MeatEater - Season 2

First aired: 7/1/2012 8 episodes

Episodes

1. Big Sky, Bigger Birds: Montana Wild Turkey

Aired: 7/1/2012

Steven and his brother Matt load up the llamas for a backcountry spring Turkey hunt in Montana’s Powder River Breaks. This rugged terrain is the brothers’ long time stomping ground and they will pack deep into the badlands to get away from people and close to some Toms. Featured meal will be camp-fried turkey schnitzel.

2. The Fair Chase: Arizona Mountain Lion

Aired: 7/8/2012

America’s desert Southwest is a sharp, hard country of cactus, deep canyons, and big cats. Steven arrives to learn the truth about one of the hunting world’s most controversial acts—tracking a Lion with dogs until it is bayed on a cliff or in a tree. Learning from two expert lion hunters, he immerses himself in a style of hunt that is utterly new to him. He is humbled by the challenge it presents, this hunt is physically brutal and emotionally taxing. Sometimes the reward of the hunt is the thrill of success and a delicious meal, and other times it’s a more personal, and possibly more important lesson of knowledge and humility.

3. Crossing Borders: Mexican Bison

Aired: 7/15/2012

Hunting a powerful living relic from a bygone era, Steven Rinella heads into the mountains of the Sonora Desert on a true, wild, free-ranging buffalo hunt. Steve knows Buffalo, but seeing and stalking these beasts in this dry, stark habitat is a wild experience, very different from anything he’s every done. After a careful long-distance stalk Steve takes a young bull and winds up with yards of incredible bison meat to share with his family, friends, and locals. With a little help, Steve prepares a true multicultural feast for a table of hungry cowboys.

4. Strange Hunt in a Strange Land: New Zealand Red Stag

Aired: 10/14/2012

Steven Rinella flies halfway around the world to take on the mystical Red Stag in one of the most beautiful settings in the world—New Zealand’s South Island. Steve learns whether his North American hunting skills will translate for these foreign beasts.

5. Bush Pig: New Zealand Wild Boar

Aired: 10/21/2012

Steven Rinella and local Wild Pig legend, Darren Moore, spend a wild, action-packed day tracking down Captain Cook boars in the thick New Zealand bush. Their tools for the job include two little pig dogs, a knife, and some real grit. These pigs are tenacious and possibly dangerous to both the men and the dogs, and this is as visceral as a hunt gets. When success is had, Steve learns an eye-popping technique for field-prepping whole hogs.

6. The Top of the Bottom of the World: New Zealand Tahr (1)

Aired: 10/28/2012

Steven Rinella gears up for a massive climb into New Zealand’s Southern Alps in pursuit of Chamois and Tahr. Guide and friend, Remi Warren, will show Steve the ropes of hunting the high-country of New Zealand’s alpine. The men will travel light and hunt for food as they go, basing out of an alpine hut as they locate their quarry. This hunt turns adventurous quickly; with an impassable glacial river between Steve and his goal, things get dangerous and intense.

7. The Top of the Bottom of the World: New Zealand Tahr (2)

Aired: 11/4/2012

Steven Rinella continues his hunt in New Zealand working towards his ultimate goal. Featured meals will be rock-grilled Chamois, Tahr Tartar, and a mountaintop Tahr-B-Q.

8. Cooking Special: Giving Thanks

Aired: 11/18/2012

The Pilgrims didn't get their turkey at the store and neither does Steven Rinella. On this special Holiday episode Steve cooks three enticing dishes: Wild Turkey Galantine, Smoked Black Bear Ham, and his take on the traditional Mincemeat Pie. Appetites will run large as Steve makes a special meal for his family and friends.