How long to soak deer
10-29-2008, 07:56 AM
#11
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location:
Posts: 214
RE: How long to soak deer
Soaking meat in water (wiht our without vinegar or salt) is generally a way of getting the blood out of it, orof "marinating"the meat (withwine or vinegar and spices)to prepare it for cooking.
Soaking in water is not a way of aging meat.
This is from the venison cook book I got fromT.R Michels:
"Storage
In camp you should cover fresh meat with a game bag and hang it in the coolest place you can find. Then get it to town, and have it aged, wrapped and frozen as soon as you can. If you are going to take care of the meat yourself keep it cool until you get to the locker plant, or get it home. Trim all the fat and silver skin from big game meat when you cut it up. Dry-age the meat as soon as possible; ideally it should be hung and stored at 38 degrees for one to two weeks to age it. Then cut off the dark layer of outer meat and wrap it and freeze it. If you can’t age the meat immediately, but do have it cut, wrapped and cooled, you can age it later. When you are ready to store the meat, double wrap it in freezer paper and label the outside with the date, type of meat, and the cut. Trim all the fat and silver skin from the meat before freezing or cooking."
Soaking in water is not a way of aging meat.
This is from the venison cook book I got fromT.R Michels:
"Storage
In camp you should cover fresh meat with a game bag and hang it in the coolest place you can find. Then get it to town, and have it aged, wrapped and frozen as soon as you can. If you are going to take care of the meat yourself keep it cool until you get to the locker plant, or get it home. Trim all the fat and silver skin from big game meat when you cut it up. Dry-age the meat as soon as possible; ideally it should be hung and stored at 38 degrees for one to two weeks to age it. Then cut off the dark layer of outer meat and wrap it and freeze it. If you can’t age the meat immediately, but do have it cut, wrapped and cooled, you can age it later. When you are ready to store the meat, double wrap it in freezer paper and label the outside with the date, type of meat, and the cut. Trim all the fat and silver skin from the meat before freezing or cooking."
10-29-2008, 08:26 AM
#13
Fork Horn
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Northern VA
Posts: 310
RE: How long to soak deer
ORIGINAL: lpv77
I usually 1/4 the deer and lay the 1/4s on garbage bags on the shelves in my spare fridge. Any opinions on this method?
I usually 1/4 the deer and lay the 1/4s on garbage bags on the shelves in my spare fridge. Any opinions on this method?
Yep that's what I do too. Works pretty well, but uses a lot of fridge space if you get more than one deer and don't have a spare fridge.
Mitch
10-30-2008, 09:22 AM
#14
Spike
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Western New York
Posts: 21
RE: How long to soak deer
ORIGINAL: 2 Lunger
How many of you guys add salt to your meat while soaking or cooking??? Do you realize this is the worst thing you can do to meat? I know this is an age old method, but salt makes any meat immediately tough. Ask any butcher what salt does to meat and he will give you this same answer.
ORIGINAL: CAM2
yep, i also add some salt. it's supposed to help draw out the blood. for me it usually ends up to soak for 5 or 6 days by the time i can find the time to cut it up. with that said, one of the ways i like to tell how long to soak it is when the water that you drain starts to come out clear. the more blood that you can get out of the meat the better IMHO.
yep, i also add some salt. it's supposed to help draw out the blood. for me it usually ends up to soak for 5 or 6 days by the time i can find the time to cut it up. with that said, one of the ways i like to tell how long to soak it is when the water that you drain starts to come out clear. the more blood that you can get out of the meat the better IMHO.
If you need to salt your meat, do so after it is cooked! Salting prior to or while cooking only draws the moisture out of the meat resulting in dryer and tougher meat.
10-30-2008, 04:00 PM
#18
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Roanoke, Virginia
Posts: 2,335
RE: How long to soak deer
ORIGINAL: Slackdaddy
Why ????
Never heard of soaking deer meat, nor see whatthe benifit is ?
Now if it was marinated in peewhile field dressing, that is a different story.
Slack
Why ????
Never heard of soaking deer meat, nor see whatthe benifit is ?
Now if it was marinated in peewhile field dressing, that is a different story.
Slack
IMO it makes it taste alot better.
10-30-2008, 07:27 PM
#20
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 11
RE: How long to soak deer
Ok fellas, I have a spare fridge. IF I get a deer do I need to skin it or can I just put it in a game bag and put it the spare fridge for 5 days or so to age then take it to the butcher?Right now I dont have the place or equipment to butcher a deer myself.