REVIEW: North American Hunting Club iPad Cookbook

Rick is a lifetime member of the North American Hunting Club (NAHC) and has been collecting their cookbooks since the 80s. We were contacted by the NAHC to write a review on their newly released Wild Bounty Cookbook  in the convenient Apple iPad format. Here is our verdict on the digital wild game cookbook. 

Click here to download the Wild Bounty Cookbook on iTunes.

Click here to visit the North American Hunting Club.

REVIEW: NAHC Wild Bounty Cookbook by Jim and Ann Casada

 

At first glance, NAHC's Wild Bounty Cookbook is clear, crisp and bright. With the Apple iPad's integrated system of pinching and zooming, reading the recipes is a complete breeze. Pages are also very easy to navigate through. Simply swipe the screen as if you're turning the page of a real book, and voila! You're on the next page to view the next recipe. There are no frills and confusing buttons. The iPad application was designed to be straightforward, exactly like a book, minus all the bulk and extra weight. Offering more than 100 delicious wild game recipes, hunters and cooks alike will surely find something that they will absolutely love in this cookbook.

The great thing about the iPad medium is that it can be carried anywhere. NAHC was very smart in digitizing their recipes, because that's where everything seems to be going nowadays. Need to look up a recipe for dinner? Flip through the pages of your Wild Bounty Cookbook, all while working on a huge project at work, in class or on the train. It is also great for when you're out in the field. Impress all your friends and family at deer camp by cooking up an amazing wild game dinner. With the touch of a button, you'll have more than 100 delicious recipes to choose from, ranging from venison, wild turkey, upland birds, small game, water fowl, soups and stews, sauces, jams and delicious deserts. If you're the kind of person who has trouble reading print, simply prop up your iPad in the kitchen while you cook. With a quick finger motion, zoom in and out of pages as if you're using a magnifying glass. Words become larger, but remain crisp and clear. The application runs exceptionally smooth and is very easy to use, even for the most technologically challenged. It is well organized and provides the easy option of jumping to different chapters from the menu bar. Digital cookbooks are a great idea. We'd like to see NAHC do this with their many other cookbooks as well. 

Tip: Double-tap the screen after zooming to return the page to default size. We found that you can only flip pages from full page view.

The Wild Bounty Cookbook is notable for its many beautiful pictures. Professional, clean, appetizing and rustic, the pictures will make readers drool as they flip through the pages. "Timeless" is the word Rick used to describe the pictures, conveying a deep sense of tradition in the art of hunting, gathering and cooking. The vibrant, pastoral photographs of carefully crafted wild game dishes give readers the impression that the activity of hunting will never go away, and that the main heart and soul of hunting will always remain the same. 

Not only that, the digital book also features great pictures of NAHC life members' successes in the field, beautiful country landscapes and regal portraits of the game animals we all know and love. 

In addition to great recipe, Wild Bounty also provides valuable tips, anecdotes and suggestions about preparing wild game. The tips show up on the side bar of pages, and are great starting points for the beginner hunter. Also, seasoned hunters who are used to doing things a certain way can also take away some lessons as well. Wild Bounty can open up new ideas and methods, such as preparing game bird innards instead of throwing them away, thoughts on whether "To Skin or Pluck" and great suggestions on "Using Leftovers."

The book also provides tips on cooking individual recipes, conveniently found right under the respective recipe.

We applaud Wild Bounty for its creative use of wild game, breaking the overused method of what we called the "wrapped-in-bacon-bore." Don't get us wrong, bacon is wonderful. But wild game meats like venison, duck, pheasant and rabbit deserve a lot more glory than just being wrapped in bacon and thrown on a grill. These meats deserve respect and more credit.  With Wild Bounty recipes like "Shrimp-Stuffed Tenderloin," "Venison Eggplant Parmigiana," "Black Walnut Crusted Turkey," "Sweet and Sour Doves" and "Paprika Rabbit,"  NAHC's cookbook does wild game justice by allowing game meats the breathing room to live up to their full potential. 

As a matter of fact, we based one of our recipes from this book: Burgundy Grilled Goose. It was fantastic!!

For those who own an iPad, we encourage each and every one of you to download the Wild Bounty Cookbook. For just $2.99, this "app" is a steal considering how many recipes you get! 

To download, search "Wild Bounty Cookbook" at the iTunes App Store, or click here. To visit the North American Hunting Club website, please click here.