Post by: Gobble Doc on August 11, 2011, 09:53:12 PM
Post by: JKEEN33 on August 11, 2011, 10:09:54 PM
Post by: ICEMAN on August 11, 2011, 10:13:34 PM
In warm weather, (any weather in my book) you need to get your animal gutted and skinned as soon as you can. As soon as the animal hits the ground your hunt is over and it is now time for meat care.
Get the animal cooling. Some guys soak them in a river in a trashbag to cool them, others hang them in shade. Direct sunshine is bad. Trapping heat in any kind of bag is bad.
Get it cool, and tranport to a cooler place. We often simply lay blocks of ice around the game in transit to the garage and hang them in the cool garage for a few days before we butcher.
If you are a newby to getting game to a butcher, read up a bunch, maybe get some big huge coolers and be ready to atleast quarter the animal and get ice under the animal....
Good luck.
Post by: link on August 11, 2011, 10:15:51 PM
Post by: Heredoggydoggy on August 11, 2011, 10:20:52 PM
#2= Get the meat hanging in the shade, or iced in a cooler ASAP--or sooner!
Main thing is to get the hide off and the cavity cooled. Once skinned, the meat might get a dry surface but that won't hurt. The hide holds the warmth, and sours the meat quickly.
Post by: Gobble Doc on August 13, 2011, 05:29:55 PM
Post by: time2hunt on August 13, 2011, 07:15:08 PM
Post by: True Sportsman on August 13, 2011, 10:16:23 PM
Don't forget open the hind quarters up just cut down the inner seam to the bone, thats your biggest chunk of meat and the heat will hold there the longest.
This is a great piece of advice. My dad and I lost his first bears meat to bone sour. It was in September and 90 degrees plus that day. We left the hide on and drug the anmal back to the truck to process. It was our first big game animal killed, and we didnt know what we were doing.
After losing that bears meat, I bone out every animal, unless it is really close to the road. After boning out everything, the meat tastes great, cools very quickly, and keeps me from worrying. Its really not a big deal to do this after youve done it a couple times. I put all meat in white breathable game bags and ice it down as soon as possible.
The quicker you get the meat cool, the better it will taste...
Post by: Big P on August 14, 2011, 12:23:08 AM
Post by: Axle on August 14, 2011, 07:06:25 AM
I've hung meat for up to 5 days in temps where the daytime highs were into the low 90s. I just find a cool spot on the hill. Above a small stream in a steep ravine works good.
I will not hang meat in wet weather.
I also process the meat as quickly as possible but sometimes when you are out on a hunt and have a specific return date, you will have to implement the best temporary strategy for keeping it cool and dry till you head out of the woods.
Post by: ICEMAN on August 14, 2011, 08:53:40 AM
Post by: demontang on August 15, 2011, 07:48:37 AM
My bear was shot on a day that was 90+ out, I gutted it ran down to a store got a bag of ice throw it in side it. Drove 45 min home, skinned it out and got it to the processer and he told me that he never got a bear in that the meat was in such good shape :dunno:
I think cooling it down is key to it not spoiling :twocents:
Post by: Gobble Doc on August 15, 2011, 09:11:00 PM
Post by: Wanttohuntmore on August 15, 2011, 09:24:27 PM
Post by: DoubleJ on August 16, 2011, 07:10:36 AM
Post by: Instinct on August 16, 2011, 10:16:08 AM
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on August 16, 2011, 10:44:27 AM
Do u need to age? Cuz if and when i harvest my animal i was gonna drive down back hhome and put the meat in the freezer then process it laterThere is a whole 'nuther thread on that !
I dont do it, but others do... :dunno:
We have gotten meat wet before in the process of cooling and did not get a bacterial issue. We have iced deer and bear down in creeks, then hung them and patted them dry, kept good air circulation and no problems. Even when meat is iced down it often gets wet... Heck, it seems that most Elk I bone out are during a freakin downpour... :chuckle::yeah: X2
been there
Water is not the enemy, warmth, moisture, and lack of circulation are the enemy.
It might sound confusing, but meat can sit in water, water cannot sit on meat. :tung: as long as it is rinsed thoroughly, then allowed to dry, you are fine, it is when the water stays on the meat w/o circulating, that you get stagnation, and bacterial growth.
Post by: DoubleJ on August 16, 2011, 11:35:52 AM
Do u need to age? Cuz if and when i harvest my animal i was gonna drive down back hhome and put the meat in the freezer then process it later
You don't need to age, thats a personal preference but, I would not freeze, thaw to process, and then refreeze. That will KILL your meat. Unless you're talking about burger meat. Then it's OK to do that. Steaks and roasts? No way.
Post by: TikkaT3-270Shortmag on August 16, 2011, 07:06:47 PM
Post by: Annette on August 16, 2011, 07:27:23 PM
Don't forget open the hind quarters up just cut down the inner seam to the bone, thats your biggest chunk of meat and the heat will hold there the longest.:yeah: :yeah:
Post by: PA BEN on August 16, 2011, 08:23:25 PM
You have to Waite 36 hrs. Rigger to set in and then go out of the meat. I try to go 4 days. I hung a deer in 70 degree temps when the temp went down in the 30's at night for 4 days once, no problem. Hang in the shade and put a tarp over it to shade the meat. BTW, I shot a deer thanksgiving day, it was 22 below. By the time it got the hide off it was froze solid. We had a January thaw and that's when I cut it up. It was a 4 point w/t in the rut. Best eatting deer ever. :tup:Do u need to age? Cuz if and when i harvest my animal i was gonna drive down back hhome and put the meat in the freezer then process it later
You don't need to age, that's a personal preference but, I would not freeze, thaw to process, and then refreeze. That will KILL your meat. Unless you're talking about burger meat. Then it's OK to do that. Steaks and roasts? No way.
Post by: cohoho on August 16, 2011, 08:58:08 PM