Cooking properties of Nilgai Antelope steaks, and patties with beef or pork fat inclusion

Nilgai antelope are a large bovid native to India that were introduced to North America and South Africa. Nilgai are free ranging in the United States and Mexico, and are commercially harvested for exotic meat markets. However, knowledge of nilgai meat characteristics is limited. The objectives of this research were to determine the impact of degree of doneness on nilgai steaks, and to determine if beef or pork fat influenced nilgai flavor and cooking properties of ground nilgai patties. Nilgai steaks tended (P = 0.11) to respond to cooking differently than beef steaks. When steaks were cooked to 63, 71, and 74oC, nilgai steaks cooked to 63oC were only more tender than the 74oC steaks while tenderness of beef steaks decreased with each increase in temperature. There was no difference (P > 0.05) in nilgai patty palatability between types of fat added, but addition of beef fat resulted in the greatest (P < 0.05) cooking loss. Inclusion of pork and beef fat resulted in similar (P > 0.05) cooked patty color.