Processing gear or Support your local processor?
- Thread starter Barnacle Brad
- Start date
not an absolute truth IMO
the skin works in keeping bad stuff out, in life and in death
I find that you got to keep more of the meat that way to, the outermost layer doesn't dry out
and if it is cold when you gut it, by all means keep the skin on so you don't cool the animal down too quickly
if it is really hot then skin it more pronto
Everybody's method is a little different, doesn't mean better or not, just different and it probably works for them. Personally I don't even keep a saw around when quartering a deer, I will have a small hatchet to use occasionally. I hang them head down, and usually give them a good wash down before skinning to wash off any dirt, leaves, etc. and to leave the hair wet, doesn't tend to gather on everything quite as bad when wet. I like to skin them warm but have on occasion waited till the next morning if it was late and weather cool. Skin them down and drape the hide over the head. I remove the front feet by cutting the tendons at the joint and giving it a good twist/bend. Remove the front quarters and drop them in a bag or cooler, trim back some of the flank meat to access the tenders easier, then fillet out the backstraps and place them all in a separate bag or cooler. Then I go after any neck and front shoulder meat that I want to save to grind later. Cut down just between the tail bone and hind quarter to the pelvic arch, remove that foot from the gambrel and break downward, younger deer will usually break clean, older ones may need a whack from the hatchet. Lay in on a tailgate or table, and remove the foot just like the front ones, cut the joint and break. Other hind quarter get same treatment except it stays hanging on the gambrel, and the rest of the carcass still in one big piece with hide and head attached drops clean to be disposed of. I have seen so many different ways of processing them its amazing, watched one gentleman show up with an electric fish fillet knife, giggling to myself I thought "this is gonna be entertaining", a few minutes later I was no longer giggling but watching a lot closer. He boned out the meat from the skinned hanging carcass with out removing any quarters, and did a darn fine job of it. I asked him later about it, and he indicated he used to work in a butcher shop cutting meat, but now his hands were too arthritic to hold regular knives that long and decided to try the electric knife, that was his fiirst attempt, and while not perfect by any means it was better than a lot of carcasses I have seen boned out.
tahunua001
New member
I process my own, cheaper, and less chance of cross contamination with other people's animals.
Crankylove
New member
Every big game animal I've ever taken was processed by myself and my family.
When I do it, I know it's being done correctly (or at least done my way
), not run through a band saw like a side of beef. I can take the time to save more cuts for the skillet, instead of just taking the big cuts and throwing everything else to the grinder. I can label it exactly as I want, and package it in as large or small of portions as I want.
We plan for at least one day at the end of the hunt for butchering, get the family over, and go at it with knives and butcher paper.
For me, the butchering is just part of hunting..............and even if I was so inclined, I can't ever see myself paying what the local processors are charging.
When I do it, I know it's being done correctly (or at least done my way
), not run through a band saw like a side of beef. I can take the time to save more cuts for the skillet, instead of just taking the big cuts and throwing everything else to the grinder. I can label it exactly as I want, and package it in as large or small of portions as I want.We plan for at least one day at the end of the hunt for butchering, get the family over, and go at it with knives and butcher paper.
For me, the butchering is just part of hunting..............and even if I was so inclined, I can't ever see myself paying what the local processors are charging.
Brotherbadger
New member
I process my own. I've seen several occasions where two guys in our hunting camp took different sized deer into a processor only to receive the exact same amount of deer back. No thanks. This way I know exactly how much meat I am getting, as well as the sausage is seasoned exactly how I like it. My parents already have grinders/slicers/sausage suffer, so I didn't need to buy any equipment. I just stop by and spend an afternoon with them, and process some deer.
Is it hard work? Sure, but anything worth doing is.
Is it hard work? Sure, but anything worth doing is.
Gunplummer
New member
Mainah, I had some scrapple (A Pennsylvania thing) made with deer bones once and it was nasty. Depending what they were eating, it will give it a bitter, nasty taste. I guess if the deer was eating mostly around crops it may be OK, I don't know. I bone out every deer I get, except for the neck.
I process mine myself. I dont do anything fancy and I dont use any fancy equipment. #5 electric grinder from gander mountain, cheap (less than $200) vacuum sealer, my big Finland fillet knife and a couple small kitchen knives. My buddy has one of the little round 5 tray dehydrators we use for jerky (I prefer the ground type)
I always dress out the deer as soon as I get it drug to fairly open area where I can drive the truck or ATV. I skin out as soon as I get it checked and home, hang by the back hocks from a gambrel and remove the front legs at the joint before skinning, the head comes off with the skin. Only thing I use to skin now is a wonderful little knife I got a couple years ago from Track of The Wolf.
I wash, cover (with one of the loose cheese cloth bags) and hang for a day or two in cold weather. I don't have any access to a meat cooler so if its warm out, it gets quartered and goes in the fridge. Then I start the fleshing/tanning process on the skin.
I cut a couple medium roasts, several packs of cubes for stew and a couple steaks. Everything else, and I mean everything (I scour the whole critter, little scraps, rib meat) turns into burger, some of which is pre formed into burgers, some is set aside for jerky.....and the rest is packed in 1# packs for soup, chili, tacos, meatloaf, spaghetti you name it. And my wife is there helping through the whole ordeal (other than going out and shooting it that is
)
Honestly, I CAN"T STAND the way most processors cut/make meat. My uncle takes all of his to one. Probably get random mystery deer from "the Pile". I guess he's used to it, but any I've ever got from him tastes absolutely horrid. His burger always has this big springy "plugs" of fat they add, that tastes like your eating bad burger full of rubber 00 Buckshot. I Double grind mine through a fine screen, I add beef tallow periodically on the 2nd grind. Comes out so nice my mother though it was high dollar ground round
I always dress out the deer as soon as I get it drug to fairly open area where I can drive the truck or ATV. I skin out as soon as I get it checked and home, hang by the back hocks from a gambrel and remove the front legs at the joint before skinning, the head comes off with the skin. Only thing I use to skin now is a wonderful little knife I got a couple years ago from Track of The Wolf.
I wash, cover (with one of the loose cheese cloth bags) and hang for a day or two in cold weather. I don't have any access to a meat cooler so if its warm out, it gets quartered and goes in the fridge. Then I start the fleshing/tanning process on the skin.
I cut a couple medium roasts, several packs of cubes for stew and a couple steaks. Everything else, and I mean everything (I scour the whole critter, little scraps, rib meat) turns into burger, some of which is pre formed into burgers, some is set aside for jerky.....and the rest is packed in 1# packs for soup, chili, tacos, meatloaf, spaghetti you name it. And my wife is there helping through the whole ordeal (other than going out and shooting it that is
)Honestly, I CAN"T STAND the way most processors cut/make meat. My uncle takes all of his to one. Probably get random mystery deer from "the Pile". I guess he's used to it, but any I've ever got from him tastes absolutely horrid. His burger always has this big springy "plugs" of fat they add, that tastes like your eating bad burger full of rubber 00 Buckshot. I Double grind mine through a fine screen, I add beef tallow periodically on the 2nd grind. Comes out so nice my mother though it was high dollar ground round
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Gunplummer
New member
Yeah, I did not think of that. I double grind at a minimum too. Three times if it is really fatty. It is amazing how much fat and gristle the grinder pulls out the 2nd and 3rd time through. I have to pull the face plate off to clean it out once and a while, but it is worth it. Good you brought it up.
globemaster3
New member
For probably my first decade of hunting, I dressed my own deer and hogs. My work was definitely not pretty. It ate fine, but I wasn't about to win any prizes in the butchering category.
About the time I was stationed in NJ, I tried letting a processor do it. Wow! The meat looked good and the ability to get burger mixed with some pork or beef fat, as well as some sausage and jerky made was a huge winner for me. I became very popular on the overseas missions I flew as I always brought a huge back of jerky.
I've done some hybrid work since then, buy doing the backstraps myself, and taking the rest to the processors for cutting into a couple roasts, but grinding most of it and getting the sausage or jerky.
Once I get done and retire, I would like to offer some help to a local processor for a season in exchange for some professional instruction on processing. Then get my own equipment and do my own.
About the time I was stationed in NJ, I tried letting a processor do it. Wow! The meat looked good and the ability to get burger mixed with some pork or beef fat, as well as some sausage and jerky made was a huge winner for me. I became very popular on the overseas missions I flew as I always brought a huge back of jerky.
I've done some hybrid work since then, buy doing the backstraps myself, and taking the rest to the processors for cutting into a couple roasts, but grinding most of it and getting the sausage or jerky.
Once I get done and retire, I would like to offer some help to a local processor for a season in exchange for some professional instruction on processing. Then get my own equipment and do my own.
Barnacle Brad
New member
Jimbob, is this really necessary? You do not answer the question or add any value to the conversation with snarky comments like this. Why you continue to judge folks with different opinions and experiences boggles my mind. It is ok NOT to post your negative comments...jimbob said:
Ground venison does not fry well at all due to the lack of fat in it.
It sticks to the pan, scorches easily, and won't hold together to make a patty or meatball well at all without adding fat of some sort ...... grinding it together with beef tallow works ...... so does mixing it in with fatty (cheap) beef burger, ground pork, or bacon ends and pieces.
Sure Shot Mc Gee
New member
Its actually quite easy to butcher a deer. One thing that confuses many is what to do with the rear legs. You shouldn't push them thru a band saw to make Round steak. Although I have witnessed that being done by a processor to save time. If you have large Round steaks made by a processor and you notice each steak has a small round bone. (You know what he's doing.) Yes Sir. Spreading bone marrow & bone chips across surface of your steak with each saw cut. Something not very palatable to say the least.
For a home butcher its a matter of simply separating the legs muscles (3.) Two Flats and the Eye of the Round. After trimming fat and tallow away. Simply by inserting your fingers between the muscles and observing their connected 'ness to their leg bone and cutting those muscles a little at a time away from the rear leg bone nice & easy like is all that's required. Than put those muscles in a freezer for 1/2 hr to firm the meat before its final cutting. Upon their cutting watch which way the grain of the meat flows and cut your steak from the opposite direction. Simple North South grain needs to be cut from the East to West.
Cut your steak 3/8s of a inch thick side to side like you would a fresh loaf of homemade bread. One (even & straight) single motion cut. (no hacking allowed) If your cutting creates a unequal look. Turn the muscle up-side down (over) and and adjust for your uneven cutting. That's all there's to it.
For a home butcher its a matter of simply separating the legs muscles (3.) Two Flats and the Eye of the Round. After trimming fat and tallow away. Simply by inserting your fingers between the muscles and observing their connected 'ness to their leg bone and cutting those muscles a little at a time away from the rear leg bone nice & easy like is all that's required. Than put those muscles in a freezer for 1/2 hr to firm the meat before its final cutting. Upon their cutting watch which way the grain of the meat flows and cut your steak from the opposite direction. Simple North South grain needs to be cut from the East to West.
Cut your steak 3/8s of a inch thick side to side like you would a fresh loaf of homemade bread. One (even & straight) single motion cut. (no hacking allowed) If your cutting creates a unequal look. Turn the muscle up-side down (over) and and adjust for your uneven cutting. That's all there's to it.
Luckily, my boss has a full blown processing shop (the skinning shed) behind his house. Stainless from floor to ceiling, center drain, all the equipment for pretty much anything you'd want to do with a deer, pig, cow etc. It's open to all in the neighborhood, hose and bleach down when you're done, leave it like you found it. I've never had an animal professionally processed.
+1, and adding this:
Work from the inside, with the outside of the leg down on the table. After removing the leg at the ball and socket hip joint, follow the femur down to the knee ...... the front part of the leg is one muscle (we've always called it the "knuckle"- don't know why) and kind of wraps around the front of the femur .... a cut across it, about an inch above the knee, will pretty much free it from the leg...... cut into 3/4" to1" thick steaks across the grain after removing what connective tissue you can ..... this is the toughest of the 3 parts of the round, so is good candidate for cube steak or a goooood beating with a meat mallet.... the other 2 muscles of the upper leg are the top and bottom round, and are probably the 3rd best cuts on the animal, after the loin and tenderloin ..... on par with the front shoulder, but easier to make into steaks....... cut into steaks like the knuckle, but they will be harder to keep together, unless you partially freeze them, like SSG said ......
The shank (lower leg) is really tough- best for stew meat or ground up for burger or sausage .....
......?
I gave an opinion .... I did not see it as negative.... (are folks really that thin skinned? If so, then, I'll welcome the Zombie Apocalypse ......)
My comment was an invitation to a bit of self examination- ground meat is the very simplest thing in butchering to come out with decent product ..... is it really that complicated? It is not, and requires very little in the way of special tools or know how: as I said, a grinder, a bowl and a spoon.
As with most things, basic butchering is not that difficult: Like reloading, if you follow some basic safety rules, pay attention to detail, and work at it, you can do it ..... it's not rocket science ....but until you know how, then it looks much harder than it is.....