Deer in rut meat question

[HoofsandWings]

Do I grind up the back strap and make chili out it? Or do I boil it for several hours?
I have not tried it, but he was taken during peak whitetail rut.
I read that one way is to put it into a crock pot with several cans of Cambell's chicken and celery soup.
Then cook it for 12 hours.

[MLBowhunting]

No don't grind it.

[buglebuster]

I killed my buck in peak whitetail rut and the meat was excellent. Treat it normal!

[fishngamereaper]

I killed my buck in peak whitetail rut and the meat was excellent. Treat it normal!

[Southpole]

you could can it. That will take any of the "gamie" taste out of it. What makes you think it's going to be strong?

[buckfvr]

If the carcass was handled properly, cleaned and trimmed, it will be as normal deer meat.  The perceived gammie taste is venison.  Take a beef thats been turned out in these hills and he tastes more like whitetail deer then  Safeway beef. 

WHere would " gammie taste " go if you can the meat   We can our meat and what you put in you get out.  Many people just plain cant get past anything that doesnt taste like grocery store beef, hence everything but store bought is " gammie ".

What tastes gammie to you, tastes like venison to me.   

A clean kill and the way you handle the carcass has more to do with the finished product than anything else....however, in some cases, an old buck may be a tad strong or musty, but alot of that can be contributed to handling.  Get the hide off and clean that critter good , and dont be afraid to use plenty of water to get excess blood off the meat, trim off anything you dont want to eat, and clean the cavity well.....you are putting this in your mouth after all.......

[The scout]

i have never had a whitetail to gammie,mulie is a different story

[jackelope]

The muley in my avatar was deep in the rut and aged at 9.5 years old and the meat is/was wonderful. I'd never ever grind up back straps... Especially not from a whitetail.

[jstone]

I have a buddy who shot a buck in the rut. He left the hide on for 24 hours maybe little more. He had to make it all into sausage. I guess the first time he cooked it up it smelled like a rutting buck. Just don't do that

[Wilderness Addict]

You get use to the flavor. After eating nothing but deer and home-grown chicken all winter, my wife bought some pork. Noboby in the house could eat it. Once our deer is gone and we switch to store bought beef, the beef tastes a lot like a dairy bar smells, but after a few meals it starts to taste fine again. You get use to the flavor.

If your deer was handled properly, it should be tasty.

[JLS]

I've shot several bucks, muley and whitetails during the peak of the rut.  They all stunk so bad I could smell them from ten feet away.  All of them tasted fine.  One was the best deer I've ever had, and he was the one who smelled the worst of the three.

Trim the connective tissue and fat from the meat and you should have no issue with gamey flavor.

[lokidog]

I killed my buck in peak whitetail rut and the meat was excellent. Treat it normal!

You were lucky.  I agree that you should cook the same way as there will be no difference in toughness of the meat for the same cut as a non-rut buck.  However, often times a rutting buck will have a bit stronger taste.  My buck from two years ago was just such an animal, he was treated no differently than my wife's buck or the doe I shot the week before, but he was deffinitely stronger tasting.

Maybe some stronger sauces?   

[HoofsandWings]

Thanks. I was thinking that since I hit it in the front and the bullet caused all the inerds to turn to jelly, I may have had a problem with it. It was a day before I could clean out the cavity. The bladder and intestines all exploded.
The heart and liver and pancreas were in pieces.
It was warm out. I did not have a chance to skin it until I got home. I used the garden hose to wash it out and then cut the carcus in half as I was unable to lift it. I cut it up and put it into the freezer.

[bobcat]

Are you kidding?

It sounds like it's not the fact that it was in the rut that is the issue.

[B.G.hunter]

Thanks. I was thinking that since I hit it in the front and the bullet caused all the inerds to turn to jelly, I may have had a problem with it. It was a day before I could clean out the cavity. The bladder and intestines all exploded.
The heart and liver and pancreas were in pieces.
It was warm out. I did not have a chance to skin it until I got home. I used the garden hose to wash it out and then cut the carcus in half as I was unable to lift it. I cut it up and put it into the freezer.

Are you kidding?

It sounds like it's not the fact that it was in the rut that is the issue.

[HoofsandWings]

Are you kidding?

It sounds like it's not the fact that it was in the rut that is the issue.

Bobcat, so you recommend making sausage? I do not think the meat is spoiled.
Do I boil the meat before grinding it up? If so, how long should I boil it? I have one of those turkey cookers that hold 5 gallons of water.

[BOWHUNTER45]

FEED IT TO THE DOGS .... Ground meat ...Usually 

[Hangfire]

Between my wife, son and I we have eaten probably 70 deer over the years. I have had only one deer that was bad. That was a doe shot in December in a damage area when I was 14. The doe as aged by the wildlife Agent at the check station was over 12 years old, her teeth wore clear off and she had a fawn with her. She only dressed out at 55 pounds hanging weight, just skin and bones. That said I have shot both muledeer and whitetail bucks in peak of rut that stunk very strong. They were gutted immediately and skinned as soon as home. We rinse all carcasses with a vinegar solution ( a glug of vinegar in a bucket of slightly warmed water) to get off all hair, blood and dirt. I try to let hang 7 days if cool enough. I am very particular when cutting up about getting off all fat, gristle, bone and shot up meat. When I skin, I take out the tenderloins and put in a pan of water with some salt and leave in refrigerator over night. They are cooked the next day. All the meat is double wrapped with plastic film and waxed paper. This air tight wrapping allows the meat to last several years in the freezer. We grind our own meat and do not add any beef or pork except for 21 pounds of burger. We add 4 pounds of meatier pork fat and the season mix from Eaggers  plus additional rubbed sage for 25 pounds of breakfast sausage . It is all mixed and ran through the grinder twice. If I had a deer that was improperly cleaned and cut up I would expect strong taste. To combat that I would try thawing, trim off all fat and gristle etc and put in a pan of milk over night in the refrigerator before cooking. I have been told that will take out the strong flavor. In most cases strong flavored deer is the result of poor care.

[Southpole]

WHere would " gammie taste " go if you can the meat   We can our meat and what you put in you get out.  Many people just plain cant get past anything that doesnt taste like grocery store beef, hence everything but store bought is " gammie ".

When I can my properly butchered and cleaned deer, it goes in smelling like normal deer and it comes out like canned beef pot roast.

[lokidog]

Are you kidding?

It sounds like it's not the fact that it was in the rut that is the issue.

Bobcat, so you recommend making sausage? I do not think the meat is spoiled.
Do I boil the meat before grinding it up? If so, how long should I boil it? I have one of those turkey cookers that hold 5 gallons of water.

Do not precook for sausage/brats/pepperoni.  Sounds like you just need to eat some more seasoned venison for a bit.  I would try the milk thing as suggested.  And, I agree with Southpole, what goes in, comes out.

[Jingles]

After untold number of year hunting, killing and eating deer from all portions of the season and all across the country I can without a doubt say the only time I have ever had meat that was inedible was when the hunter gut shot it. Even though he dressed it right away and even washed it out with plenty of water when he got it back to camp he didn't get it cooled other than hanging it in a camp for 4 days. Was the most vile venison wasn't even fit for dog food IMO. I firmly believe that shot placement has a lot to do with the taste of the venison as much as the care of the downed animal

[buckfvr]

WHere would " gammie taste " go if you can the meat   We can our meat and what you put in you get out.  Many people just plain cant get past anything that doesnt taste like grocery store beef, hence everything but store bought is " gammie ".

When I can my properly butchered and cleaned deer, it goes in smelling like normal deer and it comes out like canned beef pot roast.

We do the same.....goes in venison, comes out venison, and tastes better than the best pot roast.

[Southpole]

WHere would " gammie taste " go if you can the meat   We can our meat and what you put in you get out.  Many people just plain cant get past anything that doesnt taste like grocery store beef, hence everything but store bought is " gammie ".

When I can my properly butchered and cleaned deer, it goes in smelling like normal deer and it comes out like canned beef pot roast.

We do the same.....goes in venison, comes out venison, and tastes better than the best pot roast.

I zaz my deer up more than most people, and I like it and that's all that matters. 

[buckfvr]

We pack ours raw with a pinch of sea salt so we can use it for any/everything............

[Mike450r]

It's all in how it dies and how it is treated after.   Old bucks or bulls can taste great if killed fast and dressed properly.

I have had young cow elk taste quite a bit off after a bow kill that took awhile to die,  get that adrenalyne pumping and the meat goes south.  Kill em dead right on the spot and keep the meat clean and the oldest rutting buck will taste just fine.

[HoofsandWings]

After untold number of year hunting, killing and eating deer from all portions of the season and all across the country I can without a doubt say the only time I have ever had meat that was inedible was when the hunter gut shot it. Even though he dressed it right away and even washed it out with plenty of water when he got it back to camp he didn't get it cooled other than hanging it in a camp for 4 days. Was the most vile venison wasn't even fit for dog food IMO. I firmly believe that shot placement has a lot to do with the taste of the venison as much as the care of the downed animal

I shot the deer as it was facing me and hit it just above the brisket. The muzzleloader bullet traveled the deer lengh-wise.
In at base of neck and traveled from front to rear. I have shot deer with modern rifles, but I have never experienced this much damage. I placed him on top of a sand dune, cut him open and everything just ran down the hill. There was nothing left that required any cutting or processing. The cavity was empty.

[HoofsandWings]

FEED IT TO THE DOGS .... Ground meat ...Usually 

Would you recommend adding the moose meat to the deer meat when I feed it to the dogs? Same with elk and big horn sheep?

[deadwoodbuck]

i'm with bobcat...are you kidding me with the way you treated the meat, shot the animal, left it sit for a day...totally disrespectful of the animal  .  do you treat all your game meat that way?  i would say clean out your freezer of all game and feed it to the pigs.  then when you figure out how to harvest and treat an animal apply for a hunting license...

[h20hunter]

I'm very surprised that you were unable to get it cleaned out. For me, when I've got or a buddy has an animal down, it's time to stop hunting and get the meat cared for. Everything stops until then. I'm amazed you can even feed it to your dog.

I'm curious...why couldn't you take care of it until a day later?

[cbond3318]

FYI


Venison vs. Beef: The controversy ends From the U.S. Venison Council

Controversy has long raged about the relative quality and taste of venison and beef as gourmet foods.  Some people say venison is tough, with a strong "wild" taste.  Others insist venison's flavor is delicate. An independent food research group was retained by the Venison Council to conduct a taste test to determine the truth of these conflicting assertions once and for all.

First, a Grade A Choice Holstein steer was chased into a swamp a mile and a half from a road and shot several times.  After some of the entrails were removed, the carcass was dragged back over rocks and logs, and through mud and dust to the road.  It was then thrown into the back of a pickup truck and driven through rain and snow for 100 miles before being hung out in the sun for a day.

It was then lugged into a garage where it was skinned and rolled around on the floor for a while.  Strict sanitary precautions were observed throughout the test, within the limitations of the butchering environment.  For instance, dogs and cats were allowed to sniff and lick the steer carcass, but most of the time, were chased away when they attempted to bite chunks out of it.

Next, a sheet of plywood left from last year's butchering was set up in the basement on two sawhorses.  The pieces of dried blood, hair and fat left from last year were scraped off with a wire brush last used to clean out the grass stuck under the lawn mower.

The skinned carcass was then dragged down the steps into the basement where a half dozen inexperienced but enthusiastic and intoxicated men worked on it with meat saws, cleavers, hammers, and dull knives.  The result was 375 pounds of soup bones, four bushel baskets of meat scraps, and a couple of steaks that were an eighth of an inch thick on one edge and an inch and a half thick on the other edge.

The steaks were seared on a glowing red hot cast iron skillet to lock in the flavor.  When the smoke cleared, rancid bacon grease was added, along with three pounds of onions, and the whole conglomeration was fried for two hours.

The meat was gently teased from the frying pan and served to three intoxicated and blindfolded taste panel volunteers.  Every member of the panel thought it was venison. One volunteer even said it tasted exactly like the venison he has eaten in hunting camps for the past 27 years.

The results of this scientific test conclusively show that there is no difference between the taste of beef and venison

[deadwoodbuck]

     end of discussion...pass me another beer...

[HoofsandWings]

I'm very surprised that you were unable to get it cleaned out. For me, when I've got or a buddy has an animal down, it's time to stop hunting and get the meat cared for. Everything stops until then. I'm amazed you can even feed it to your dog.

I'm curious...why couldn't you take care of it until a day later?

I did clean out the cavity, but I could not skin until the next day. The skinning was hard because the animal was on the ground. The butcher did a good job in cutting up and packaging the meat.

[Hangfire]

It is easier to skin a animal when hanging but skinning deer, elk or caribou while on the ground is not that difficult and results in a very clean carcass. I have done the above three animals in the following manner. I gut them and then drag away from the guts far enough so I can work with out standing in guts or blood. I am only 5'10" and I have drug spike elk and mature cows by my self far enough to do what I need to do. I lay the animal on its back and if I have to prop in that position with sticks or rock I will. I cut down the inside of a hind leg to the base of the tail and then extend the abdomen cut to the throat. I peel the hide off the legs and the side to the spine. I then stretch  the hide out away from the body keeping the hair side down and the flesh side clean. I cut a few limbs 6-8 inches long and cut a few small slots in the outer edge of the hide. I poke the sticks into the slots and into the ground like tent pegs. This holds the hide out and makes a clean area I can roll the animal onto so I can skin the other side. I  then have a skinned animal laying on the flesh side of its hide not in the dirt. I cut the hind quarters free by cutting through the lower back. I always carry a saw when elk hunting so I spilt the two quarters apart and hang or put in a clean bag. I cut the front shoulders free and bone out all the rest. I take all the meat off even  between the ribs. When I am done the meat is still clean and a magpie is going to have a hard time finding any meat. If I have to leave over night I will cut some limbs off a nearby tree if available, cut a slot in the legs or tie and hang off the limb stub. If no trees I will prop up on brush or some thing so the air flows all around the meat. I will take off my T shirt and hang by the meat and go 20-30 feet away and relieve my self in several spots around the area. I have never had a animal bothered over night and I have good clean meat.

[castor gitter]

Well said hangfire. With the method described there is no real need to gut. You can cut all meat off without doing it. Unless you want heart and liver.

I personally despise the term "gamey" and hate it when even veteran hunters say they don't like meat because it's gamey. Like others have said I agree that proper care of the meat is how you maintain its quality. When you mishandle meat you can end up with lesser quality in the end. And this doesn't just apply to deer and other wild game.... Fish, birds, farm raised meats, etc.....

I've probably eaten more pounds of deer and elk in my life than beef. That said, I've never had one of these gamey animals.... Animals from the coast, mtns, desert, farmland, I've eaten them. Rut and non rut. Take care of it properly and wild game is the best meat there is. When a whole animal is made into sausage or jerky just cause its too "gamey" I would think mishandled meat is to blame. And then maybe someone just doesn't like wild meat.

[lucky33]

If the carcass was handled properly, cleaned and trimmed, it will be as normal deer meat.  The perceived gammie taste is venison.  Take a beef thats been turned out in these hills and he tastes more like whitetail deer then  Safeway beef. 

WHere would " gammie taste " go if you can the meat   We can our meat and what you put in you get out.  Many people just plain cant get past anything that doesnt taste like grocery store beef, hence everything but store bought is " gammie ".

What tastes gammie to you, tastes like venison to me.   

A clean kill and the way you handle the carcass has more to do with the finished product than anything else....however, in some cases, an old buck may be a tad strong or musty, but alot of that can be contributed to handling.  Get the hide off and clean that critter good , and dont be afraid to use plenty of water to get excess blood off the meat, trim off anything you dont want to eat, and clean the cavity well.....you are putting this in your mouth after all.......

Well said. Improper handling is usually the  culprit when meat is ''gammie''. Taking care to trim all the fat and silverskin helps alot too.

[1bugman]

I killed my buck in peak whitetail rut and the meat was excellent. Treat it normal!

[Southpole]

I personally despise the term "gamey" and hate it when even veteran hunters say they don't like meat because it's gamey. Like others have said I agree that proper care of the meat is how you maintain its quality. When you mishandle meat you can end up with lesser quality in the end. And this doesn't just apply to deer and other wild game.... Fish, birds, farm raised meats, etc.....

I've probably eaten more pounds of deer and elk in my life than beef. That said, I've never had one of these gamey animals.... Animals from the coast, mtns, desert, farmland, I've eaten them. Rut and non rut. Take care of it properly and wild game is the best meat there is. When a whole animal is made into sausage or jerky just cause its too "gamey" I would think mishandled meat is to blame. And then maybe someone just doesn't like wild meat.

Okay, how about "strong" flavored instead of gamey?

[castor gitter]

I personally despise the term "gamey" and hate it when even veteran hunters say they don't like meat because it's gamey. Like others have said I agree that proper care of the meat is how you maintain its quality. When you mishandle meat you can end up with lesser quality in the end. And this doesn't just apply to deer and other wild game.... Fish, birds, farm raised meats, etc.....

I've probably eaten more pounds of deer and elk in my life than beef. That said, I've never had one of these gamey animals.... Animals from the coast, mtns, desert, farmland, I've eaten them. Rut and non rut. Take care of it properly and wild game is the best meat there is. When a whole animal is made into sausage or jerky just cause its too "gamey" I would think mishandled meat is to blame. And then maybe someone just doesn't like wild meat.

Okay, how about "strong" flavored instead of gamey?

I like strong flavored, but still believe it's more in how you handle it than any other factors for the final flavor. If still after doing everything right it's strong flavored, live with it or cook it different. I like the natural flavor of my meat, so I skimp on seasoning usually.

[Johnb317]

Don't want green meat. 
The most recent Bugle (RMEF) magazine has chuck Adams suggesting leaving the hide on until you can get the meat out!  He's crazy!
Last two elk I cleaned using the "gutless" method.
Always carry game bags, get the hide off, animal quartered and hung!
(Don't forget the backstrap, tenderloin and neck meat)