trmichels

I think a lot depends on the age of the animal, how well it was taken care of in the field, how far you are from home, and how you like your meat.

Personally I lik to take out the loins and backstraps, and fry them up for dinner in camp.


Here are some tips from my Venison Lover's Cookbook which may help you:

Field Preparation
There is no question that venison from all big game, especially a buck or bull in rut, can be tough and gamy. The way to prevent this is to field dress the game as soon as possible, removing all the entrails. Be sure to split open the pelvis to remove the entrails, and reach up into the neck as far as you can and cut off the windpipe. Then prop the chest cavity open with a stick. All these tricks help cool the meat and keep it from spoiling. As soon as you can, skin the meat to help it cool even more. Be sure to keep your hands and the meat clean. If the meat gets soiled with hair or dirt, or hair or sweat from a horse, wash it with clean water as soon as you can.

Before you quarter the animal take a fish fillet knife and remove the back strap, along either side of the outside of the backbone, from just in front of the pelvis to the shoulders. Then remove the meat along either side of the backbone inside the body cavity. These are the best tasting most tender cuts of meat on the animal. They should be placed in zip lock bags and cooled immediately. Wash thoroughly before cooking or freezing.

For the best camp meal you’ll ever eat slice the backstrap or loin meat diagonally into one inch thick medallions, and broil them over an open fire. Serve the meat with baked beans, and thin-sliced potatoes with the skin still on and fried in bacon grease (Bachelor Potatoes). Season them with your favorite seasoned salt. The big game marinades in this book will remove any gamy flavor from the other cuts of meat.

Storage
In camp you should cover fresh meat with a game bag and hang it in the coolest place you can find. Then get it to town, and have it aged, wrapped and frozen as soon as you can. If you are going to take care of the meat yourself keep it cool until you get to the locker plant, or get it home. Trim all the fat and silver skin from big game meat when you cut it up. Dry-age the meat as soon as possible; ideally it should be hung and stored at 38 degrees for one to two weeks. Then cut off the dark layer of outer meat and wrap it and freeze it. If you can’t age the meat immediately, but do have it cut, wrapped and cooled, you can age it later. When you are ready to store the meat, double wrap it in freezer paper and label the outside with the date, type of meat, and the cut. Trim all the fat and silver skin from the meat before freezing or cooking.

Cooking Preparation
Before you cook the meat unthaw it, still wrapped, in the refrigerator at 36-38 degrees over two to three days. If you weren’t able to dry-age the meat earlier you can do that now. After the meat has thawed remove it from the wrapper, dry it with a towel and place it on a rack in the refrigerator, turning once a day. Allow another three to four days for aging, then cut off the dark outer layer off meat and you’re ready to cook.


God bless and good cooking,

T.R.