Aging your game???

[CoryTDF]

I couldn't find a thread about this and i was wondering what everybody thinks. I use a cooler and go for no less that 7 days. I always have tender meat.

My uncle used to live next to a butcher who would let it age until mold developed on the rib cage" it's the first place mold grows" he would butcher as soon as he noticed the mold.   i did it one year and that deer was great! The wife wont let me try it again.

[Huntbear]

As rifle hunters, the weather is usually cool enough, we hang our meat in the garage, for 5-7 days, then cut it up ourselves.  Best investment I ever made was a professional burger grinder.. add a small amount of pork fat, and away you go. 

[Gobble]

We bone ours out and place in cooler on ice for up to 5 days, must keep the cooler tilted with the petcock open to drain off any standing water and keep adding fresh ice.

[GoldTip]

I grew up with a walk in cooler in our barn.  Always aged deer and elk around 7 days.  Since I have moved away and don't have acess, have cut some deer up as soon as 24h and have been able to age some of them as much as 7 days again when the weather was right.  To be 100% honest, there is no difference in the meat as far as I can tell.  but I will probably continue to age them when I can, and not worry about it when I can't.

[Bob33]

This is an age-old debate.  There is probably no "right" answer.  Generally speaking, animals with more fat like beef benefit from ageing; lean animals with little fat (deer, antelope) do not benefit as much.  Ageing a game animal will not hurt it if the conditions are cool.  Whether or not it improves it is primarily a matter of opinion, as far as I can tell.

I do not age my game animals.

[rasbo]

I hang my meat if its cool enough till it mildews.It is far better.Most shops will say it don't matter.They are wrong.They want your meat out of there asap..The process of aging will make your meat more tender,and tasty..Take beef usually 7 to 10 days hanging time then out the door.A  good meat company will age meat to 21 days.there is a huge difference in taste and tenderness.Your meat will need to be trimmed however!Another bad process of meat cutting is sawing through the bone and dragging that through the meat..No saws on my venison or beef..And for Gods sake don't over cook a steak

[Huntbear]

Could not agree more on the saw part.  We break joints to separate the hind quarters.  Oh, and for those that are squeamish about a little surface mold, a mixture of Vinegar, Lemon Juice and water, takes it right off.  We even use a propane torch to burn off any hair that may have gotten on the meat.  Works great.

However, back on topic... the longer you can hang your meat, the less gamey and more tender it will be.  I have had bucks so rutty, that you could not hardly stand to gut and skin em, and after hanging for many days, they were excellent table fare. 

[Big10gauge]

Deer 7 + days
Elk  14 + days
I use a walkin cooler with 6 in urethane board insulation so the run time is minimal. Using a walkin cooler with 2 or 3 inch insulation creates longer run times and drys the meat out quite a bit and usually ends up having to reskin them. I can tell a definite difference between aged and non-aged venison and much prefer aged. Also will only debone and defat venison as I believe that is where a good portion of the gamey taste comes from.

[CoryTDF]

NO FAT+ NO BONES+ NO SAWS+ NO TENDONS= It's best when you handle your own meat!!!

[Caseyd]

We just hang them in the barn as they drop. Then come end of long weekend, we have a butcher party  So id say 1-3 days, sometimes longer though

[GoldTip]

Would be interesting to do a blinded taste test sometime.  You know, butcher one half the animal as soon as the meat cools, and the other half 7-10 days later, then have someone prepare both sides the same way and feed it to a guy thats blinded and see if they can tell the difference.  I'd make a wager a guy can not tell the difference in that scenario.

[Big10gauge]

Would be interesting to do a blinded taste test sometime.  You know, butcher one half the animal as soon as the meat cools, and the other half 7-10 days later, then have someone prepare both sides the same way and feed it to a guy thats blinded and see if they can tell the difference.  I'd make a wager a guy can not tell the difference in that scenario.

So how did you ruin your tastebuds? 

[Curly]

I've eaten elk that were taken during the rut and we did not age them at all........they were excellent and tender too.  So, I'm not sold on aging the game either.  I like Goldtip's idea of a blind taste test, but I won't bother doing that since I've had good luck butchering ASAP.

[deaddog]

I hang my meat if its cool enough till it mildews.It is far better.Most shops will say it don't matter.They are wrong.They want your meat out of there asap..The process of aging will make your meat more tender,and tasty..Take beef usually 7 to 10 days hanging time then out the door.A  good meat company will age meat to 21 days.there is a huge difference in taste and tenderness.Your meat will need to be trimmed however!Another bad process of meat cutting is sawing through the bone and dragging that through the meat..No saws on my venison or beef..And for Gods sake don't over cook a steak

and there ya have the best meat possible. +1 on the saw, never!

[Curly]

+1 on no saw and not overcooking the steak.