The Meateater Fish and Game Cookbook: Recipes and Techniques for Every Hunter and Angler

by Steven Rinella

From the host of the television series and podcast MeatEater, the long-awaited definitive guide to cooking wild game, including fish and fowl, featuring more than 100 new recipes

When Steven Rinella hears from fans of his MeatEater show and podcast, it’s often requests for recipes. One of the most respected and beloved hunters in America, Rinella is also an accomplished wild game cook, and he offers recipes here that range from his takes on favorite staples to more surprising and exotic meals. In this comprehensive volume, he gives step-by-step instructions on how to break down virtually every variety of North American fish and game in a way that is best for cooking, offers advice on which types of fish or game—and which cuts in particular—work best for various preparations, provides recipes and cooking tips from other renowned hunters and chefs, and includes instructions for making basic stocks, sauces, marinades, pickles, and rubs that can work with a variety of wild game preparations. Readers will be delighted as well by Rinella’s personal stories, both of cooking and hunting, as well as his insights into turning the wild game he harvests into food.

The MeatEater Fish and Game Cookbook will be a welcome companion to Steven Rinella’s popular handbooks, the two volumes of The Complete Guide to Hunting, Butchering, and Cooking Wild Game. More than a collection of mouthwatering recipes, this cookbook is an inspiring tribute to living the wild game lifestyle, as we share Rinella’s hands-on relationship with the most elemental aspects of existence. Whether you’re cooking outdoors or in the kitchen, at the campfire or on the grill, this cookbook will be an indispensable guide for both novices and expert chefs.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Reference, Outdoors, Nature

657 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 20, 2018

About the author

Steven Rinella is the host of the Netflix Original series MeatEater and The MeatEater Podcast. He's also the author of six books dealing with wildlife, hunting, fishing and wild game cooking, including the bestselling MeatEater Fish and Game Cookbook: Recipes and Techniques for Every Hunter and Angler.

Reviews

[Kaitlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I have no idea who Steven Rinella is and I'm 100% unfamiliar with his Netflix series, podcast, books, etc. (I still wouldn't be had it not been literally the first sentence of the book jacket blurb.)

I was really, really impressed with this cookbook. Like, more than I thought I could ever be impressed by a cook book.

-The pictures, both of the food but other illustrations and graphics, are absolutely gorgeous.
-The recipes are well-formatted and the instructions are well-written.
-The food is delicious.
I know, the above points should be a given, but I've seen plenty of cook books fall short of this!

-It has the right balance of recipes to anecdotes. I don't mind some personal stories with recipes - provided they aren't Beowulfian sagas completely unrelated to the recipe. Food is personal and social and we shouldn't forget that. The stories here were always directly related, brief, and told well.
-The tone is professional, ethical, and informative. I have to admit: I am no hunter. I do shoot a recurve bow, but I don't hunt. From my experiences at the range, I was a bit apprehensive going into this, fearing it would be written with a certain "boys' club" tone, a macho attitude, an unabashed love for violence and death. Dare I say it? I feared it would be filled with toxic masculinity. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised. Rinella speaks with respect towards the animals and emphasizes how important it is to not be wasteful. Rinella speaks with respect towards the reader. Rinella speaks with respect towards the environment, towards other hunters and cooks.
-Its incredibly informative in butchering and other prep that you might not see in other cookbooks. I definitely learned some new things reading this. Ditto for meat - I had no idea sea cucumber could be good eating!
-It has a wide swath of recipes covering different kinds of meat and different kinds of preparation. Really, that is perhaps my only criticism: unlike most other cookbooks, I think one would be hard-pressed to cook their way through the whole thing. How fortunate I am to have the excellent butcher and fishmonger nearby.

That also made the book hard to review, since I couldn't make 5-7 dishes from it in a week or two. I'm going to work my way through it as best I can over the next few months, updating as I go:
1/14: Made the fried smelt. I had never had smelt of any kind before, but these came out delightfully crispy. Made a simple sriracha-mayo dip for them.
2/5: Made the salmon gravlax with jalapenos, cumin, cilantro, and tequila. Instructions were easy to follow, and it was fucking spectacular. I've made gravlax before, but this was the best gravlax I've ever had, with the most balanced flavor. My only change would be using a gallon Ziploc bag over plastic wrap if you can.
2/14: Made the grilled marinated duck hearts with grilled grapes. Had to substitute chicken hearts. Surprisingly quick and easy, marinade really came through. It was easy to overpower the meat with the suggested pesto, though, so go easy on it. Grapes were shockingly good!
2/17: Made the salt-crusted whole fish with a nearly 3-pound red snapper. Had to cook it a few more minutes due to the size. Added some ground sweet orange peel to the salt with the other spices. This recipe wasn't too different from other salt domes we've tried in the past, but the addition of smashed garlic to the interior and spices to the dome itself made a noticeable difference in flavor. Fish turned out exceptionally light, flavorful, and moist. We served it with roasted vegetables. Would do again.
2/18: Made the turtle soup (albeit with gator since the fishmonger was out of turtle). This was a hearty, gumbo-like soup with great flavor. My only real complaint is I wish the recipe was formatted a bit differently. Also: you can make a really dark roux by putting your whisked butter and flour in the oven (in a Dutch oven) rather than standing over the hot stovetop. I cooked mine for 45m in a 350 degree oven and it was great!

[Robert Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aesthetically pleasing, clear and easy to understand, with truly unique and delicious game recipes. Really a must have for hunter and fishers. Recipes are flexible with many substitutions suggested by Rinella (which is helpful when as a hunter we may be limited by whats in the freezer instead of what we can pick up at the store).

The only real shortcoming I can point to in this book (which might be understandable, its very uniqueness owes itself to the mixture of haute cuisine and game specific ingredients) is that it doesn't have some of the simple down home recipes I would have like to see altered for wild game. There are other more comprehensive cook books (generally older) like the LL Bean Game and Fish Cookbook that would be a good supplement to a hunters cook book shelf.

[Amanda up North · Rating 5 out of 5]

From a family who eats wild, this book is a hit!
A must have in the kitchen of any ethical hunter, fisher, or meat eater or conservationist.

The author shares in his introduction that long ago, he committed to feeding his family a diet of wild meat. My husband has been committed to the same as we've raised our family for the past 20+ years.
We appreciate a cookbook geared toward harvesting your own food and a no-waste mentality, with attention to gourmet quality eats.

We don't have or watch television, so Steven Rinella was only known in our household from his writing (in Bowhunter, mainly). Apparently he's a tv personality, but seems like he's a really good guy. :)
The quality of this book is excellent. Fantastic photos, info, and writing. Interesting recipes.
My husband has been poring over it for days.

Thanks to author and publisher for the giveaway - getting this in the mail was just like Christmas. We'll be recommending it to all the outdoors people we know who like to eat wild and eat well.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

I opened this cookbook for some deer recipes and couldn't put it down. Yes, I set it aside for a few hours while I cooked the steaks but I never closed the book. The full page photographs, creative recipe titles, clever wording, conversational introductions, personal anecdotes, and simply the variety of sections and subsections give this cookbook a quality of high art. The chapters are divided by game size and type, and subsections vary from skinning a squirrel to knuckling a crab. There are recipes for a mix of side dishes at the end, from balsamic reduction to coconut rice.

Steve Rinella is a great writer, but this book really thrives on its photographs. Many are full-page and some are two-page spreads, and all work effectively to bring you into the world of wonder that is our symbiotic relationship with animals. It is a relationship of life and death, of give and take. You can learn a lot by reading between the pictures, such as how nuances of animal diets, stresses, and movement can affect the taste of the meat, or why beaver tails will taste better after a fall hunt than after a spring one. The step-by-step photo-accompanied subsections on butchering, filleting, plucking, gutting, etc. are vivid and clear instructions. The "Nature of the Beast" subsections also usefully break down the varieties of game within each larger section of classification.

I do not hunt but excitedly await for the next gift of game, confidently ready to accept our interspecies connections and to additively transform the hunt into an act of creative gratitude.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully detailed and complete fish and game cookbook. I can't wait to try the recipes.

[Stockton Denos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steven Rinella strikes again! This cook book is really informative and gives you plenty of ideas of how to cook any animal or fish you harvest. The average joe hunter (like myself) will likely never make most of these recipes. However, I have already tried some deer, pheasant, and duck recipes and they have not disappointed.

One downside to a lot of these recipes is the amount of ingredients that are required to make them. And it’s not just the amount of ingredients but also the obscurity of some of the ingredients. Don’t let that stop you from trying some of these recipes though. I’ve followed some of these recipes and used common ingredients that everyone has on-hand to replace some of the more obscure ones. Some ingredients I’ve left out entirely. In the end the food may not taste as good as Rinella makes them but I find them to be rather tasty still.

[Evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unlike a lot of cookbooks I own, I actually read this cover to cover. First off, the photography is excellent. I have similar hunting books and cookbooks and this one gets an A+ for presentation. The processing sections are well detailed in written steps and photos.

The recipes themselves are not only interesting, there's good technique to be learned and the Also Works With sections (other meats) is very helpful and found on almost every recipe. The book covers just about any game animal or fish in some way and there's even recipes for sides and sauces in the back that pair well.

So far I've just done "How to Roast a Hunk of Meat to Perfection" on a venison shoulder but I'm excited to try some of the small game recipes in the next few months.

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the first impression of this book. Great details on how to butcher and prepare all sorts of fish and wild game. The recipes I read looked really good; and I read a LOT of cookbooks. I grew up in a hunting family and regularly ate what was hunted. I was really looking forward to this wonderful cookbook....until my son came over and took it home with him! He was very impressed with the book and was ready to try many of the methods and recipes himself. I can't wait to eat some wild game he prepares by using this book. Very nice!

[Andy Lind · Rating 2 out of 5]

My co-worker gave me this book to read. Although it is full of interesting stuff, most of the recipes in here, I will never use in my life. The fishing recipes get 5-stars hands down, but then again, that is bias because I am a fisherman. Sorry Mister Rinella, but I don't hunt and until Boris and Natasha open up a grocery store that sells Moose and Squirrel, I doubt I will use any of the recipes in here.

(Now if you came up with a book solely about fishing, that would be a different story)

[Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an aspiring hunter and angler, I appreciated how this book provided previews of wild game flavors to help guide future harvest efforts.


Each type of meat has its own section with brief anecdotes from Rinella reviewing the category in brief before moving into "The Nature of the Beast" subsections that drill down into the different species and their prospects for table fare. The author is bluntly honest with his assessment and is not swayed by conventional wisdom with the narrower view regarding edibility. This was a section I found to be the most beneficial both in directing my target harvests and level setting expectations.


Subsequently, there are helpful pictures with correspondingly numbered directions on how to approach cleaning a kill of each type that might be required in the section, as well as preparing for either storage or immediate consumption. Finally, there are the lovely recipes that I'm most interested to try when the opportunity presents.


Overall, it seemed a quality introduction into the domestic half of the hunting/fishing hobbies and with enough depth of knowledge to stick around whenever I might need to refer to a recipe. It's one of those guidebooks that I might rank a four star for usefulness now only because I don't know what I don't know, but it will be there as reference when I'm in need so it picks up the extra star on those grounds.

[Taliesin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly informative cookbook offering not only recipes, but advice on techniques for properly butchering and preparing game after hunting. This was a gift from my husband, for both of us, as he enjoys hunting and I enjoy cooking.

We have spied a few recipes in the book that we definitely want to, and can, try as well as others that appear as if they would be amazing. (We just don't have any way of obtaining the correct meats at this time.) May review may change once a few of these recipes are attempted, but from this point they seem simple and straightforward enough, and spices required should not be difficult to come by.

[Ashley Waligura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm unsure how many recipes I will use from the book, but I appreciated the stories, photos, how to guides, and more. I was at first put off of the idea of a cookbook that had recipes ranging from marrow to squirrel, and beaver tail to frog legs, but I really enjoyed the approach that was taken- one of "this is how people did eat, this is how people could eat, this is what real meat looks like when it's from the wild, and this is a humane way to be a carnivore or omnivore in America". Many of us meat but separate ourselves from how it is processed and how it is obtained, and lose sight of what it truly means to be a meat eater.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy in a giveaway.
This book has beautiful pictures and interesting recipes. As someone just getting into fish and game this will be handy to have in the next few years. The beginning of each meat type gives an overview of processing that type of animal. This book might live in my car, so it’ll be close at hand during family adventures. There are a few recipes that I don’t foresee trying out like beaver tail, but who knows what we might end up trying in the future. I especially like that for most recipes there is a note letting you know what other animals you could substitute.

[Elysian Fields · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars! I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of this cookbook. Not only are the photographs amazing, the writing is great and the recipes are easy. It's more "higher end, gourmet" recipes then campout ones. The ease in which the meals come together is awsome, but I would have liked a bit more casual recipes as well.

The process of this cookbook is complete. From hunting the game to butchering it, to cooking it and enjoying; this book has it all. I think it is a really cool addition to any hunters kitchen.

[Dominique · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not often I read a cookbook cover to cover but this one was engaging and kept my attention. Not only is the photography top-notch, the anecdotes are interesting, and the step-by-step instructions are above and beyond what one usually finds. It's unusual to find a cookbook that covers so many fish and game species. The options and suggestions the author provides make this book even more valuable. I've reviewed a good number of game and fish cookbooks, and this may be the best I've encountered.

[Gregory Pedersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 3 of 2020. I love Steven Rinella’s insight and passion for hunting and nature, and his connection to his food is really tangible through his show Meat Eater and his writings. Many of those insights are shared throughout this cookbook, and there are a lot of great recipes too. The jerky recipe was phenomenal, I made it myself and it’s my new favorite marinade. I will say that many of the recipes shared in this book border on the edge of exotic in terms of typical food. I am an adventurous eater though and I can’t wait to try more of the recipes.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal book, beautifully photographed, definitely a coffee table book. My husband is a hunter and a fan of the Maneater show, so I knew he would love this book. What I didn't realize is how much I would enjoy the book. It's jam-packed with step-by-step instructions on how to butcher, etc but also how to harvest from nature. The recipes are first-rate. Hunter or not, this is a book for everyone; it's truly a treasure.

[Riegs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hunting is not my thing, but I am a carnivore and try to have an open mind. I'm pretty impressed with the tastefulness and usefulness of this cookbook. I appreciate Rinella's push to use all parts of an animal, and to not let it suffer. He also makes an interesting point about hunting vs. commercially farmed meat: one is much less cruel than the other in the life of the animal.

[Sherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son LOVES Steve Rinella and this cookbook was a gift he wanted for his birthday. I have to say, it's a homerun straight out of the park. The photos are beautiful, the recipes are straight forward and the instructions are clear. Well done!!!

[Xenon · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a very nice book, hardcover and has recipes for things I didn’t even know you could eat, and from every category of wild game you can imagine! If you’re an avid hunter or just a meat lover this book is for you.

[Daniel Stokes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely worth reading

This book actually has some really good accessible recipes for a wide variety of game. I've cooked a few now and have enjoyed each one. I read this cook book cover to cover and enjoyed it, so it certainly flows well.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steves a Good ol Michigan boy...

Well Stocked book full of great info and a few laugh out loud moments. Cool dude. Cool book. I only discovered him thru the Joe Rogan podcast.

[CB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great addition to any hunter/anglers collection. First cookbook I’ve read cover to cover.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgeous quality and so informative!

[Ethan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book with great photos. Is great for some one like me who has some familiarity with wild game but very basic.

[Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rinella is the bomb.

[Mark McNamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful with awesome recipes and a ton of valuable butchering and packaging info. The book makes me sad I don't have hundreds of days a year afield to harvest all the species it covers.

[Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the few books I actually own. I am constantly references it and trying out recipes. It makes me excited to try different kinds of game or parts that I wouldn’t have known how to use before

[Zachariah Dunham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not exactly a read-through type of book but more of a reference. It is as complete as any cookbook I have ever seen. Can't wait to try every single thing in it!

[Zach Martens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best cookbook I own, not only for wild game.