Processing your own meat

[texan4ut]

I set it in the cooler with ice on top.. Crack drain plug with opposite end up higher to help drain in yard.. Never sets in a pool of liquid. Check ice twice a day. Love it when it is cold outside doing this because the ice stays. I go 4-5 days but have gone up to 9. Depends really on when I can get to it. We have three deer in a 110 quart cooler right now about to be cut up tonight.

This what I do. I shot a large doe 1/9 and just finished cutting up and packaging 1/19 meat was in great shape and going to be some good eats.

[Top Of Texas]

7 days in a cooler for me. Don’t let meat get wet.

Meat touching ice or getting wet is NOT a problem. I've done over 100 deer, all soaked in ice chest for 7-10 days. Delicious. Family and friends all love it.

[Top Of Texas]

If going to grind I don't worry about wet or dry, but always take special care of the BS and tenders to not get wet.

Meat touching ice or getting wet is NOT a problem. I've done over 100 deer, all soaked in ice chest for 7-10 days. Delicious. Family and friends all love it.

[Dusty Britches]

The problem for me to dry age is keeping the temps of the meat below 40 degrees, actually I prefer between 32 and 34 degrees to dramatically slow the growth of bacteria.

Therefore, I throw ice in a cooler, put my meat on top and top off with more ice. I prop the non drain side up about 4-6" and open the drain to drain the water/ liquid. I keep adding ice as needed to keep the temperature of the meat cold for about 5-10 days.

If I had a way to keep it between 32-34 degrees without ice and in fabric meat bags, I would go that route.

[Rick]

I don’t want the meat soaking in water. It does not get waterlogged with ice touching it as long as it is not soaking. I made a wooden rack that sits in the bottom of my cooler to keep the meat off the bottom. Leave the drain open and add ice as needed. I have done it from 2 days to 2 weeks, it depends on what I have going on

I do not think putting it in a bag is a good idea. The point is to “age” the meat. Hanging it in a cooler is the best way, keeping on ice is second best. But if u put it in a bag you are cutting off all the air, and therefore not aging it at all. At least that is my theory...

[critter69]

Never, I process everything immediately. It's rare to take 2 hours from shot to deep freeze. If I'm going to age a cut of meat I do it in the (redneck) curing chamber later.

Exactly, I don’t understand people treating venison differently then any other meat. We never soak or get beef, pork, goat wet, nor do any processors, why do venison, bad. I’ve said it many times, but wet meat is just about as close to tofu as your going to make a piece of meat, I just don’t get it. But hey I ain’t eating it so what ever floats your boat.

[Stoof]

If most of Texas actually had a winter we wouldn't even be having this conversation.

[critter69]

I never soak them in water! Only dry age them anywhere from 5 to 14 days.

either in the walk in or in my fridge.

Yep, exactly like any other meat, but the fat content is so low on venison , aging any longer the 24 hours is not really doing much (once rigamortis sets in its aged as long as it has to). Dry and cold, no different then any other meat.

[Smart]

Processing your own meat

Exactly, I don’t understand people treating venison differently then any other meat. We never soak or get beef, pork, goat wet, nor do any processors, why do venison, bad. I’ve said it many times, but wet meat is just about as close to tofu as your going to make a piece of meat, I just don’t get it. But hey I ain’t eating it so what ever floats your boat.

You know your beef is aged before you buy it right? Unless your processing your own beef, you are eating aged beef. Some pork is aged for a few days but they are killed young so it’s not as imperative and most is not because of it. Same with lamb. I don’t eat a stinking goat so I’ve never handled one...

“All fresh beef is aged for at least few days and up to several weeks to allow enzymes naturally present in the meat to break down the muscle tissue, resulting in improved texture and flavor.”

Icing venison to age while not allowing the water to stay in the coolers is just that. What good enough for beef is good enough for my venison. When mine is done it had a beautiful medium red versus the deep dark red off the bone. Never sits a minute in water.

[ladybluearm]

We venison in ice chest now that we shot last Sat and Sunday, husband and I both work so to be able to process it within 2 days is next to impossible, we have always iced it and drained it everyday and added more ice as needed and never had an issue with it. Has worked very well for us, never does the meat sit in water.

[Stolle]

Exactly, I don’t understand people treating venison differently then any other meat. We never soak or get beef, pork, goat wet, nor do any processors, why do venison, bad. I’ve said it many times, but wet meat is just about as close to tofu as your going to make a piece of meat, I just don’t get it. But hey I ain’t eating it so what ever floats your boat.

That’s true, but they actually bleed them out. They use a hammer to knock them out then the slit their throat. Then they let them hang in a walk in cooler. We as hunters don’t have the ability to knock them out first in most cases.

I don’t think anyway is the wrong way. Do what works best for you. I’ll never bag my meat and will never believe a little bit of water on the deer meat will hurt it.


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[critter69]

You know your beef is aged before you buy it right? Unless your processing your own beef, you are eating aged beef. Some pork is aged for a few days but they are killed young so it’s not as imperative and most is not because of it. Same with lamb. I don’t eat a stinking goat so I’ve never handled one...

“All fresh beef is aged for at least few days and up to several weeks to allow enzymes naturally present in the meat to break down the muscle tissue, resulting in improved texture and flavor.”

Icing venison to age while not allowing the water to stay in the coolers is just that. What good enough for beef is good enough for my venison. When mine is done it had a beautiful medium red versus the deep dark red off the bone. Never sits a minute in water.

Beef has a lot more fat and benefits aging. We have processed our own beef, pork, and goat. Beef we aged all the rest we did not.( dad used to supply the local butcher shop) Even while aging the beef we never soaked it in water. Hosed off if nessassry and hung in cooler with Circulating fans to keep dry.

[Smart]

Processing your own meat

Beef has a lot more fat and benefits aging. We have processed our own beef, pork, and goat. Beef we aged all the rest we did not.( dad used to supply the local butcher shop) Even while aging the beef we never soaked it in water. Hosed off if nessassry and hung in cooler with Circulating fans to keep dry.

Well aware about the benefits but there is some benefit to venison as well..

.. thanks... that’s why we don’t soak it in water. I specifically mentioned that in the last sentence. [emoji1303]. It merely sits on top to keep it cool in the cooler. The results are much more desirable to me specifically.

[cram369]

7-14 days. Fill ice chest half full of ice, boned out meat on top, and add ice on top as needed. Keep drain open.

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[critter69]

Well aware about the benefits but there is some benefit to venison as well..

.. thanks... that’s why we don’t soak it in water. I specifically mentioned that in the last sentence. [emoji1303]. It merely sits on top to keep it cool in the cooler. The results are much more desirable to me specifically.

We have experimented a lot over the years. We would camp and hunt the entire season, 10 days here. Some of us killed on the first day and some on the following days. Some on the last day. We would have between 10-15 deer and some times that many elk. We cut steaks from animals that were killed from one day to 10 days ( by the time we got done some hung 15 days). And we would cook them for every one to have some as we proceeded. That included every body that hunted, there wives, and friends that don’t hunt. ( previously we would hang them a min of 15 days, in walk in coolers) And not one person over the years we tried this could tell the difference from one that aged 24 hours to one that was aged 15 days.In taste or tenderness. What we did discover, was the meat generaly did not taste as good if the animal did not die fairly quick. ( long tracking job). And we did these “ tests” for about 12 years. So know it’s just get them, quartered ( or smaller) get them cold ( freezer now, instead of walk in) keep them dry and process as soon as possible, weather it’s the next day or months after. Can’t tell the difference from one package of meat to the next. It’s all great.