I Have a deer, am clueless, but processed it anyways - UPDATE

[PurpleChicken]

Quote:
Should I hang it now that it's just a carcus? It's gonna get in the 50's here
today so I'm gonna get it on ice later or will hanging in a 40 degree barn
be ok?

Thanks for the recipe ideas. I'm drooling a little.

Deer burgers
sound yummy.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Rte.66_chicks :

You might think that the photos are graphic, but we put photos of chicken processing here all the time. It's been a long time since I have killed and processed a deer, and I, for one, would like to see them. Maybe you could put them in with an update and "graphic pics" warning. Puleeez!!

I'll ask a mod and put some up later on in a seperate post. Just remember
I had no idea what I was doing.

 

[HennysMom]

ohhhhhh.. you already cut it? then no - you need to finish processing it now to prevent bacteria from getting the meat. But.. in the future, if you like deer now that you have it - and you should get another one - hang it for a few days before you skin it (gut it though...) and wrap it/stuff opening (where you gut it) with cheese cloth or something to prevent flies from getting at it. Let it hang for a few days to get past the rigor (just like you'd do with a chicken i.e, think brining). When you hang meat - you want it to be as cold as possible to prevent bacteria. If its not going to be really cold, then you can process that day (cut it into what you want, i.e, roasts, burger, steaks) and place in the fridge for about 2 days then place it in the freezer. Just make sure your fridge is COLD (like 35) - normal fridge temp.

Go ahead and cut it but try to find a deer chart so you know what is what when you go to butcher it (shoulder roast, rump roast, tenderloin, burger parts

) Know which way to cut for grain as well, think cow.

 

[bluey]

Quote:
Yuck!!!

PC, I don't know if I would brave eating a deer that I didn't freshly shoot...but that's just me....I also don't order seafood unless I'm in sight of a beach...good luck!!!

The deer was alive when I found it. It's lower back leg was broken.
The poor thing was trying to run away. The I stood 5 feet behind the
police officer as he dispatched it. Within 45 minutes I had it pulled down
to my barn and was processing. It was very fresh and had no damge at all
to it. I simply removed the broken portion of the leg.

Thanks for the reader's digest version. If it's going to get that warm there I would process it immediately!

Good eating!

 

[BeardedChick]

Here's a good article on aging deer meat.

http://www.uwex.edu/ces/flp/meatscience/aging-venison.pdf

We used to hang 'em in the garage for 5-7 days to age.

 

[wendy]

Hey PC, what did you do with the deer? My dh is a hunter, he killed a deer Saturday and he guts them himselve and takes the hide off. Puts lots of ice on it in a ice chest and we take it to a local meat shop that processes deer. They cut it how ever you like. Deer steaks are my favorite!
My dh tried to avoid a squirrel awhile back and the darn thing ran right in the path of the truck. Dh brought it home and skinned it and put it in the freezer. He squirrel hunts some too. I just don't like squirrel much. Not as tender and tasty as deer. But my dh won't leave anything he hits on the road to rot! LOL!
The donkey we bought from a rescue farm in Ms during Thanksgiving weekend, we saw several deers hit on the side of the road. If we had seen them hit we would have stopped and picked them up for the meat. But who knows how long they were there. Cant believe people would just let the deer stay there and rot!
It is healthy and tasty!

 

[PurpleChicken]

OK, after last night's adventure in gutting and skinning tonight me and
the kid butchered it. We have two HUGE roasts from the back thighs, 2 small roasts from the front, and 2 long roasts from the meat that runs down both sides of the spine all in the freezer. In a pot we have all the
scraps and the two pretty pieces from inside the upper rib cage.

We have the ribs, sectioned backbone, and leg pieces still on ice.

Drumstick took a hundred more pics but I am so tired from all that work.

You hunting people are tough.

 

[BeardedChick]

Hope you saved lots and lots of scraps for the vultures. Errr, I mean, the silkies.

 

[MissPrissy]

The neck should have had gorgeous meat running the length. I don't see where you mentioned the neck?

 

[CountryMom]

Well PC sounds like you did a pretty good job for your first deer. Next year (yes I have a feeling you will be hunting) I am sure you will do this again. It usually is a family affair here to process. Although last year my husband brought home 6 deer from his buddy's hunting ranch in way south Texas. We all protested! LOL Instead we did take those to a butcher to process. I still have meat in the freezer.

The back strap and the neck strap are my favorites. That is the parts that run along the spine. Wonderful and very tender.

I just wished I had saved the hides from those deer last year. I gave a bunch of them to a friend of ours who paints on the backside of the hides once they are tanned. I just didn't have the time.