to field-dress it. Pops starts off w/ nonchalantly asking if I know what happens when you cut a live chicken's head off, (duh) and I recall getting just a few syllables of my reply out before his cleaver came down and my glorious pheasant instantly flipped the fuck out in a horrifying, unnatural smasm storm of feathers and spurting blood
...because I'd apparently KOed it w/ a near miss (and I was inwardly ashamed at realizing this) and he thought it'd be a fitting "teachable moment" to have me blood-track the bird corpse after it flew into the quickly darkening woods without its head or most of its neck, either.
Childhood in the 80s Midwest was... unique. π
Oh, and btw, re: the deer + loosed arrow topic. I feel it's less about how far they can hear your bowstring and more that any unexpected xor sudden noise will ruin your chances at that individual and any others they warn during their bounding flight from said noise (ie. you).
The bowstring, as the last possible oops before you take the kill shot, is used to underline the insanely tiny amount of heads-up a deer needs before bursting into fuzzy lightning form.
Ergo, you can do everything else 5x5 leading up to the hunt, and still get robbed by a few degrees off in your posture/grip and a fraction of a second.
Now, firearms? Meh. When you can clip any game from many 100s of yards off, that isn't hunting... That's just going to the grocery with more steps. π€·πΌββοΈπ€£
I like walls of text, all good.
Whoaaa, did you end up finding the pheasant? How far did it get without a head? I've heard about chickens running around but not about decapitated flight.
What kind of bow did/do you use? I hadn't shot a bow since middle school, so I bought a recurve bow and target while I was in China to practice with and learned real quick how physically demanding my new "hobby" was.
Oh, man, you went hard! Recurves don't play. π I competed in the compound category in my youth and hunted with the same bow. She was my baby, back then. ("There are many like it") If the recurve is vicious on your bow forearm (not the one drawing) on release, a couple things: a thin strip of leather affixed to the inside of your forearm can help in practice sessions, but learning to rotate your elbow so it's pointed 90Β° from the string's travel is essential to learning effective archery.
That's a great place to start, and a recurve is orders of magnitude easier to transport. ππΌ (w/o damage, but also bcz bored LEOs often hear see a stick, not an ancient weapon) Also, much simpler upkeep and nearly everything you learn with a recurve can be used with a compound, but often enough not vice versa.
Personally, I find archery meditativeβ transportive, even. The just world falls away, and all of reality is simply: the target, and my mind. ππΌ
Oh, and yes, I found the pheasant and still had to clean it in the dark, downwind of the campfire. First and last time I pointed a gun at a living thing. Just not my jam. π€·πΌ
Ha, yea, I prefer fundamentals and deep ends. I remember the first day I got it. It felt good, balanced, light but sturdy, and I thought "I'll give it 20 minutes for my first practice" and maybe five minutes later I was like okayyy ow, this is going to take some strength training and mental adjustment.
They included a wrist/arm guard with the set, but again deep ends, so I refused to use it so that I learned to rotate my elbow. Took a few sessions, but I got the hang of not shaving the skin off my forearm fairly quick.
I figured I'd learn on a recurve and then switch to compound if I went hunting or it became a serious hobby, but it was it was just a fun after-hours thing and I move around a lot so I didn't want to carry a bow with me or buy a new one in each city. Although I've been in Mongolia this month, so maybe I should have. I even went into an archery store the other day, but I was so focused on hammock hunting I didn't think about the bows!
Makes sense about firearms, a tool that powerful is weird. to be in the world. firearms are weird, impersonal items. I've never shot one! There's a police shooting range in Bangkok where you can pay 20 bucks to fire a pistol, a rifle and throw a grenade. I have no interest in the grenade, but next time I'm Thai-bound I'll probably try the pistol and rifle.
Love it! That's awesome! Man, it brightens my day, just reading about your first foray into archery! π€©π€πΌ
So, uh. How much to ship a Mongolian shortbow to the PacNW?
Thanks, it was a lot of fun and the meditative aspect makes a lot of sense! I kept all the gear behind the desk in the classroom i taught in, and one day all the kids raced in and i hadn't put the gear away as securely as usual so instantly a half dozen 4-5 year olds ran to the corner and grabbed at the arrows.
I got all the arrows back very quickly, I don't even think any of the parents noticed, but it was briefly heart stopping(and funny).
ha, from China close to $100 just for shipping right now, so somewhere in that range. i was in an archery store the other day, but I was focused on hammock hunting and didn't notice the prices of the bows.
they did have handmade bows
Oh, wow! Those are beautiful. And, that leatherwork is fascinating. I can almost catch the scent of hide and wood in the pic. π€© I'm curious about the different bow shapes and their uses, as well as the stylistic accents in the leather pieces. Lovely though, even without said answers.
Also, what kiddo could ever resist the mystique of a bow & arrow set? You've certainly got a few of the lesser recognized instincts for teaching: vigilance, rapid response, deflection, etc. π€£
(But seriously, though. Good work keeping them safe!)
Haha, for sure, constant vigilance is key while teaching. Children are great at finding danger. Climbing my glasstop standing desk, rocking their desks back and forward until they fall, sharpening a pencil until it's sharper than a dagger.
Before I realized what was happening, I could see their eyes all instantly lock on the corner of the room on entering and saw that a corner of the target stand was sticking out from under the desk and then they all just sprinted for the prize. very exciting, and then they're all gone after 45 minutes, which was plenty of time with them for me.
I really liked those leather quivers too; the store has a bunch of great pictures.
Maaaan, how did you walk out without buying anything? I would've had no money left. π€£
Haha, lots of practice traveling light, although I definitely understand the urge. Everything at that shop looks so cool, and Mongolia is bow country.
But I'm working on getting back into hammock camping after a long break, so I was laser focused on gathering and then prepping DIYing and testing new gear before I leave in a couple days.
That all sounds incredible! I can't wait to be able to travel again! π€©
I love hammock camping, fastest setup and breakdown, cleanup all you have to do is flip over the hammock and shake it, packs down small, very lightweight, and for me it's the most comfortable way to sleep, more comfortable than a bed.
So now I have a very sturdy new brand of hammock I haven't tried before called nature hike and a bespoke mosquito net for just about 20 USD, so after the first day of camping I'll be saving money on rent every night I camp outside. japan is the perfect country for hammock camping because they also have public baths so I can stay clean every day even if I hike all day, so yup, definitely looking forward to it.
Do you have any particular destinations in mind that you'd like to get to?
Oh and yea that yak plate was a winnnner.
Whaaat? $20?! That's ~80% less than the price for similar in the PacNW. 𫨠Also, panthers & bears around here'd love to give that burrito a "look" in the middle of the night. βπΌπ
Otherwise, that sounds lovely, for sure!
Aside, I'm hoping to revisit Spain & Germany (it's been ~20yrs), but of the places I've yet to visit, in no particular order: Iceland, Japan, Costa Rica, Portugal, Ukraine, Lichtenstein.
So far, I've either lived or visited for 2wks+ : Spain & Germany (of course); and Ireland (both), Scotland, UK, France, Italy, Canada, and 47 of the lower 48.
It was $19 for the hammock, and then I went to a fabric store and the elastic mesh was on sale for about 30c per square meter, so I sewed a mosquito net out of it a couple days ago. So heeeeck yea!
Ha, I'm not keen about camping myself in predator country, but I can tell you there are pretty large communities of hammock campers in all sorts of predator spots, the Amazon, the PNW, Alaska. They can have 'em.
That's cool, I haven't made it back to Western Europe in a decade myself. Man, I could get back to Ireland, what a pretty country. What'd you think of Scotland? I met some Scots while I was backpacking across Ireland and it looked similarly beautiful, and I'm very comfortable with cold & grey, haha.
47 of the 48! wow, I've probably been to about half, how the heck have you not visited whatever number 48 is yet?
Ha! It's New Hampshire, and honestly? I've been all around it, so there's really no excuse at this point. Yet, fact remains.
I guess, life got in the way? Either that, or it's no discernibly different from Vermont to anyone not from either state, but don't tell them that. Trust me. π
Sewing? Pretty badass, NGL. I used to crossstitch when I was a kid/teen, and often repair or modify clothing for myself, but I hadn't thought to simply whipstitch some netting. π€¦πΌ How long you been out there? Ramblin', that is.
Oh, and Scotland is, well itsfookin' luvlae, eh?
The US can always use more Vermont, what a beautiful state.
Mosquito nets, stuff sacks, patches, pockets, adjustments, travel-pillow turned storage, sewing rapidly became way too useful a skill for me to ignore. An old lady in Taiwan even taught me how to crochet int her restaurant, and I made some toasty socks I used for years.
About 14 years now traveling. A few months at a time in each country usually, although this Asia trip has been somewhat hurried due to friend-wedding obligations this year in different countries.
That sounds like a lovely arc, neighbor, truly. π€© I may get back to traveling long-term after I'm pup-less again, but that shouldn't be for at least another decade here. (Ain't no way I'm putting him on a US flight, with their history of killing pets, w/o recourse or justice at all. π)
Still, an inspiring and hopeful notion all the same!
thanks, I'm digging it. i do know a lot of people who travel with their pets without a hitch but totally get not wanting to play roulette.
def lemme know if you ever have any travel questions, it's what the com is for.
Most certainly will do! ππΌ