cuttin yer own meat?

[Pat Rockets]

Many of you gents cut yer own meat..so im preachin to the choir..

My dad didnt teach me to hunt, however, he did own a meat cutting store..not to be confused with a butcher where the animal was killed, hung, then cut.

I worked there for several yrs before he shut it down..and skinned hundreds..if not thousands of deer durring the season..it surprised me how many people brought in deer not completely gutted or stinky from sitting at the bar gloating over their take..so heres what i do for myself to be happy with the preperations of deer meat..keep in mind its my opinion..but its suggested by my dad..an expert id say..

First and foremost..clean out the gut area thouroughly! From the windpipe to the butthole and balls..if it  makes it easier for ya..cut the hide away right to the ribs..this small amount of belly meat will be scrap anyway..after i gut my deer its a rush to get it cool..especially for early bow when its warm.

As soon as the deer is hung at my house i skin it..its easier when warm..and lets the heat out..i drag the hose out and rinse the deer off..

A trick i use for removal of excess hair is take a propane torch and wave it over the take..not to close to shrink membrane on the meat..but close enough to burn hair off..do this in a well ventalated area..haha.

After that i fill a 5gal bucket(clean) with water and add just a capful of bleach..stir..then final rinse the deer..this helps kill bacteria and such..ive been asked "bleach"..its the chlorine that kills bacteria..much like in a water treatment plant..

Once thats all set i pack the cavity with bags o ice to again try to keep the meat cool as fast as possible

I will then leave it a day so it will cool thouroughly and then quarter it up and cut er down..i quarter by pulling the front arms away from the body and cutting into the armpit to the backbone..the front arms are only held on by cartilage so to absorb the wicked jumps..then when im ready i will seperate the ribs and lower back from the backlegs with a hacksaw just where the spine meets the hips..

Hope this helps some of you rooks or even ol timers to better keep and prepare your bounty..

Again..only opinions here

[Lawdwaz]

Bleach?  That sounds like an ancient Chinese secret.  I'm sure it'll work good for you Pat but I'm going to pass on that one.

I guess I've processed well over 125 deer in 25 year, for mine and my families consumption and we've all survived it with out any sickness or illness.  I guess we are just lucky?

Your other tips are sound.

[Pat Rockets]

Thats cool..im  sure no one would die..but wet dirty leaves and such are filled with icky stuff..poo from gutting and pee and such..like i say too..water treatment used chlorine to kill contaminates outta water..a cap in 5gal is minute

[Lawdwaz]

How do you ever hope to build up your immune system?

Blood, guts, leaves AND sardines!  You'll never get sick................................

[Pat Rockets]

BEER..but im more worried bout the youngins

[Pat Rockets]

Also would like to add that it aids in the preservation of the meat as well..dont think id like the idea of tainted meat in my freezer along with my other meats ...jmo

[Lawdwaz]

I guarantee the first red meat to hit the chompers of my kids was venison.  A 13 and 19 year old that eat it 4 out of 7 days a week since they were old enough. 

I mark each package of meat in secret code with the weapon, date and sex.  Should I ever have a problem, it would be easy to pull it from the ice box and give it to the homeless shelter. (grin)

[Pat Rockets]

Hahaha..nice

[Dinsdale]

I guarantee the first red meat to hit the chompers of my kids was venison.  A 13 and 19 year old that eat it 4 out of 7 days a week since they were old enough. 

I mark each package of meat in secret code with the weapon, date and sex.  Should I ever have a problem, it would be easy to pull it from the ice box and give it to the homeless shelter. (grin)

[FULLDRAWXX75]

I with ya up to the water & bleach part ....................then stopped reading any further. The first mistake was water, it accelerates the bacteria problem, then have to wash your deer down with bleach....................O hell no!!!!!!!!

To each there own.

FDXX75

[Pat Rockets]

Wow..you guys are amature chemists...again..thats what the capful to a 5 gal bucket is for..to kill any bacteria that was on the take before or after  washing with water..

Like i said before..if you drink or use tapwater that  comes from a treatment facility...they use chlorine(which is what bleach is)..to kill any remaining bacteria that makes it through the filter process..

Jmo..Im not tellin ya you gotta..but i definatly wash the meat..with water ..before i freeze it...not so into pee and poo tastes

[Dave]

Wow..you guys are amature chemists...again..thats what the capful to a 5 gal bucket is for..to kill any bacteria that was on the take before or after  washing with water..

Like i said before..if you drink or use tapwater that  comes from a treatment facility...they use chlorine(which is what bleach is)..to kill any remaining bacteria that makes it through the filter process..

Jmo..Im not tellin ya you gotta..but i definatly wash the meat..with water ..before i freeze it...not so into pee and poo tastes

Pat, I never used bleach to clean my deer. After I get it back to the house I hang the deer and then get a 5 gallon bucket with clean water and a few clean rags and wash the inside rib cage while trimming any excess  stuff that in the cavity.

Dave

[Pat Rockets]

I can dig it..

[Dave]

I can dig it..

Pat what's the weather doing up by you? Raining like hell here on the Island.

Dave

[Pat Rockets]

Rained here three days in a row..no sun in the forecast..rained hard enough to help me locate a pesky leak in my living room ceiling..thats what i get  for buyin a "fixer upper"..haha...tarp on the roof...tarp on the roof..lookin like a fool with a tarp on the roof

[First-light]

I used to cut my own but it's so cheap to get it done. Good tips there Pat, I also used a torch to rid the meat of excess hair.

Water and bleach no big deal, not going to hurt you one bit.

[growalot]

I don't think I'd ever use bleach.....but was told once that if you have a gut spill...You should soak clean rags with vinegar and rub down the cavity...that the acid in the vinegar will deter bacteria growth....

[brklynhunter]

I don't think there's anything wrong with washing the meat with a little bleach. With the amount of hormones and antibiotics they use for most commercially sold meat, a little bleach in your wild game should be the least of your concerns. That said, what tools do you use for processing your game? I've seen made-for-home meat processor/grinders online, but don't know anyone who uses this method. Any words?

[Lawdwaz]

I'll pass on the bleach.  Bourbon? Certainly.

After the hide is off; boning knife, cutting board (large 24x30?), grinder, Saran Wrap, freezer paper, masking tape and a Sharpie.

[Pat Rockets]

I like havin the ol' lady grind my meat:) haha..however grinding almost frozen meat comes out better than warmer..

[G-Man]

Meat grinds better partially frozen, if doing fresh use the larger plate as it will be to "pate "like if you use smaller plate as it will smoosh thru instead of cut. i use a 1/2 hp grinder from cabellas and its tough to keep up with it...

[Single_shot]

I like havin the ol' lady grind my meat:) haha..however grinding almost frozen meat comes out better than warmer..

Hahaha....

The hot tub would be great to give it a real good chlorine soak! I don't think the wife would take too kindly to it...I can see her now,running at me with a ball bat.

[Pat Rockets]

I was pondering when or if anybody was gonna catch that..

[dave7114]

He is on the money. As soon as the meat is over 40 degrees for a period of time rapid spoilage takes place. Had an idiot tell me his deer tasted bad cause it was old. NOOO was because the idiot had it hanging for 4 days in 50 and above temps. ( cant age meat in over 38 to 40 degree temps) No walk in fridge makes it very hard to age meat.

[fasteddie]

He is on the money. As soon as the meat is over 40 degrees for a period of time rapid spoilage takes place. Had an idiot tell me his deer tasted bad cause it was old. NOOO was because the idiot had it hanging for 4 days in 50 and above temps. ( cant age meat in over 38 to 40 degree temps) No walk in fridge makes it very hard to age meat.

That's one of the reasons I process my own deer . No matter how they are identified at the Processing Places , you still might not get "your deer" back and get someone else's meat instead . I don't want venison from a deer that some dumb ass has been carring around in his pickup truck for several days !