As promised we are going to continue our do-it-yourself series on deer processing! In this edition of the series I'd like to take you through the steps starting from the time you have your deer down to the time it lands on your table on a dinner plate. There are many things you need to take into consideration at each step along the way and all are important. Hopefully by the time you are done reading this you'll have a pretty good idea on what it will take to process your first deer!
Now to get to the meat and potatoes....or in this case, venison and potatoes :).
Imagine you have been hunting all day and that deer you have been patiently waiting for has presented a shot to you! The first thing we need to consider as hunters is a clean shot. I've seen many a deer gut shot and I've even done it once myself, it happens and you need to take special care of a deer that has been shot in the stomach or intestines to ensure that your meat does not spoil. In such an instance, the first thing you have to do is field dress the deer as soon as possible (this is suggested for any deer you shoot, not just the gut shot ones) to keep contact of the contents of the digestive system and the meat to a minimal! Once you have field dressed the deer, if you have some water on you, I would suggest rinsing the inside of the chest cavity as good as you can while you are still in the field. Once the deer is at home it is also a good idea to sprinkle a good amount of baking soda on the inside of the chest cavity and rinse it very well; if you have a hose available it makes the job that much easier! This will ensure that all of the bad stuff that you don't want on your meat and the bacteria is rinsed away so that it does not cause any spoilage. Also, I often see a couple of mistakes when it comes to field dressing, so here two tips/pointers for proper technique:
1) Be sure to remove all of the intestines, including the anus. Many people skip this step (looking at you Cory) because it is easier and saves some time in the field but it is very important that you remove it. The anus contains a lot of bacteria that could get on your meat and increase the chances of spoilage. You've put many hours into hunting this deer, don't let bacteria take it from you because you wanted to save a couple of minutes while field dressing.
2) Be sure to remove the bladder. This is often left in by mistake. When you are removing the bladder be sure to take care not to break it and allow the urine to come out.
Once you have the deer field dressed you get to do the hard work of dragging it to your vehicle and getting it home!
Now that we have the deer in the garage, shed or where ever you plan to do your deer processing the first thing you need to do is hang it up. You can refer to the second post in this series for a link to a Game Hanger. Find a sturdy spot in the ceiling to hang the hanger from. Once you have the hanger hung you can move onto the next steps which I'm now going to detail as clearly as possible.
1) Saw each of the four legs off just below the elbow or knee. This will make hanging the deer much easier and you won't have to do it later when you go to quarter your deer. The more you can do with the skin on the better this will avoid getting fur all over your meat that you want to cut. **Editors note (aka Cory's input) - It is also just as easy, if you are good with a knife and know what you are doing, to remove the lower portions of the legs by severing the ligmanents in the joints.***
2) Next, you'll need to make two small incisions on the rear legs. If you take the leg in one hand and your knife in the other you'll feel that there is a tendon that runs along the bone, you want to make your incisions in the skin between that tendon and the bone. BE SURE NOT TO CUT THE TENDON! Once you have made the cuts you can then spread the legs and place either end of the game hanger in each of the cuts you made; this gives you a good sturdy hanging spot for the deer as the hanger is designed to properly hold the weight of the deer just fine. Be sure to then pull up the deer to a proper working height. I like it to be completely off the ground with the hams of the deer being about shoulder level.
3) With the deer hoisted above the ground you can start your skinning job. If you have never skinned a deer before check out some of the videos online as there are plenty that show you many different ways of doing so. Cory and I are planning to get some video of our processing setup as soon as we get some deer down (be on the lookout for this next season). One important thing to always remember is to make your cuts from the inside of the hide outward. This technique ensures that you don't cut a lot of hair that will eventually get onto your meat.
4) Once you've completed your skinning job, make sure that the inside cavity is totally clean and that the outside is not covered in hair. Once clean, and if you have the ability to keep the meat cool for a couple of days, it is best to wrap it in a sheet to keep it clean and let it age for 3-5 days. If the temperature where you have it hanging rises above 40 degrees, you should move directly to step 5 get the quarters into a fridge to keep it cool.
5) After aging is complete or temperatures force you to not let it age via hanging, you are ready to quarter your deer up and, once that is complete, prepare your cutting area. One final note is to make sure that the table you are using is cleaned very well! I would have liked to get a video of myself quartering a deer but was unable to this year so I've found a good one on YouTube that you can watch that shows the process.
Now you are ready to start playing butcher! The next part in the series will detail the different cuts of meat and how you get around to actually getting them off of the bone. If you have any questions please feel free to post them as Cory and I process all of our deer and feel that we can answer your questions. (Or if we cannot, point you in the direction of someone that can!)
-Paul Nicolucci
Imagine you have been hunting all day and that deer you have been patiently waiting for has presented a shot to you! The first thing we need to consider as hunters is a clean shot. I've seen many a deer gut shot and I've even done it once myself, it happens and you need to take special care of a deer that has been shot in the stomach or intestines to ensure that your meat does not spoil. In such an instance, the first thing you have to do is field dress the deer as soon as possible (this is suggested for any deer you shoot, not just the gut shot ones) to keep contact of the contents of the digestive system and the meat to a minimal! Once you have field dressed the deer, if you have some water on you, I would suggest rinsing the inside of the chest cavity as good as you can while you are still in the field. Once the deer is at home it is also a good idea to sprinkle a good amount of baking soda on the inside of the chest cavity and rinse it very well; if you have a hose available it makes the job that much easier! This will ensure that all of the bad stuff that you don't want on your meat and the bacteria is rinsed away so that it does not cause any spoilage. Also, I often see a couple of mistakes when it comes to field dressing, so here two tips/pointers for proper technique:
1) Be sure to remove all of the intestines, including the anus. Many people skip this step (looking at you Cory) because it is easier and saves some time in the field but it is very important that you remove it. The anus contains a lot of bacteria that could get on your meat and increase the chances of spoilage. You've put many hours into hunting this deer, don't let bacteria take it from you because you wanted to save a couple of minutes while field dressing.
2) Be sure to remove the bladder. This is often left in by mistake. When you are removing the bladder be sure to take care not to break it and allow the urine to come out.
Once you have the deer field dressed you get to do the hard work of dragging it to your vehicle and getting it home!
Now that we have the deer in the garage, shed or where ever you plan to do your deer processing the first thing you need to do is hang it up. You can refer to the second post in this series for a link to a Game Hanger. Find a sturdy spot in the ceiling to hang the hanger from. Once you have the hanger hung you can move onto the next steps which I'm now going to detail as clearly as possible.
1) Saw each of the four legs off just below the elbow or knee. This will make hanging the deer much easier and you won't have to do it later when you go to quarter your deer. The more you can do with the skin on the better this will avoid getting fur all over your meat that you want to cut. **Editors note (aka Cory's input) - It is also just as easy, if you are good with a knife and know what you are doing, to remove the lower portions of the legs by severing the ligmanents in the joints.***
2) Next, you'll need to make two small incisions on the rear legs. If you take the leg in one hand and your knife in the other you'll feel that there is a tendon that runs along the bone, you want to make your incisions in the skin between that tendon and the bone. BE SURE NOT TO CUT THE TENDON! Once you have made the cuts you can then spread the legs and place either end of the game hanger in each of the cuts you made; this gives you a good sturdy hanging spot for the deer as the hanger is designed to properly hold the weight of the deer just fine. Be sure to then pull up the deer to a proper working height. I like it to be completely off the ground with the hams of the deer being about shoulder level.
3) With the deer hoisted above the ground you can start your skinning job. If you have never skinned a deer before check out some of the videos online as there are plenty that show you many different ways of doing so. Cory and I are planning to get some video of our processing setup as soon as we get some deer down (be on the lookout for this next season). One important thing to always remember is to make your cuts from the inside of the hide outward. This technique ensures that you don't cut a lot of hair that will eventually get onto your meat.
4) Once you've completed your skinning job, make sure that the inside cavity is totally clean and that the outside is not covered in hair. Once clean, and if you have the ability to keep the meat cool for a couple of days, it is best to wrap it in a sheet to keep it clean and let it age for 3-5 days. If the temperature where you have it hanging rises above 40 degrees, you should move directly to step 5 get the quarters into a fridge to keep it cool.
5) After aging is complete or temperatures force you to not let it age via hanging, you are ready to quarter your deer up and, once that is complete, prepare your cutting area. One final note is to make sure that the table you are using is cleaned very well! I would have liked to get a video of myself quartering a deer but was unable to this year so I've found a good one on YouTube that you can watch that shows the process.
Now you are ready to start playing butcher! The next part in the series will detail the different cuts of meat and how you get around to actually getting them off of the bone. If you have any questions please feel free to post them as Cory and I process all of our deer and feel that we can answer your questions. (Or if we cannot, point you in the direction of someone that can!)
-Paul Nicolucci
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