When Elise Wiggins was six years old, her father took her hunting on family land in Louisiana. The duo eventually came upon a blackbird, but before firing, he told her, “We don’t just shoot to kill. We shoot to eat.” Wiggins never forgot the lesson.

Today, she’s the chef/owner of Cattivella, a wood-fired Italian restaurant in Denver’s Central Park neighborhood, as well as an avid sportsperson who’s passionate about wild game. In fact, she bagged her first elk last year in New Mexico. Many people would have ground the resulting meat to make simple sausages or chilis. Then again, most people aren’t world-class toques—but you can pretend to be by following Wiggins’ recipe for grilled elk chop, featuring ingredients found in the wilds of Colorado.

Read More: How To Get Started Hunting in Colorado

Wild Elk Dish

Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients

For the elk:

  • 1 elk tomahawk chop, bone-in (anywhere from 2 to 5 lbs.)
  • 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1 large rosemary sprig
  • olive oil for rubbing
  • salt

For the sauce:

  • 20 pine needles, foraged locally
  • 3 wild juniper berries
  • 2 Tbs. fennel seed
  • 1 sprig rosemary
  • 1 cup demi-glace sauce
  • 1 cup ruby port
  • 1 orange peel
  • 1 Tbs. lemon juice
  • 4 Tbs. unsalted butter

For the garnish:

  • handful of lichen (aka old man’s beard, foraged locally, soaked in water, and rinsed 5 to 6 times over 1 day)
  • 1 oz. frying oil of your choice
  • 2 whole garlic cloves
  • salt
  • Gorgonzola crumbles
  • tarragon, chopped

For the butternut squash purée:

  • 1 butternut squash
  • 1 pinch cinnamon
  • 2 pinches sea salt
  • 1 Tbs. white pepper
  • 1 tsp. lemon juice
  • 2 Tbs. unsalted butter

Directions

1. Rub the elk chop with the garlic and rosemary. Place in large sous vide bag. Cook in the oven at 130° for 4 to 6 hours until medium rare.

2. To make the sauce, combine all ingredients except the lemon juice and butter. Simmer and reduce until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Strain and set aside.

3. To make the lichen garnish, drain the lichen and set it on a towel to dry. Heat the frying oil with garlic to 350°, then remove the garlic. Fry the lichen in batches no wider than four inches and salt it after you remove it. Place it on paper towels to soak up extra oil.

4. Preheat your grill or flat top to smoking hot. Remove the elk from the sous vide bag and pat it dry. Rub it with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Sear your chop until a nice crust forms on both sides. Remove and set it on a rack to rest for at least 6 minutes.

5. Split and de-seed the butternut squash, then place it flesh-side down on a roasting pan that has been rubbed with oil. Roast at 350° for about one hour or until the outside is squishy to the touch. Purée in a blender, then heat the squash, cinnamon, salt, and white pepper on medium heat, folding in the spices. Add the lemon juice and butter. Whisk quickly until the butter is melted. Remove from heat.

6. Cut your elk loin off the chop, then slice it into quarter-inch to half-inch-thick pieces. Place the butternut squash purée on a large serving platter. Shingle the loin slices across the squash. Lay the tomahawk bone beside the slices and pour the sauce over the top of the meat. Garnish with the fried lichen, Gorgonzola crumbs, and chopped tarragon.