proccessing your own deer
 

how many of your proccess your own meat and if so why and if not why

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

cause it would get real expensive to keep paying a butcher.
PLus despite being a lot of work, I don't mind it and feel its just all part of the deal.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

saves alot of $$ to do it myself

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My nephewhas processed his owndeer but I find itis easierto have it professionally done as I usually have some of it made into speciality products like summer sausage, brats and bacon.

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Question for you guys that process your own, How did you learn?. Is there a good book or movie out there that you would recommend?

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My cousin processes it for us at our house and if we have more than one deer we'll process one while he processes the other watching him as he goes and doing the same thing.

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I do. It's cheaper and cleaner. I've heard some butcher shop nightmares and even "kinda" had one myself the only time I took mine to a shop. Mine dad taught me.....we've been butchering everything from cows to turkeys for years

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I think thegoing price for the butcher around here is over a $100
Besides that, it's fun.

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yes i have hured those butcher shop nightmares myself i once bought a doe off of a shop and after i hat it i would not go there because it tasted funny and i call friend and he said the shop was shut down once for making someone sick

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

we usually process are own. the backstraps are easy. grinding hamburger meat can be a pain in the butt. cutting jerky strips can also be a pain but very rewarding (i love jerky)...its cheaper, flat out.

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I'd like to echo the question that Michigan hunter14 asked. Where did those of you who process your own learn? My wife is after me to process my own this year. She's already looking at an upright freezer, meat grinder, vacuum sealer and a few other accessories. I think she has more faith in me than I do. Okay, how do I learn?

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

I pretty much do it 50/50, when doing hamburger and sliced loin I do it myself, cube steak and sausage I get my local processor to do, he is cheap enough and most of all very clean!!!, he doesnt take any deer in with the guts still in them so you dont have to worry about bacteria getting in your meat and spoiling it causing a nasty taste. If I could learn a good sausage resipe I would buy a smoker and do that myself also. As far as learning it Ive been around it for all my life, just sort of sank in!.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

I process my own deer mostly because there isn't a processor within an hour of my house. Plus, it can get expensive and I don't like trusting someone I don't know to take care of the game as well as I would (refrigeration, contaminated surfaces, etc). I've only been hunting a couple of years and you get the hang of it pretty quickly. There used to be a great video put out by the state of Kentucky that showed exactly how to bone out a deer in just a few minutes. However, I don't think it is online anymore.

I'm different than most of the old timers I hunt with in that I bone the deer, except for the front shoulder, while it's hanging from the gambrel. It really cuts down on the volume of what you have to bring home. Once I get home, I just trim up the meat to clean it up and then divide it into portions before vacuum bagging it for the freezer. Backstraps I cook on the grill with marinade and bacon. The rumps usually get turned into jerky. The shoulder and scraps get cut 50/50 with ground pork shoulder to make sausage. The sausage is a lot easier than you would think. You just need a grinder and a stuffer.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

Devil Dog,
I have pretty good recipes for Italian and Chorizo sausage if you're interested.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

I pay $55 per deer for a local guy to butcher. But I don't get anything fancy. Just his "regular" package which consists of an assortment of burger, steaks, loins, roasts and backstraps. I would love to learn how to do it myself but I would prefer to be taught by someone. Not to mention I don't have the necessary tools here at my house. I imagine in the long run it will save me alot of $$$. Especially if and/or when either of my 2 boys start bringing home deer.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

If you got it Ill take it! thanks

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Cause you can save yourself alot of $$. Around here it's about $70 to have one processed.

I've got a WMV, but it's about 26 mb. Anyone know where I can uplolad it?

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

Are family does its own because with the total amount of deer we shoot is would get really $

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

Italian Sausage
5 lbs of half fatty pork shoulder and half venison shoulder, ground
1 cup cold white wine
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 cloves of chopped garlic
1 Tb ground pepper
2 Tsp cayenne
5 Tb fennel seed
4 Tb paprika

Just mix it all up real good and let it sit for a little while. You can make it into patties if you don't have a stuffer. Experiment with other spices, but this should be a good start.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

Had my first deer processed many years ago. Cost me $120. Have done my own since. 40+ deer. Many processors weigh your deer and calculate out how much meat you receive. They shut down their process for other animals and run only venison. If you order burger they make a bunch of it and package. You may receive meat from someone elses deer that hung longer than yours or if you spent allot of time doing a good job gutting and cleaning you wasted your time cause someone else may have receivedyou're venison.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

$$$$$$$ thats why i do my own im not gonna pay someone all that money when i can do it myself my wife would have a fit!

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

We started quite a few years back. Too much hair in our meat,not your own deer meat, not taken care of properly, and it cost to much.
Now we make all our own jerky, sausage,and bologna. Tastes better and we know it is done right.

RE: processing your own deer
 

I do it for the same reason I do most other things for my self , besides pure enjoyment I can take my time and do a better job , process the cuts I like , I can't afford to pay $300 to $400 a season for someone else to process the deer ( about $100 -$120 each ) , besides all that I grew up in the city when I was young and I am paranoid about getting ripped off


I think the best way to learn is next to someone experienced . The INTERNET era is great do some research , read books , watch videos , some sports shows have processing demonstrations . One thing to remember even if you don't make great cuts it is still edible the only way to learn is by doing it , become a good Samaritan and help all your friends process their deers the more you do it the better you will get plus you might get some free meat from them ( OK that is more than one thing)

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We process all of our own game. I believe it is part of the hunt and get a ton of satisfaction knowing that I played every part of it, from scouting to the freezer.

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

It saves money and makes me feel even more with nature processing my own deer. All you really need is a sharp knife or 2 and a good saw and you can do it in a reasonable time. After a few deer it becomes old hat.

You just follow the lines of the muscles to remove most of the meat and you can still cuthte bigger peices into steaks and roasts.

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It is really pretty easy once you get the hang of it. I would give step by step instructions but some antiwould use it.Hardest part is getting the wife to help. Search the net.

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CHEAPER AND CLEANER!!!

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furtherly, my buddies and i use the time we are processing to celebrate and tip back a few brews.

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Found some good resources :

Great video on field dressing : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECdaKBbmGnU

They also sell a DVD that covers processing for $13. I might buy one. : https://secure.kentucky.gov/Mall/Store/7803440a42df458c815d9db55890b738/Product/2457ec1426cd42e2b5d4cbb53d6d2387/

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Thanks for the links Jeramy!

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We (our hunting party comprised of good friends and family) do it because well, its time well spent with good friends, and family.

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I grind it all the whitetail, except for a what I use for jerky... to me that's all whitetail is good for. Sausage, chili and stew meat.

Hogs, elk, axis are better in my book. That I butcher myself.

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Save $$$$$ and not hard to do. Getting one in the early season if it's warm might be worth it to get it into the cooler for a few days!

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Why... Because I want to know what I'm eating... And I start stacking on opening day and it's usually kinda hot and a lot of butchers aren't open at 9:00pm...;)

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

We process our own every year. It's cheaper and you can make your own mixes...we have a few family recipes that go way back, and you also can experiment with new recipes. Plus it's fun (granted it's a lot of work) but it's almost like an end of season tradition. It used to be that my family (hunting group) would get together at the end of the season and process everything but the past 4-5 years we've had 4-5 other hunting groups get together with us and everybody makes their with help from others. Turns out to be a lot of fun...especially when the work done!

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Rev we're about the same except we grill them backstraps! Its a good time to get together with friends and family.

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I decided to order myself one of them DVDs, placed my order. It seems like a well put together tutorial.

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private, or public land?:eek:

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Here is a good General Outline of the Cuts for Butchering!
Below the diagram you will find the descriptions of the cuts.
I cut all of the steaks (Bone in and Out), roasts, stew meat and better cuts first.
Vac Pack with a Food Saver machine. Then trim the rest of the
bones of the scrap meat and vac and freeze till the end of the season to make ground, sausage and smoked. $20 grinding machine, a couple friends and a few beers and the job becomes fun.
It really is easy and you can make the bone cuts with a Hacksaw to get
nice looking steaks for the pit.
Eric Stacy AKA: DeerDope

RE: proccessing your own deer
 

Quality product. That is why I do my own. Not to emntion the price of a processor (around 60 here if you gut and skin). I keep my deer either on ice (in an ice chest) or in the fridge for up to two weeks min is a week. This ages teh animal and seems to help tenderize it. The fridge is the best method (that ice can get mighty expensive depending on the weather. In the south it may not get cold until mid way of the season). I lost interest in the local processors around here with the poor quality product they returned. They would always say, I can only give it to you back in a similar condition as I recieved it. I no longer have the problems with quality. This year I am going to buy a tenderizer (found one retails for about $100) to make my own cube steak. That and I now have a sausage maker.

Rev said, "I grind it all the whitetail, except for a what I use for jerky... to me that's all whitetail is good for. Sausage, chili and stew meat."

Rev, to be sure you ain't tried cutting up one of the back straps into 1" slices and grilling it with some garlic powder and soy sauce marinate. WOW that plum makes my mouth start watering thinking about it.... And to think our season starts in 10 days or so.