Baking soda to tenderize

[luberhill]

The one buck I shot this year seems tough ..

Killed it with the crossbow during the rut , not sure if that matters ..

Even the backstrap seemed tough.

So my Chinese buddy said use baking soda to tenderize it .

You guys ever try that ??

[NYBowhunter]

The juice from Kiwi fruit is a much better natural alternative as a tenderizer. Works extremely well, sometimes too good if left on too long.

 

Edited February 26, 2023 by NYBowhunter

[luberhill]

I tried the baking soda because I didn’t have any kiwi 

It is more tender but seems like it took all the natural flavor out of it

[Untwisted Pretzel logic]

Try cutting as much of the fat off the meat as you can. That's where the gamey taste and toughness will generally come from.

That is my primary suggestion, other than that, you may try some type of overnight marinate with diet cherry coke.  Someone suggested this to me many years ago and I'm just now remembering it.

[luberhill]

19 minutes ago, Untwisted Pretzel logic said:

Try cutting as much of the fat off the meat as you can. That's where the gamey taste and toughness will generally come from.

That is my primary suggestion, other than that, you may try some type of overnight marinate with diet cherry coke.  Someone suggested this to me many years ago and I'm just now remembering it.

There is no fat at all on it

[wolc123]

It’s probably tough because it was frozen before it got past  rigor-mortis.   That’s a very common mistake with deer hunters, and a critical part of the process if you like your red meat tender.  
 

Several ways to fix that now:

1) Take the frozen meat to a processor and have them grind it for sausage , hot-dogs, etc.

 

2) Get a pressure cooker, thaw it out, chunk it up, and can it.

 

To prevent future occurrence, age the carcasses before processing at 33 - 43 F for 5 days if 1.5 yr old, 7 days if 2.5 yr old, 10 days if older.  An old refrigerator with the racks removed works perfect for that, if the outside temperature is too warm.

[Untwisted Pretzel logic]

16 minutes ago, luberhill said:

There is no fat at all on it

So.. maybe try the diet cherry coke?

[luberhill]

18 minutes ago, wolc123 said:

It’s probably tough because it was frozen before it got past  rigor-mortis.   That’s a very common mistake with deer hunters, and a critical part of the process if you like your red meat tender.  
 

Several ways to fix that now:

1) Take the frozen meat to a processor and have them grind it for sausage , hot-dogs, etc.

 

2) Get a pressure cooker, thaw it out, chunk it up, and can it.

 

To prevent future occurrence, age the carcasses before processing at 33 - 43 F for 5 days if 1.5 yr old, 7 days if 2.5 yr old, 10 days if older.  An old refrigerator with the racks removed works perfect for that, if the outside temperature is too warm.

 Nope, I’ve processed many many deer  and I did this one the same was as always .

All my meat is aged the same way..

[Robby]

Yep, aging is the key to making a deer moor tender and flavorful.

Robby

[Lawdwaz]

16 hours ago, luberhill said:

 

All my meat is aged the same way..

And how do you age your venison?

[luberhill]

On 2/27/2023 at 9:02 AM, Lawdwaz said:

And how do you age your venison?

Sorry just saw this ..

For the last 7 yrs I’ve done the same , or should I say my butcher has .

He has a huge walk-in that he leaves skinned deer hanging in for 7 days or more.

This deer was done the same as I’ve been going to him as I said , for 7 years .

Ive for sure shot bigger deer than this one but NEVER had the backstraps be tough like this one .

And I cook them rare …

[wolc123]

42 minutes ago, luberhill said:

Sorry just saw this ..

For the last 7 yrs I’ve done the same , or should I say my butcher has .

He has a huge walk-in that he leaves skinned deer hanging in for 7 days or more.

This deer was done the same as I’ve been going to him as I said , for 7 years .

Ive for sure shot bigger deer than this one but NEVER had the backstraps be tough like this one .

And I cook them rare …

Unless you do it yourself, you really don’t know for certain how long it was aged before it was froze.  My money is still on, that it wasn’t long enough to get past rigor mortis.  
 

Maybe the guy lost track of how long it was in there, or grabbed one from the wrong end of the rail by mistake.  Maybe the temperature regulation got messed up and everything in the cooler froze solid.  

Edited March 3, 2023 by wolc123

[luberhill]

3 minutes ago, wolc123 said:

Unless you do it yourself, you really don’t know for certain how long it was aged before it was froze.  My money is still on, that it wasn’t long enough to get past rigor mortis.  
 

Maybe the guy lost track of how long it was in there, or grabbed one from the wrong end of the rail by mistake.  Maybe the temperature regulation got messed up and everything in the cooler froze solid.  

Yea wasnt froze until I got it home .

And it was in my barn for two days before I took it over , shot it Friday afternoon , took it in Monday am

It was skinned and hung … well past rigor

[GreenDrake]

Like anything else, sometimes you just get a "bad" one.  Perhaps pound it out a bit to break it down. Then slow cook it. I have had beef filet at times that was on the tough side. Every animal is different.