Oldtimr

Getting the runs from meat that hasn't been hung is horse hockey. Subsistence hunters didn't and don't wait to eats an animal they killed, sometimes they ate parts of it while it was still quivering. That said I have my deer hung in a cooler skinned of course, for 6 days before it is butchered because it tastes better,

woodenb14

I always hang deer 3-5 days, weather permitting. However, we always cut out the tenderloins once they are hung, and grill them up the same night they are killed. They taste amazing.

kidoggy

I agree with all that . except that hung meat tastes better. at least I CAN TELL NO DIFFERENCE.only difference I can tell is it makes it a wee bit easier to cut up if you let it hang. so if weather (temp)permits, I hang it . if not I process it as quick as I can

I also cannot fathom how meat that has not cooled would give you the runs. think about it, if you cook it you heat it up so what's the difference. now if one were to eat it raw I would expect thaT MIGHT BE A GOOD WEIGHT LOSS MEATHOD.


please forgive my fat finger typeing

rockport

I'm not the least bit squeamish. I can eat a sandwich with one hand and pull guts out with the other but I don't eat the deer in the field although I might if I were staying the night though.

I do it with fish as oddly enough I often fish in more remote areas than I hunt and I will definitely catch clean and eat fish on the spot.

I spend days out fishing but I come in every night while hunting.

rockport

It is definitely different in different parts of the country. The best deer meat I have eaten was deer meet that never got warm at all. Kill a deer in freezing temps, butcher it in freezing temps, and straight to the freezer and it was a 7 year old scared up one eyed bruiser buck. I also killed him in January.

super_hunt54

Kidoggy, hanging meat serves 2 purposes. 1 is bleeding it out. The other is the cells in the muscle fibers "break up" when hung. That makes it much more tender and richer. Bleeding out of the meat is of course for taste. Bloody meat tastes awful most times. In a cattle butchery, they run the sides of beef through an electrified panel to tenderize and quicken the cell break up. They still hang the beef for a couple days but by shocking it they can knock off 3 to 5 days of hang time.

WV Hunter

The only time I ever ate deer "fresh" - as in killed, and put in the pan warm...I didn't like it. It was backstraps from a small doe and just didn't taste near as good as meat that has cooled out. If its cold enough, a few days hanging is the norm for me.

kidoggy

while I understand that and agree it makes sense .I have eaten it both ways and believe it makes very little diference. in my opinion what makes the most difference to how it tasted is what it was feeding on. around here mountain buck that feed on plush green grass generally taste better then the desert bucks do. best tasting and fattest deer I ever ate lived the summer in a corn field. I did not let him hang and he was delicious. on the same note the toughest ,nastiest elk I ever ate , I hung for two weeks. and I also know some will say, does and cows taste better then big bucks and bulls. this may be true to some extent but not always.

I am not saying don't hang them. I AM saying it is not necessary. as I stated I DO IT BOTH WAYS, depending on what temps are. I do not have a walk in cooler so , I must do what weather dictates. to each his own.

Mr. Longbeard

No I like to age it

MaineRida

My uncle ran a butcher shop on his farm for 60 years. When I killed my first deer, age twelve, I asked him how long I should let it hang. My uncle walked me to his cooler and asked how many animals I could see with their hides still on, I replied none. My uncle stated that you take the hide off an animal as fast as you can and that includes deer, bear, and moose. The glands are in the hide and will secrete the oils back into the meat if the animal is allowed to hang with the hide on.
Since that revelation I have always removed the hide ASAP, people who dislike venison will comment on my venison tasting better. I will age deer, hide off, and quartered in the extra (beer) fridge for a couple of days but do not hang it with the hide on.
I usually eat the heart the same night and on other ocassions have had tenderloin the same day. I have no issue with eating the animal while there is temperature left in it, i do believe I am too busy to cook meet at the kill site.