Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
10-04-2007, 02:04 PM
#23
Guest
Posts: n/a
RE: Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
I like meat to be hung for 2-3 days if possible in 40degree weather. If I know its going to be well below freezing that night, I won't let it sit outside, if I know its going to be over 55F during the day, I will start cutting it up. Its rare I get to let meat hang for more than a day. Weather usually won't cooperate.
But with early season right now, its gets skinned and the whole hinds taken out out along with shoulders and backstraps and put in a cooler with ice packs for a day or two.
But with early season right now, its gets skinned and the whole hinds taken out out along with shoulders and backstraps and put in a cooler with ice packs for a day or two.
10-04-2007, 02:18 PM
#24
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Calgary,Alberta,Canada
Posts: 2,123
RE: Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
ORIGINAL: City Slicker
I noticed in your photo you've got a piece of wood(?) spreading the rib cage....why is that?
I noticed in your photo you've got a piece of wood(?) spreading the rib cage....why is that?
10-04-2007, 04:11 PM
#25
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Lake County, Il
Posts: 2,205
RE: Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
ORIGINAL: lethalconnection
Well first we get the animal home and we skin it there, be it a deer or moose we are setup for it. We half it, then if its a elk or moose we quarter it. Then i take a stiff brush and get all the hair off, then i take hot water and completely wash the animal off. Then we move it to the meat cooler, we have a A/C unit in there and the room is completely insulated and we pull a tarp across so we dont try to keep the whole garage cool. Now depending on the size of the animal and the temp we are able to keep the animals at depends on how long we let them hang. Deer we will at max let hang for a week, bigger game such as moose or elk we usually let the fronts hang for a week and the hinds 2 weeks, only if we can keep it cold enough, if its too warm we will cut it up within a few days unless it is way too hot then we will do it that day or the next morning. We make all our own cuts since we learnt the proper way of doing it from my uncle who was a butcher for 30 years. The only thing we dont do is sausage, pepperoni and jerky, we do make our own hamburger though.
Well first we get the animal home and we skin it there, be it a deer or moose we are setup for it. We half it, then if its a elk or moose we quarter it. Then i take a stiff brush and get all the hair off, then i take hot water and completely wash the animal off. Then we move it to the meat cooler, we have a A/C unit in there and the room is completely insulated and we pull a tarp across so we dont try to keep the whole garage cool. Now depending on the size of the animal and the temp we are able to keep the animals at depends on how long we let them hang. Deer we will at max let hang for a week, bigger game such as moose or elk we usually let the fronts hang for a week and the hinds 2 weeks, only if we can keep it cold enough, if its too warm we will cut it up within a few days unless it is way too hot then we will do it that day or the next morning. We make all our own cuts since we learnt the proper way of doing it from my uncle who was a butcher for 30 years. The only thing we dont do is sausage, pepperoni and jerky, we do make our own hamburger though.
10-04-2007, 04:26 PM
#26
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 2,385
RE: Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
I prefer to hangfor 3 or 4 days if the weather is permitting. If it's too warm , I'm fortunate enough to have cold storage at my business to hang them. I enjoy walking into the cooler to check out my own, or any of my relatives latest kills.
I really feel the 3 -5 days ageing process makes a huge difference in the tenderness and taste of the meat. My uncle will age his deer a good week or better at times.
If you don't have a cool place to hang, sometimes local farmers are cooperative and welcome a nice deer to hang in their cooler........
.......might have to give them a ham or loin, but it's well worth the relationship.
I really feel the 3 -5 days ageing process makes a huge difference in the tenderness and taste of the meat. My uncle will age his deer a good week or better at times.
If you don't have a cool place to hang, sometimes local farmers are cooperative and welcome a nice deer to hang in their cooler........
.......might have to give them a ham or loin, but it's well worth the relationship.
10-04-2007, 04:40 PM
#27
Super Moderator
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Central Utah
Posts: 4,815
RE: Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
I'll hang a deer for up to five days if it doesn't get over 40 degrees. (Last year I actually left one for 10 days... but it was frozen solid for the first five days)
I'm not sure it does much for flavor, but I do think it makes it more tender. If I can't hang 'em, I'll keep the meat in the fridge or a iced up cooler for a couple days before freezing it.
I'm not sure it does much for flavor, but I do think it makes it more tender. If I can't hang 'em, I'll keep the meat in the fridge or a iced up cooler for a couple days before freezing it.
10-04-2007, 04:49 PM
#28
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 6,867
RE: Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
i thought about hanging mine i plan to for next year have me a area i can do my own proccessing like a garage that has a drain and is tiled floor to roof for easy cleaning
but i am unsure what the beinifets are to hanging for ageing time either as for a cool place i figure i could get one or two big window ac units that can get the room down to a low temp
but i am unsure what the beinifets are to hanging for ageing time either as for a cool place i figure i could get one or two big window ac units that can get the room down to a low temp
10-04-2007, 05:13 PM
#30
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Heaven is my home, temporarily residing in WNY :)
Posts: 6,679
RE: Do you cut up your deer the same day as harvesting it?
Like everyone who hangs their deer has said, weather permitting ...... if the weather will be 32 - 40 degrees consistantly, or I have a cooler available to hand them, I will age deer from 5 - 10 days .... one year we hung two for 2 weeks and the meat was excellent ... so to answer the question .... i cut it up if it's too warm, if not, I will hang it as long as I can