Processing deer

Jeff H · Nov 12, 2018

I love the Himalayan salts as well but dang it's pricey. I guess I'm too tight to go that route, or maybe my pallet is not as delicate as some. I have a friend who used to be a restaurant owner in Chicago. They once had an ageing room that was lined with blocks of the pink salt (I assume it was the himalayan) floor to ceiling. Pretty darn good steaks but certainly a premium price. They monitored moisture and temperature like a science lab.

Deadeye · Nov 13, 2018

Jeff H said:
Actually rigor mortise will only last 8- 18 hours depending on some other variables, mainly temperature. What happens when you age meat (any meat) is the cell walls begin to break down in the muscle tissue creating a more tender texture. The more it ages, the more tender it is. Ageing meat is actually just controlled rotting.
Pinesap. If you're not applying the Himalayan salt directly to the meat you can use plain ole rock salt or driveway salt to pull the moisture from the air. I love dry aged meat!

You may be right. I found the information about the 5 Days somewhere in an article but I can't remember where. It made sense to me and that is why I retained it in my Worthless Pile Of Info file in my brain.

PineSapJunky · Nov 14, 2018

One week into dry aging. 14 more days to go. If you notice the "blood" in the pan is dry and there's no new moisture in the pan. We should really start seeing a change in color over the next week to what we call "green meat" which will have to be trimmed away before processing.

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Chainsaw · Nov 15, 2018

Pinesap, thanks for following up with the pictures of your aging process so far. I have never learned how to correctly age meat nor have I ever tasted some that was correctly aged. My wife, friends and I love venison fresh and frozen extra fresh but we are always open to alternative tastes and textures in our venison. I'm looking forward to following along with the rest of your process and maybe trying it ourselves.

PineSapJunky · Nov 20, 2018

Today is week #2 the quarters have been hanging. If you notice no blood or moisture is in the pan below. Meaning almost all of moisture in the meat is gone. Also you can really tell it is getting darker. For those thinking about "drying" the meat out. Fat is moisture in meat and deer quarters don't have any. So you might as well have it flavorful and tender. I plan on letting it hang one more week.

Side Note: My pan of salt had a lot of moisture in it. I took it and put it in the oven for a couple hours on low heat to dry it back out, then back in the fridge it went. The next step will be to break it down next week. I will try and get one of the kids to take pictures as I do it. I would love to live somewhere cold so I could hang it in a outdoor smokehouse or shed.

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Jack Terpack · Nov 20, 2018

PineSap, what temp do you maintain throughout this process?

PineSapJunky · Nov 20, 2018

Jack Terpack said:
PineSap, what temp do you maintain throughout this process?

I keep the cooler set at 36°F. The typical range is 34-38°F but as long as it is below 40°F but above freezing it will work too. You might have a little more "green meat" at warmer temperatures. Also air flow is important in the aging process. This particular reach-in cooler has two fans that run when the doors are shut. We chose this particular cooler when my wife did high end wedding cakes. Coolers with little or no airflow would allow condensation to build on the outside of the cakes. The constant airflow eliminates that. Moisture is your enemy obviously is "dry" aging meat.

FYI I purchased my meat hooks on Amazon for little of nothing. Beats dealing with strings

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wbpdeer · Nov 21, 2018

So is this a walk in cooler? What is approximate indoor dimensions - width, depth, height? I like this post and find it very interested.

Is the goal after aging it to get the moisture out to cut the deer up and package it like my processors would do?

Had a friend whose daughter had a commercial kitchen in one end of the house (bedroom) and I was astonished what wedding cakes fetched? Oh My is all I can say.

Wayne

PineSapJunky · Nov 21, 2018

Wayne,

The cooler is a commercial reach in cooler. The internal dimensions are 62"H X 50"W X 32"D. So I have a lot of room. I have hung buffalo quarters in it before. I can also control the humidity which sits around 10%.

I find that venison has a delicate flavor when handled properly. A deer's diet when harvested off of one our farm's (yours, mine, pretty much anyone on this forum) is better than most high end "free range beef". It is the way we handle it that oftentimes ruins this. For years I use to take my meat to the local processor and got the run of the meal products back. It's not economical for these guys to run just your meat and sometimes your meat that you painstakingly took care of gets thrown in with other's meat. I know there are some exceptions when it comes to processors but these guys have to make money too.

As for the end goal for this meat. Once it reaches 3 weeks I will break it down even further. I will take a roast from two of the hind quarters and cut a few steaks. There will be no need in tenderizing it since dry aging has done it for me. Then I'll cube everything else up and vacuum pack it and freeze it until I am ready to make ground venison and sausage. Depending on the amount of meat we end up with I might make a run of jerky.

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Deadeye · Nov 21, 2018

I quit taking my Deer to a Proccessure after I took a rather large Buck to him and got 2 Half Full Brown Grocery Bags of meat back. And paid over $70.00 for it.

I take better care of it by doing it myself. If a Northern Deer with the Silver Skin, I take all of that off. Also remove as much of the slimey gunk as I can. Southern Deer do not have that Silver Skin, so it does not need removed.

I've fed guys that have had Venison before and had them comment that it was the best they have ever had. How you take care of it and how you process it makes all the difference. A Proccessur is not going to seperate your Burger from the guy that left his hang with the hide on for a week, then drove all over his home town showing it off. They throw all the extra meat together and grind it up. You get yours by weight not by what you brought in.

PineSapJunky · Nov 21, 2018

Southern Deer do not have that Silver Skin, so it does not need removed.

I'll have to disagree with this comment. Silver skin is a thin membrane or elastin that separates the different muscle groups that allows muscles to slide past each other. I'm sure as a deer or any animal gets older it becomes more pronounced. All deer whether from northern states or southern will have it. I'm not sure what part of the deer you are referring to but I am assuming it has to do with the fat cap since northern deer have a lot more than southern deer based on climate adaptations.

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Deadeye · Nov 21, 2018

That’s ok if you don’t agree.

However they are, at least the ones I’ve seen so far, a different sub-species than the ones I shot in Pa.

They have several differences.

The meat is even a different color. Instead of a dark red it is a pink color. Has a sweeter taste to it as well.

Not looking for a fight, just giving my personal observation.

Buckly · Nov 21, 2018

PineSapJunky said:
Wayne,

The cooler is a commercial reach in cooler. The internal dimensions are 62"H X 50"W X 32"D. So I have a lot of room. I have hung buffalo quarters in it before. I can also control the humidity which sits around 10%.

I find that venison has a delicate flavor when handled properly. A deer's diet when harvested off of one our farm's (yours, mine, pretty much anyone on this forum) is better than most high end "free range beef". It is the way we handle it that oftentimes ruins this. For years I use to take my meat to the local processor and got the run of the meal products back. It's not economical for these guys to run just your meat and sometimes your meat that you painstakingly took care of gets thrown in with other's meat. I know there are some exceptions when it comes to processors but these guys have to make money too.

As for the end goal for this meat. Once it reaches 3 weeks I will break it down even further. I will take a roast from two of the hind quarters and cut a few steaks. There will be no need in tenderizing it since dry aging has done it for me. Then I'll cube everything else up and vacuum pack it and freeze it until I am ready to make ground venison and sausage. Depending on the amount of meat we end up with I might make a run of jerky.

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That’s a tremendous amount of work. In your opinion how much better is it after your aging process over just fresh cut. Twice,ten times or just better

cutman · Nov 22, 2018

Deadeye said:
That’s ok if you don’t agree.

However they are, at least the ones I’ve seen so far, a different sub-species than the ones I shot in Pa.

They have several differences.

The meat is even a different color. Instead of a dark red it is a pink color. Has a sweeter taste to it as well.

Not looking for a fight, just giving my personal observation.

Not really sure what “southern deer” means to you, but every deer I’ve ever killed in South Carolina has dark red meat and silver skin.

This is a very interesting topic to me. I have recently had problems with processors. One local processor is great at what they do but is just plain rude, and another processor gives me back less than half of the meat I expect. I need to either learn how to do it myself or keep looking for a new processor.

PineSapJunky · Nov 22, 2018

Buckly,

The cooler does most of the work. I just keep an eye on it. As for taste I guess that is subjective to one's personal preference. Dry aging the meat intensifies the natural flavor in the meat along with the enzymes and bacteria it does change the flavor and in my opinion better. Whether its 10x I don't know. What I do know is I can taste a difference and notice a difference when cooking it.

Cutman,

It really comes down to cost for and the artisan aspect of it for me. Early on in my career as a chef I was fortunate to travel and apprentice in some really awesome places in Europe. I worked for a German butcher in Switzerland. He was an old school 5th generation butcher. It's all his family knew. The love they put into every product they sold along with a lot of these country town places is to be respected and admired. Processors have gotten high around here. $3+ a pound for sausage, $2+ for just tenderized steaks. I never had a problem with the amount of meat I received just the $200+ price tag. It added up over the season.

February will be 8 years since we bought the farm. The country always called to me. Whether I was bush hogging my grandfather's field or fishing in my uncle's lake. Something stirred in me and I found solace in wide open places. The feeling everyone gets when they get to deer camp and look at the stars or just sit around a campfire and the only thing you hear is the coals crackling. I get that everyday of my life. Wanting to raise our kids in a place that transcends today's hectic life, the satisfaction of pulling produce out of the dirt and feeding my family, being able to teach my children the cycle of life with birthing, raising and ultimately consuming our own cattle. I don't know what life lessons they will take with them but I hope its enough for them to be able to contribute something to this world, stand their ground and find happiness in life. So what does all of this mean about butchering deer? It's the change in pace, the slow living. Taking the time and enjoying the process is relaxing to me. Eating good food is secondary.

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Deadeye · Nov 22, 2018

cutman said:
Not really sure what “southern deer” means to you, but every deer I’ve ever killed in South Carolina has dark red meat and silver skin.

This is a very interesting topic to me. I have recently had problems with processors. One local processor is great at what they do but is just plain rude, and another processor gives me back less than half of the meat I expect. I need to either learn how to do it myself or keep looking for a new processor.

I think it all had to do with what Sub-Species they are. The Whitetail Slam group shows 5 or 6 different Subs of Whitetail Deer.

One of the “pink deer” was from Coastal Florida and one was from Coastal SC. They both looked the same to me with none of the Silver Skin I grew up seeing.

There was a light skin on them but it was almost clear.

I’m interested in seeing what the deer we harvest in the Florida Panhandle will be.

weekender21 · Nov 22, 2018

Meat color from my experience has everything to do with age of the deer. The older the deer, typically the darker the meat. That’s been consistent with Whitetail and mule deer I’ve killed from CA to SC and interestingly enough also holds true with Axis deer in Hawaii.

I’m sure there are exceptions like drastic differences in diet potentially but that has been my observation.

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wbpdeer · Nov 22, 2018

Zac

You trained as a chef - you been holding out on me. Does Jennifer still bake high end cakes for weddings and big events?

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

Wayne

TreeDaddy · Nov 23, 2018

PineSapJunky said:
Buckly,

The cooler does most of the work. I just keep an eye on it. As for taste I guess that is subjective to one's personal preference. Dry aging the meat intensifies the natural flavor in the meat along with the enzymes and bacteria it does change the flavor and in my opinion better. Whether its 10x I don't know. What I do know is I can taste a difference and notice a difference when cooking it.

Cutman,

It really comes down to cost for and the artisan aspect of it for me. Early on in my career as a chef I was fortunate to travel and apprentice in some really awesome places in Europe. I worked for a German butcher in Switzerland. He was an old school 5th generation butcher. It's all his family knew. The love they put into every product they sold along with a lot of these country town places is to be respected and admired. Processors have gotten high around here. $3+ a pound for sausage, $2+ for just tenderized steaks. I never had a problem with the amount of meat I received just the $200+ price tag. It added up over the season.

February will be 8 years since we bought the farm. The country always called to me. Whether I was bush hogging my grandfather's field or fishing in my uncle's lake. Something stirred in me and I found solace in wide open places. The feeling everyone gets when they get to deer camp and look at the stars or just sit around a campfire and the only thing you hear is the coals crackling. I get that everyday of my life. Wanting to raise our kids in a place that transcends today's hectic life, the satisfaction of pulling produce out of the dirt and feeding my family, being able to teach my children the cycle of life with birthing, raising and ultimately consuming our own cattle. I don't know what life lessons they will take with them but I hope its enough for them to be able to contribute something to this world, stand their ground and find happiness in life. So what does all of this mean about butchering deer? It's the change in pace, the slow living. Taking the time and enjoying the process is relaxing to me. Eating good food is secondary.

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Cutman,

We need a "really like" option for posts like this^^^^^^^

bill

PineSapJunky · Nov 29, 2018

Tuesday was 3 weeks since I started the process. My wife had me busy building props for the kid's Christmas play so I wasn't able to get to it until this morning. If you go back and look at the progression you can really see the color change. The second picture you can see a side by side comparison of what the meat looks like after I trim off the "green meat". The 3rd and 4th picture is of silver skin that I remove before I cut it into cubes or steaks. The 5th picture (hopefully they stay in order) is a close up of actually how deep you have to trim the "green meat" away to get down to the edible venison. Ignore the hair. I wash everything off and pat dry before I vacuum seal it. Finally the last picture is of the same cut of meat except the one on top is from a 4 year old doe and the one on the bottom is from a button buck. You can see the difference in color. I ended up with approximately 50lbs of useable meat and about 10lbs of scraps (just from the quarters).

Yes you lose some meat but I'm not worried about it. I take the scraps and save them. I will take them and once I have enough will use them for setting traps. My favorite thing to do it to make catfish blocks with them. I take the scraps and grind them up, mix it with deer blood and garlic. I put a string tied to a round washer and stick it in a quart container packing the "stink bait" around it. I then freeze it solid with the string sticking out. When ever we want to go fishing I'll take one of these blocks and hang them out the morning or night before we want to go. It attracts the catfish like crazy as it thaws. My coyote bait is essentially the same thing just without the garlic and I put the meat in ice trays to place in my dirt hole sets. Other than the bones nothing goes to waste.

I will show the process when I make a run of burger or sausage. Hope this helps

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