27 replies to this topic

[Bigdrowdy1]

Ok I thought I would add my 2 cents worth to this as I feel there is still some unaddressed topics to include.First would be the preparation of the animal after harvesting. Where was the bullet placement? was it a neck shot,lung shot or even gut shot? All these will have a bearing as to needed processing procedures.It is improtant to clean all blood shot meat and remove any clotted blood. I will try and cut away any meat that has had intestine fluid or bowel contact. I will even discard in order not to contaminate good meat. Other things to consider at this point is how soon was the animal field dressed? How long before it was skinned? (did you drive around all day showing it off ?). There is a whole lot of variables that can influnence the out come of the animal harvested. Where was the animal harvested from? What did its diet consist of ? Corn wheat, grasses, sages, catus for example. This to will have a bearing as to the flavor of the meat as well. I dont know about the fat of an animal making it tough but it will influence taste.I make sure to remove ALL glands as these diffintely affect taste. I have had some exotic deer from southwest Texas that the tallow was as sweet as could be. When I worked at a proceessing plant we had customers that requested the removal of all fat and others that requested us to not trim any. I can say I cleaned some muleys that would have graded choice.LOL Now on aging in an ice chest or cooler. I am sure aging to some degree has to help in the break down of the muscle tissue, but because wild game generally does not have the marbiling that beef does or domestic animals have I would have to say I am still out on that topic. I have to say wild game is considrably different and I think it should be handled and processed more quicklly than domestic meats. I agree with Wilded on allowing as much blood as possible to drain from the animal to give it a milder taste. I too leave mine in a cooler for 3 or 4 days making sure all water and blood is allowed to drain and not stand. Now having been a meat cutter for years I can say this as well. The direction in which you cut the meats can make it as tender as a mothers love or so tough you can hardly chew it. You can Take a rib eye section and based on what angle you maintain while cutting can make a huge difference. This applies to all meat.Now other variables that come into play are age of the animal, sex of animal, pre rut,rut,post rut and so forth. There can be many reasons for bad meats and alot can be controlled others cant. My older game I like to smoke or turn into burger or sausage and even jerky. The younger the animal the better for table fare if handled and processed in the proper ways. I hope this helps and I am sure there is more that could be added. JMO Besides my 2 fingers are numb.

[On a call]

BD, great responce and have to agree with you to. However I have had large older bucks ( such as that in the photo with SB10 ) that were clearly in rut taste like a yearling doe. I do have to say I took photos and he went on the table and was carved up. Packed away and froze. If it makes a differance ?? I hunt white tail.

As for cutting up meat I just cut accross the grain...am I doing that correctly ?

I appreciate your two fingers two cents worth as I am certain others who read do also ! So get some ice ready and start typing

[bar-d]

On a call said:

Well I could only guess that by sitting on the ice the moisture trying to escape the does not dry out but stays liquid. Where in a hanging cooler there the first blood but then just dries out.

You are on the right track there OAC. Refrigeration is designed to lower the ambient temperature below the dew point of the air in the conditioned space. In air conditioning, approximately 30% of the refrigeration capacity is dedicated to remove moisture in the air. It holds more heat than air does. That is the condensation that drains from your unit. Same principal in commercial refrigeration. The moisture in the air, or in this case the blood, evaporates and the blood is not able to flow out of the meat.

[On a call]

Great...so I passed ??? I have always wanted to build a walk in cooler...still might.

Thanks BD

[hassell]

I sort of made the mistake of putting meat in water which I know you should never do, shot a bull elk and the weather was freezing at night but when I started gutting it the blow flys came out of the woodwork so after packing it out on horses we quickly quartered it and put in a creek that was near by, took it out at night but ended up losing some because of the water in the meat, it bleaches it out or other words drains the blood in the meat out, pretty sick gray looking stuff, never had any pepper to put on it and never made that mistake again. Elk, Moose and the larger game I hang minimum 10 days and longer if possible, aging the meat is no different than hanging beef except the fat that is more present in beef, in the fall some of the animals can have 1 1/2 inches of fat down the back and over the rump, its trimmed off only if contaminated with anything in the field but have never met any butchers that demand the fat be taken off, it does not effect the taste on rib stks. etc., its to be hung and aged the same as domestic fare, aging is part of how the meat breaks down to make it tender. The salt and ice theory works great for cooling down any thing, more so if you live in hot hunting areas and once taken to the butcher or your own cooler any water or salt that was on the meat must be removed as salt will only dry out your meat, if you cut your own and still get tough cuts get hold of an old butcher that has been through the ropes and get some hands on help or guidance it will payoff in the long run, seeing as you've put all that expense and effort out. The time you pull that trigger the work begins and the more care you put into the field dressing the end results will show on the dinner table. I've rambled on long enough.

[youngdon]

Ramble away Rick I for one am interested in and respect your knowledge and experience !

[On a call]

Yepp x's 2, I enjoy hearing from those who have done and know. Learning from those who have made mistakes are better than me making the same ones. That is why I do not play with poisen ivy, rattle snakes, and other things that hurt lol.

Anyone else have anythought or input ??

I learned not to soak meat..just like Hassell said.

[jldoll]

Love your posts. I try some of your reciepies Thanks