I have listened to folks rant and rave about nilgai. Say it’s better than whitetail, some suggested it’s better than beef. After eating quite a bit of it I guess once again I’m all off on my own. It’s not bad, but it’s not much different than any other game meat I’ve eaten. I hear folks brag on axis sika nilgai and whatever other exotic as so much better and it always comes back to me it is the novelty of the animal not the quality of meat people get.

You're not alone, I'm right there with you. A friend swore that it was the best he had ever eaten, and when he came out he brought some with him. Fixed it up like we do elk, and I thought it was marginal. When we ate elk the next day, he was hooked!! I have yet to eat any Axis, but can't wait for that experience!!

Know a guy who raised axis fallow and a few others for sale. Said he ate a hell of a lot of those growing up etc. he agrees there isn’t the difference folks crow about.

A lot depends on the animal. I thought Nilgai was good the times I have had it and close to on par with elk, but I have only eaten meat from the cows. You do not butcher an old bull for beef and expect it to be as good as a younger steer or cow. The first elk I shot I got 347lbs of meat that was stronger tasting than any whitetail buck I ever killed, post rut though and he had a group of 50 or more cows every time they saw him during archery season. The last elk I got was fantastic, just as old of a bull but he shed his velvet in his last 24 hours and was belly deep in alfalfa when I shot him. Food and condition makes a difference.

Axis the few I have ate I would put all above whitetail but they were not as good as a a Labor Day weekend bull elk eating alfalfa daily.

By no means saying it isn’t good, but it falls significantly short of the hype in my mind.

Like we've discussed before, you're in the small minority with that opinion, but that's fine.

Maybe I'm fat and enjoy hunting too much. But Axis taste better than anything you can imagine. Most people complain about "gamey" taste because they don't have a good drop kill and let adrenaline ruin the meat. Or, they shoot and old buck and don't remove the glands.

The care you have for the meat when harvesting matters. I process my own deer and make my own sausage. You do not know what you're getting from a processor. Should another hunter not take the same care of keeping the meat at or below a safe temperature have his deer processed with yours will result in substandard product. Also, fry anything and put gravy on it or butter. Welcome to the South, stuff tastes better here. Don't mess with Texas.

People always want the biggest baddest Nilgai bull they can secure and then want to complain. I have shot 12-15 Nilgai cows and everyone of them were, plain & simple, sweet! I did shoot one big ol' huge blue bull during their rut and, well, we ended up having to dispose of the flesh.

It’s good, even great, but no better or greater than any wt I’ve ever eaten.

The only way to find which one is better is to take the exact same cut, cook them all the same way and do a blind taste test.

I agree.

We eat a lot of Nilgai meat at my house. The whole family really enjoys it. I can tell a difference in the Nilgai and whitetail. Most people we feed think it is beef. I like it just as well as beef if not better. I agree that a younger cow is going to taste much better than a big mature bull. My goal is to always get a cow. I have taken 7 bulls over the years, but now just go for the cows. Big fan here!

Same boat here. If wanting table fare, cows and young bulls only. Lack of fat will create issues for some. With beef, you typically need fat to help with tenderness. Not so with Nilgai as long as you do not over cook it. Get past medium rare and maybe Nilgai just ain't for you. Rub a lil' olive oil on it, season it to your desires and then cook it. Sometimes, we can cut it with a fork.

Got to mix some sort of other meat (never tallow) in it when making hamburger. Otherwise, patties won't stick together. We used to mix in 10% brisket, but switched over to pork when Wifeypoo's beef allergy took over.

I am really fortunate - pretty sure I just picked up a nilgai "connection". I'll do the work all by myself, but won't care if they shoot it and bring it to me.

Grilled some burgers this weekend some nilgai some beef. No way could you confuse the two, but they were both good.

For me, it isn't fair to compare burgers to beef. Nothing on the planet makes a burger as good as beef. If I'm gonna have a burger, it's beef. Most every other recipe gets game.

I put elk, Nilgai, kudu, oryx in the top tier. The differences between them come down to the individual animal, but I think they are all wonderful. I also think they are all a whole lot better than whitetail or mule deer. To my palate, the difference is night and day. Moose is the one anomoly I can think of that is in-between the two categories.

I think the only fair comparison of any game to beef is beef tenderloin to game backstrap. In the top tier, I prefer game everytime. However there is simply no game equivalent to a fatty ribeye, and expecting one is a recipe for disappointment.

One way I prefer game meat in burgers for a hamburger is if ground with very smoky bacon. But then bacon makes everything better

The nilgai made great burgers. Think it would have been easier to cook I. A cast iron skillet than over mesquite coals, they stuck a little. About all the beef I eat is brisket and ribeyes. The rest we catch or kill.