Our guide to perfectly cooked yak at home.
Yak Facts:
- Yak meat is naturally very dense and lean. Tight muscle fibers pack in flavor and nutrients, but can also make steaks and such a bit tricky to work with.
- Yak has a lot of protein (40% more than beef on average) and a vibrant red color, even after cooking.
- Yak is naturally low in fat – extremely lean, with little to no marbling.
- Yak has a subtle, sweet flavor. It cooks quite similarly to elk, but doesn’t have the earthy taste of game meat.
- Safe Internal Cooking Temperatures are the same for yak as they are for beef.
How to Cook Ground Yak:
- We get our ground yak to an 85/15 blend, so you can use it just as you would ground beef.
- It will brown in a pan like beef, with no need to drain excess fat,; and is the perfect addition to chilis, meatballs, tacos, and much more!
- When making burgers, ground yak will hold it’s red color through the cooking process. Grill your patties just like you would beef, and expect a bright red center if you’re used to a little pink. If you try to cook the color out, you’ll end up with a dry burger.
How to Cook a Yak Steak:
- Sear & Rest
- Cook to medium rare at most (we think rare is best for flavor and texture).
- Add your favorite fat for basting – butter, ghee, tallow, etc..
- Grill at your own risk! Grill masters and elk experts will be just fine here, but for the rest of us – very hot, dry heat will cook the meat aggressively; you run the risk of overshooting medium rare and ending up with a tough steak.
- Marinate first to help break down the muscle fiber. Yak goes with just about everything, so use your favorite marinade. We like red wine vinegar, but there’s no wrong choice here!
- Bring steaks to room temperature to help them cook evenly. Remove from refrigerator 20-30 minutes before cooking.
- Heat a cast iron or stainless steel pan over medium high heat. Add a drizzle of a high smoke point oil, such as avocado or canola.
- Thoroughly dry the surface of the steaks before adding to the pan for the best sear.
- Sear steaks for 2-3 minutes each side. Do not disturb! Leave the steak still on the pan until you flip for a nice crust.
- After flipping, add a knob of your preferred basting fat and aromatics (herbs, garlic, shallot).
- Cook to a little lower than your preferred internal temperature, to account for additional cooking while the steak rests. A thermometer works best here, yaks, dense muscle fiber can make the pressure test for done-ness unreliable.
- Remove steaks from heat and let rest at least 5 minutes before slicing – this allows the basting fat to soak in, and the fiber to relax for maximum tenderness.
- Cut against the grain and enjoy!
How to Cook a Yak Roast:
- Slow cooking works best. Very slow cooking.
- Yak roasts are just as lean as the steaks, so go low and slow with your favorite braising liquid for a fork tender roast.
- Here’s a recipe to try!