Deer Processing for Idiots - GRAPHIC PICS

[Solace]

Oh if you've got a wench you can rig up for that you're in great shape.

Ahh it's all a learning experience. I think I mangled my first deer beyond recognition.

 

[Solace]

Oh and if you guys don't happen to like the taste of venison just turn the whole thing into jerky. The $5.00 boxes of season/cure at walmart in the hunting section make simple jerky that tastes better than Jack Links... my kids LOVE the stuff. Ok not just the kids we all do.

 

[redhen]

Good job PC!..i hope you enjoy the meat!..Take Care!, Wendy

 

[unionwirewoman]

Quote:
I'll have to remember this too...although if you want to cape them out , it wouldn't work .

You don't include cutting and wrapping in that hour , do you ? If you do ...then you can do all of mine ! We had a pro help out with our elk ( retired butcher ) this year and by the time we quartered , steaked , burgered , and wrapped ...we were looking at 5 hours .

 

[Solace]

Quote:
Yes to the cutting 'quartering, backstraps, tenderloins' out and in the cooler... no to the wrapping. Ummm an elk is just a wee bit bigger than these deer.

I do debone the shoulders and hams later then cut up select cuts of meat.

I use a cheap fish fillet knife. I don't cut through any bones at any time. I learned to break them down by cutting through the ligaments/tendons at the joints.

I'm going hunting again this weekend. If I'm lucky enough to get another I'll have my wife/son take pics of the way I go about it all. Now there may be a better way to do it... I've just not found it yet.

 

[unionwirewoman]

Solace...we're on the same page...I kinda figured it was just the basics you did first ! Cutting steaks out of the hind quarters takes awhile for me...if I could do it every other month , I might get faster...but once a year...well you know . I usually try to do everything by joint too , except after taking the tenderloins and b-straps out...I saw through the spine to drop the hind end , then I saw through the middle of that to get my quarters . I can't believe how some people leave their tenderloins on for days to weeks on end .

 

[dancingbear]

Oh, good job, bravo!

When I was new to eating venison, I found that using it in spicy dishes such as Mexican and Italian food worked the best. Deer chili is wonderful. I also found that brining the meat takes much of the strong taste out, as does soaking in buttermilk overnight. One of the best things I've found is to tenderize deer steak with a meat hammer, or by scoring, marinate in buttermilk overnight, them dredge in flour and fry. Chicken fried deer steak is great, use the crunchies and part of the grease to make milk gravy just like you would with beef.

Alongside the backbone, there's a long, deep strip of meat that is very tender. You can roast it, (with plenty of moisture, a clay cooker works well, don't overcook it! Venison dries out easily) broil it, pan fry, it's delicious. I like meat well done, but have to be careful not to dry it out.

Meat from the legs and neck (other than that same strip, continued) I cut up for stew or pressure canning, or grind into burger. I get beef fat from the grocery to mix in to the burger,it tends to be a bit dry. I use it any way I'd use hamburger.

Meat from the legs and rump tend to be tough, but make dandy burger, and just about anything will get tender in a crock pot if you cook it long enough. Shred the cooked meat, add your favorite BBQ sauce, slap it on a bun and enjoy.

Brown rice cooked in a crock pot in deer broth, with a little finely diced deer meat and some veggies, is to die for. I cooked some up for my dogs and wound up eating some of it myself. It's really good. I'm not really much of a rice eater, but this was very nice.

On a cold winter day, you can't beat a big bowl of deer stew served with hot homemade biscuits or corn bread.

 

[Rte.66_chicks]

Way to go! That meat looks good! Enjoy, and thanks for the pics!

 

[redoak]

Nice job, BUT I think your left shoe was untied.

 

[rays123]

just thouht id through my two cents in but being an avide hunter and to have cleaned my fair share of deer its much easier to hang them up head first and cut a circle around the neck and a line down the neck to the back legs on the stomach side and skin it that way. i can usually skin a med size deer in about 5 min that way and you keep it out of the dirt. if anyone needs pics i can get a few next time i kill one which should be this weekend