“Hunting means learning for life,” states chef and avid hunter Markus Saemmer from Bavaria. In the first episode of the SWAROVSKI OPTIK podcast Halb so wild, he told us how he got into hunting, what it means to him to take responsibility for nature, and how he is introducing his three-year-old daughter to the tricky subject.
The Human Factor
The snow crunches softly underfoot as podcast host Juergen Schmuecking takes chef Markus Saemmer on a walk through a scenic valley in the heart of Tyrol, Austria. The trained chef and passionate hunter has experienced first-hand that hunting is no longer what it used to be. Since the pandemic, the pressure on land and game has increased significantly.
Although it is essentially a good thing that people are being drawn more into nature, a lot of places are suffering the lack of experience and respect that comes with these new visitors. “People are traipsing through the woods everywhere,” Markus Saemmer shares from his own experience, and compares the unversed forest and field visitors to the sandaled tourists often seen on mountains in summer. Regardless of whether it's mushroom season, people are drawn to the countryside, which will inevitably lead them into hunting grounds. Living close to Munich, Markus Saemmer experiences this situation quite often.
Hunting as a Tricky Topic
Communicating about all things hunting can be quite a challenge, not only in society in general, but with children in particular. Markus’ daughter, who was three years old at the time of the podcast recording, gave Markus Saemmer an understanding of the kind of empathy that children feel for every living being. Naturally, they then ask questions such as: “Why feed first and then kill?” The chef and hunter tries to take an approach that is unfiltered, but also non-judgmental, communicating as openly and honestly as possible.
After all, it is important that children understand that meat does not come from the supermarket, but that an animal has died for every piece. “A child has to be able to build this mental bridge at some point,” says Markus Saemmer, who uses a lot of visual language on his Instagram channel. However, he is careful in choosing what he communicates and keeps special moments, such as the one after the shot, to himself. “I think it's important to maintain a connection with nature and to say thank you,” says the hunter, who values tradition.
Nose to Tail
Markus Saemmer learned to cook from the bottom up. He gained experience in top restaurants all over the world and, after a year abroad in Australia, he worked as a private chef on a yacht – up until his dream job turned into a nightmare due to the working hours. The Bavarian realized that it doesn't take much to be happy, neither in life nor in cooking, and he founded his own catering company. “You don't necessarily need a sous vide water bath here and a salamander grill there,” he says today. “With only simple means, you can also cook high-quality products on an open fire.” Unless you cut your thumb with an axe, but that's another story (if you want to know more about this accident, just fast-forward to minute ten in the German podcast episode).
Back then, Markus Saemmer decided that he wanted to move away from industrially produced meat, so the keen angler, beekeeper, and honey producer made the leap to hunting. He obtained his hunting license in Bavaria and has got to the point where the only meat he eats at home with his family is venison. Cooking venison has become his passion, and he makes sure to eat as much of the animal as possible, using the deer bones to make game stock and broths, for example. And why not use the tongue, too? Everything from nose to tail. Chef Markus Saemmer sees great potential in regionally hunted game meat, especially in terms of sustainability.
Hunting as a Passion
A life without hunting has become unimaginable for the outdoor chef and cookbook author. “You walk through the forest with a different perspective,” says the avid hunter, who is still fascinated by the connections he identifies in ecosystems. His hunting ground is a very special one: “We are in a Ramsar conservation area that is also covered by the Habitats Directive and have rare ground breeders such as the curlew. This means we have a great responsibility as hunters, especially when we hunt predatory game.” Markus has to make sure that he keeps the fox and crow population in check to protect the ground breeders from nest predators. His motivation stems from his profound respect and love for animals and nature.
Find out more about the passionate chef and avid hunter in the “Rauszeit Jagd” episode of Halb so wild the podcast from Swarovski Optik (German only).
About
Markus Sämmer
Markus worked at the highest levels of Munich’s restaurant scene for a long time before he toured Australia in a campervan for a year and worked on a yacht in the Mediterranean. In 2004, he founded his own company and has been running a catering business on Lake Ammersee since then. Markus is just as passionate about the outdoors. As an active climber, surfer, mountain biker, mountaineer, and alpinist, he loves hunting and fishing.
About
Juergen Schmücking
Juergen Schmuecking is a journalist and photographer from Austria. His areas of focus are food and its production, particularly wine, spirits, beer, cheese, fish, and meat. Juergen wants to explore where and how food is produced, how it tastes, and how it reaches consumers' palates. And, of course, the stories of those who harvest and produce it. Working closely with venison and hunting chefs prompted Juergen to take a hunting course in 2022.
