Meat hunters
11-27-2007, 08:14 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 17
Meat hunters
How many here hunt for the food? My son got his first buck, an 8 pointer yesterday. He is 15. Anyway, Here in Pa it has been warm and after he shot his deer we had it skinned and quarter within 2 hrs after showing family members. My question is how long can a quartered deer be allright in a fridge before start the proccessing the meat for the freezer?
I was going to have it taken to the proccessor but it has gone to 75$ at some. 35 to 45 lbs of meat isn't worth that price to me. Like I said I hunt for the discount food. I was going to go out today by myself but I didn't want to get another deer and let it rot before this one is cut up. I am almost done now with the chore here but was curious how long it would be all right in the fridge? I even thru the head in there for the mount that I will drop off later today.
I was going to have it taken to the proccessor but it has gone to 75$ at some. 35 to 45 lbs of meat isn't worth that price to me. Like I said I hunt for the discount food. I was going to go out today by myself but I didn't want to get another deer and let it rot before this one is cut up. I am almost done now with the chore here but was curious how long it would be all right in the fridge? I even thru the head in there for the mount that I will drop off later today.
11-27-2007, 08:23 AM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Maryland
Posts: 1,364
RE: Meat hunters
If your fridge gets down to 36 degrees you should be good for up to a week. Get a thermometer to be sure. Good that you are responsible and take care of the one that is already down before looking for another. Good luck with the rest of your season.
11-27-2007, 08:56 AM
#3
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 1,862
RE: Meat hunters
It should be fine for several days in something like a refrigerator. Some people like to age meat before they freeze it. I myself think there is little to no difference by doing that and in the long run can be harmful if not done right. I agree with you on the meat processors. The cost is too much in my opinion. It surely takes some time to do it yourself, but I think it is definitely worth it. You know that you have your own deer in the freezer and it can give one a feeling of satisfaction that you were able to kill it, process it, and put it in the freezer all by yourself. If you don't already have one, I highly recommend the vacuum pack machines. They are definitely worth the money when storing meat for a while like we do with venison.
11-27-2007, 10:31 AM
#5
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Posts: 7,208
RE: Meat hunters
I've taken up to a week to process an entire deer that was in my REALLY cold fridge. I change out the tray daily and clean out the blood that seeps out. When I just have it in coolers on ice I try to get them done in 2-4 days. Been doing it this way for almost 10 years now.
Besides time constraints to process the deer, one thing I go by for speed of processing is how quickly did the meat cool. Typically if I've cooled the meat within an hour or 2 of killing it, I feel better letting it in the fridge longer. If I didn't get the meat on ice for a while, then I will tryto process it faster. I have no scientific basis for this, that's just how i do it.
Besides time constraints to process the deer, one thing I go by for speed of processing is how quickly did the meat cool. Typically if I've cooled the meat within an hour or 2 of killing it, I feel better letting it in the fridge longer. If I didn't get the meat on ice for a while, then I will tryto process it faster. I have no scientific basis for this, that's just how i do it.
11-27-2007, 04:28 PM
#6
Typical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location:
Posts: 819
RE: Meat hunters
There was study done by the university of Georgia. It was a double blind study I believe and the meat from a white tail tasted best when the deer was hung at 40 degrees for ten days. then cut up and frozen for future use. I am a firm believer in hanging meat as it gievs the bacteria sufficient time to break down the muscle fiber. Beef is aged at 38 degrees often for up to 28 days before processing, it is not done as often as it should be as it costs money to hang it. here is another view.
http://www.noble.org/Ag/Wildlife/ProperCareOfVenison/index.html
by Mike Porter
ll venison is not equal. Venison can be consistently excellent table fare, or, with poor handling and preparation, can be about the quality of a boot sole. Many people who do not like to eat venison had bad experiences with improperly handled or prepared meat. Many factors affect the quality of venison, including deer species, deer age, stress prior to harvest, field dressing, contamination of meat, cold storage temperature, excessive moisture during storage, aging of carcass, butchering and packaging.
Venison that has been butchered
and packaged for different recipes.
To keep things simple, these comments focus on the meat of wild, free-ranging white-tailed deer and mule deer. Some of these details would be different for large deer species such as moose, elk and caribou or non-native deer such as fallow, axis and red deer.
Meat from mature bucks more than four years old that are harvested during rut sometimes can have a little off-flavor and be a little tougher than female deer and young bucks. Nevertheless, mature bucks are usually very edible when handled, aged and butchered properly. Genetics most likely impact tenderness of venison, because I have encountered some old does that were more tender than some young does. However, I do not know how a hunter can recognize a deer with the genetics for tenderness.
A clean, quick kill of an undisturbed deer probably provides the best-quality venison. Meat quality usually declines in animals that are stressed or run extensively immediately before death. A deer should be eviscerated (field dressed) immediately after death, but this can be postponed up to a couple hours during mild weather and even longer during cold weather. The combination of evisceration and the bullet or arrow wound usually adequately bleed a deer—there is no need to cut a dead deer’s throat. Also, contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary to remove the metatarsal glands because they do not affect the meat after death. However, avoid rubbing the glands on the meat and avoid handling the glands and then handling the meat without washing well.
Soon after evisceration, the carcass or quartered meat should be cooled and stored at 34-38 degrees Fahrenheit. The carcass is easiest to skin soon postmortem, but skinning can be postponed for a few days as long as the carcass is quickly and thoroughly cooled. Tenderness is generally improved when the carcass or quartered meat is aged at least a week at 34 to 38 F with good air circulation around any exposed meat. Air circulation around exposed meat causes its surface to dry—the dry layer should be trimmed off during butchering. Tenderness continues to improve during the cold storage aging process until about 16 to 21 days. The meat that will be ground and the tenderloins do not need to be aged. Freezing should be avoided during the aging process because it inhibits aging and speeds spoilage after thawing. However, meat does not go bad when it freezes during the aging process. The meat should be kept clean and dry throughout field dressing, cold storage and aging processes. Soiling and excessive moisture increase the likelihood of spoilage.
After the aging process, fat, cartilage, bruised meat, dried outer meat and non-muscle material should be removed from the muscles using a sharp filet or boning knife while working on a clean, cool cutting surface. I believe fat is the most common source of off-flavor in venison. Several chemicals that cause off-flavor are stored in fat. Venison fat usually leaves an aftertaste or residue in the mouth and is less palatable than beef, pork or chicken fat. Cartilage, such as tendons, ligaments and fascia, are responsible for much of the toughness in meat.
http://www.noble.org/Ag/Wildlife/ProperCareOfVenison/index.html
by Mike Porter
ll venison is not equal. Venison can be consistently excellent table fare, or, with poor handling and preparation, can be about the quality of a boot sole. Many people who do not like to eat venison had bad experiences with improperly handled or prepared meat. Many factors affect the quality of venison, including deer species, deer age, stress prior to harvest, field dressing, contamination of meat, cold storage temperature, excessive moisture during storage, aging of carcass, butchering and packaging.
Venison that has been butchered
and packaged for different recipes.
To keep things simple, these comments focus on the meat of wild, free-ranging white-tailed deer and mule deer. Some of these details would be different for large deer species such as moose, elk and caribou or non-native deer such as fallow, axis and red deer.
Meat from mature bucks more than four years old that are harvested during rut sometimes can have a little off-flavor and be a little tougher than female deer and young bucks. Nevertheless, mature bucks are usually very edible when handled, aged and butchered properly. Genetics most likely impact tenderness of venison, because I have encountered some old does that were more tender than some young does. However, I do not know how a hunter can recognize a deer with the genetics for tenderness.
A clean, quick kill of an undisturbed deer probably provides the best-quality venison. Meat quality usually declines in animals that are stressed or run extensively immediately before death. A deer should be eviscerated (field dressed) immediately after death, but this can be postponed up to a couple hours during mild weather and even longer during cold weather. The combination of evisceration and the bullet or arrow wound usually adequately bleed a deer—there is no need to cut a dead deer’s throat. Also, contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary to remove the metatarsal glands because they do not affect the meat after death. However, avoid rubbing the glands on the meat and avoid handling the glands and then handling the meat without washing well.
Soon after evisceration, the carcass or quartered meat should be cooled and stored at 34-38 degrees Fahrenheit. The carcass is easiest to skin soon postmortem, but skinning can be postponed for a few days as long as the carcass is quickly and thoroughly cooled. Tenderness is generally improved when the carcass or quartered meat is aged at least a week at 34 to 38 F with good air circulation around any exposed meat. Air circulation around exposed meat causes its surface to dry—the dry layer should be trimmed off during butchering. Tenderness continues to improve during the cold storage aging process until about 16 to 21 days. The meat that will be ground and the tenderloins do not need to be aged. Freezing should be avoided during the aging process because it inhibits aging and speeds spoilage after thawing. However, meat does not go bad when it freezes during the aging process. The meat should be kept clean and dry throughout field dressing, cold storage and aging processes. Soiling and excessive moisture increase the likelihood of spoilage.
After the aging process, fat, cartilage, bruised meat, dried outer meat and non-muscle material should be removed from the muscles using a sharp filet or boning knife while working on a clean, cool cutting surface. I believe fat is the most common source of off-flavor in venison. Several chemicals that cause off-flavor are stored in fat. Venison fat usually leaves an aftertaste or residue in the mouth and is less palatable than beef, pork or chicken fat. Cartilage, such as tendons, ligaments and fascia, are responsible for much of the toughness in meat.
11-27-2007, 04:34 PM
#7
Typical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location:
Posts: 819
RE: Meat hunters
Deer: Hang Time
Good venison comes to those who wait awhile.
by John Barsness
There are some persistent myths about aging venison that may cause you to stock your freezer with inferior meat this season. I’m sure you’ve heard them: Deer meat can’t be aged like beef, because it dries out if left hanging. Or: Aging is simply “controlled rot,” and why let good venison rot? And: You only need to hang deer a day or two for tender meat, so any longer is a waste of time.
None of this is true. To understand why, and to find out the best methods to age venison, we have to turn to science.
A Chemistry Lesson
Despite its different taste and lower levels of fat, venison is very similar to beef. It contains the same basic enzymes, particularly lactic acid, and goes through similar changes after the animal dies.
First, the muscles go into rigor mortis, a stiffening lasting at most 24 hours. Butchering a deer during rigor mortis is one of the worst things you can do. It can cause a phenomenon called shortening, where the muscles contract and remain tougher than if butchering took place a day later.
Proper aging begins as soon as rigor mortis ends—and this process is definitely not controlled rot. Rot is zillions of bacteria eating the muscle cells, their waste products creating the familiar stench of decaying flesh. Bacteria attack only after meat is exposed to the air, and bacterial rot is accelerated by higher temperatures. It doesn’t happen at all if the meat is frozen. To properly age your deer, you must keep it at temperatures above freezing and below about 40 degrees. This holds bacteria (and rot) at bay, allowing natural enzymes to do their work.
Venison, Restaurants, and Supermodels
Meat is made up of long muscle cells connected by a fairly tough substance called collagen (the same stuff plastic surgeons inject into the lips of supermodels to make those lips full and “pouty”). Collagen causes most meat toughness. Young animals have little of it between their muscle cells, but as an animal gets older, more develops. Natural enzymes break down this intercellular collagen as meat is aged, so the longer it hangs, the more tender it becomes. (Commercial meat tenderizers, such as papaya juice, do the same job—but natural aging is more flavorful.) This is why beef served in fine restaurants is aged a couple of weeks or more. It’s also the reason a prime restaurant T-bone costs so much; it takes money to cool a large aging room.
Supermarket beef is aged perhaps two to three days. This isn’t bad, since beef—or a deer—hung that long does age slightly. But neither becomes as tender or flavorful as after a week or more.
Aging at Home
Maintaining a consistent temperature is the main problem with home-aging venison. I live in Montana, where outside temperatures during the firearms season normally range from around 20 at night to 40 during the day. My garage provides some protection against cold and sunlight, so deer that I hang there won’t usually warm to more than 40 degrees and won’t freeze at night. If your weather isn’t ideal, you can home-age venison in a spare refrigerator. Skin the quarters and bone-out other large sections of meat. The quarters from a typical deer (or even two) will fit in an average-size refrigerator.
Young deer don’t have much collagen, so aging for a couple of days is plenty. Older bucks benefit most from the extended period, and many hunters who do it properly actually prefer the taste of mature bucks. After aging, the steaks are as tender as a young doe’s—but with a rich flavor reminiscent of the best restaurant beef.
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Good venison comes to those who wait awhile.
by John Barsness
There are some persistent myths about aging venison that may cause you to stock your freezer with inferior meat this season. I’m sure you’ve heard them: Deer meat can’t be aged like beef, because it dries out if left hanging. Or: Aging is simply “controlled rot,” and why let good venison rot? And: You only need to hang deer a day or two for tender meat, so any longer is a waste of time.
None of this is true. To understand why, and to find out the best methods to age venison, we have to turn to science.
A Chemistry Lesson
Despite its different taste and lower levels of fat, venison is very similar to beef. It contains the same basic enzymes, particularly lactic acid, and goes through similar changes after the animal dies.
First, the muscles go into rigor mortis, a stiffening lasting at most 24 hours. Butchering a deer during rigor mortis is one of the worst things you can do. It can cause a phenomenon called shortening, where the muscles contract and remain tougher than if butchering took place a day later.
Proper aging begins as soon as rigor mortis ends—and this process is definitely not controlled rot. Rot is zillions of bacteria eating the muscle cells, their waste products creating the familiar stench of decaying flesh. Bacteria attack only after meat is exposed to the air, and bacterial rot is accelerated by higher temperatures. It doesn’t happen at all if the meat is frozen. To properly age your deer, you must keep it at temperatures above freezing and below about 40 degrees. This holds bacteria (and rot) at bay, allowing natural enzymes to do their work.
Venison, Restaurants, and Supermodels
Meat is made up of long muscle cells connected by a fairly tough substance called collagen (the same stuff plastic surgeons inject into the lips of supermodels to make those lips full and “pouty”). Collagen causes most meat toughness. Young animals have little of it between their muscle cells, but as an animal gets older, more develops. Natural enzymes break down this intercellular collagen as meat is aged, so the longer it hangs, the more tender it becomes. (Commercial meat tenderizers, such as papaya juice, do the same job—but natural aging is more flavorful.) This is why beef served in fine restaurants is aged a couple of weeks or more. It’s also the reason a prime restaurant T-bone costs so much; it takes money to cool a large aging room.
Supermarket beef is aged perhaps two to three days. This isn’t bad, since beef—or a deer—hung that long does age slightly. But neither becomes as tender or flavorful as after a week or more.
Aging at Home
Maintaining a consistent temperature is the main problem with home-aging venison. I live in Montana, where outside temperatures during the firearms season normally range from around 20 at night to 40 during the day. My garage provides some protection against cold and sunlight, so deer that I hang there won’t usually warm to more than 40 degrees and won’t freeze at night. If your weather isn’t ideal, you can home-age venison in a spare refrigerator. Skin the quarters and bone-out other large sections of meat. The quarters from a typical deer (or even two) will fit in an average-size refrigerator.
Young deer don’t have much collagen, so aging for a couple of days is plenty. Older bucks benefit most from the extended period, and many hunters who do it properly actually prefer the taste of mature bucks. After aging, the steaks are as tender as a young doe’s—but with a rich flavor reminiscent of the best restaurant beef.
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11-27-2007, 06:52 PM
#8
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 17
RE: Meat hunters
Thanks all for the replies. I have heard of people soaking their venison in salt water over night to draw out the blood then wrapping them for the freezer. This to me makes no sense at all. Anyone know of the reason to do this before freezing instead of before cooking?
11-27-2007, 07:22 PM
#9
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: PA.
Posts: 5,195
RE: Meat hunters
ORIGINAL: slimshady123
Thanks all for the replies. I have heard of people soaking their venison in salt water over night to draw out the blood then wrapping them for the freezer. This to me makes no sense at all. Anyone know of the reason to do this before freezing instead of before cooking?
Thanks all for the replies. I have heard of people soaking their venison in salt water over night to draw out the blood then wrapping them for the freezer. This to me makes no sense at all. Anyone know of the reason to do this before freezing instead of before cooking?
as for salt water, we still do that overnight.
it way it was done for years in our family.
11-27-2007, 07:26 PM
#10
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 17
RE: Meat hunters
ORIGINAL: sproulman
we hang our deer in garage for about 3 or 4 days, i think its 45 today and garage is cool.
as for salt water, we still do that overnight.
it way it was done for years in our family.
ORIGINAL: slimshady123
Thanks all for the replies. I have heard of people soaking their venison in salt water over night to draw out the blood then wrapping them for the freezer. This to me makes no sense at all. Anyone know of the reason to do this before freezing instead of before cooking?
Thanks all for the replies. I have heard of people soaking their venison in salt water over night to draw out the blood then wrapping them for the freezer. This to me makes no sense at all. Anyone know of the reason to do this before freezing instead of before cooking?
as for salt water, we still do that overnight.
it way it was done for years in our family.