Well, just like with any animal, different parts of it, call for different cooking methods. Notice I said "methods" and not recipes. Recipes call for ingredients, where methods are the way in which we cook it. Whether it be grilled, roasted, braised, sauteed, stewed, etc.
The muscles in a grazing animal get used differently by the animal. Consider this...here is an animal that is always cautious, grazing and foraging. Grazing on the forest floor, jumping over things, running occasionally, fighting every now and then.
It's front shoulder and neck muscles, as we can see, will get used a lot in supporting it's weight while feeding. Both its front and rear leg muscles get used while walking, trotting, and running etc. All these will generally be tougher than the rest of the body.
The muscles in the loins, sirloins, tenderloins, etc will be used less and be much more tender. These prime cuts are more suited for grilling and quick cooking methods.
That being said, I grilled up two whole tenderloins last Sunday!
Marinated them with red onion, crushed garlic, cracked black pepper, fresh rosemary, a touch of allspice, lemon juice, olive oil, and sea salt. Let them sit for about six hours.
Grilled them over charcoal to sear and get even grill marks over entire surface area. Finished them off in a 350f oven for about fifteen minutes until medium rare. Took em out, let them sit for ten minutes before slicing into them. Sliced into 1/4 inch thick. Served with sauteed mushrooms with red wine.
Talk about some mighty fine eatin'!! I have the backstraps out this Sunday!
Chef
"I Love Animals...They're Delicious!"
