Tough Nilgai Backstrap

I've eaten a lot of backstaps, but with a nilgai I recently got I'm having some trouble with how tough it is. First thing I tried was my normal go to, season, wrap in bacon, grill it till inside temp hits 133* and enjoy. Flavor was there but it was like chewing on a tire. Any ideas on recipes? I know the good old pound it flat and fry it always goes well, but looking for tenderization methods that could make it easier to cook as whole loin chunks the way I like to do regular venison. Worst case it'll get pounded flat or go through the grinder. Appreciate the tips.

Usually the only thing that will help is aging, and breaking down all the tough collagens in the muscle tissue. Citrus and spices, vacuum pack for aging, and keep in the refrigerator for 7-10 days, before grilling. If they are still tough after that, resort to the old-favorite - pineapple!!!

Do you have access to a sous vide apparatus? Marinating in pineapple and/or lime juice for 4-6 hours will tenderize any cut of meat, and then sous vide for about 2 hours at 130 degrees. High temp, fast sear to get a nice crust after that.

Pound it or grind it. Nothing wrong with a big bowl of chili in a cold winters night.

Brine it for at least 8 hrs , 12 is better.

Im with Blank on the sous vide

Tough pieces of meat (I just hunt feral hogs) usually go through the grinder, but sometimes I'll put them in a pressure cooker for 30-45 minutes. After that they practically melt.
Once they've been through the pressure cooker, I'll put the pieces in a pan to brown them, and fix an appropriate sauce.

If they are that tough why do they cost so much?

I am a fan of the sous vide, I also don't cook backstrap past 130°. Also another way to try is to cold smoke it to 130° and then chill it until its cold and slice then.

The first two things that come to mind when I hear tough backstrap is over cooked or improperly trimmed. I cook to 129 but 133 isn't far enough passed that to make it tough. Are you sure the thermometer is correct? The other thing is making sure all the silver skin is removed or it will have plenty of chew. In my experience when people wrap in bacon they always over cook the red meat it’s wrapped around to get the bacon done. But if that’s your go to I assume you have that part figured out.

I would listen to Thisisbeer, he's more than likely correct. Hope the next batch turns out great

When wrapping anything in bacon, I always par cook the bacon, no reason to have to over cook such a wonderful piece of wild game.

I just stay away from wrapping anything but a popper. Personally the last thing I want my back strap to taste like is bacon. But everyone likes to do it different.

My buddy killed a nice nilgai bull and gave me some sausage, a little ground, and a sample of backstrap. I grilled the backstrap in a cast iron skillet exactly like I do every other piece of game meat, to 130* internal. It was very dense, and tough, and paled in comparison to Axis, which is the king of game meat IME.

The cows & calves are where it is "at".