Advice on leaving deer overnight (low 49) before processing please

[thedutchtouch]

Obviously you solved the issue by quartering it last night, but it would most likely have been fine. One concern I have is if I am really tired that might not be the best time to be wrestling a deer with a razor sharp knife. When I used to hang deer to skin them, I have nicked myself more than once while they were swinging around, and I was working the knife. I never got myself good but to that knife, meat is meat.

Agreed. I cut myself separating the very last quarter at the leg joint. I was tired and trying to hurry and paid the price, it wasn't a bad cut but it was still annoying finishing up one and a half handed

 

[JC3]

I have recently (past 3 years) have been using a new, for me, aging technique.
Let the deer hang 24 hrs., debone completely into larger chunks.
Get a Yeti type cooler large enough for the all the meat in a single layer.
fill the bottom of the cooler with 4" of ice.
Put all the meat in on the ice, cover the meat with aprox. 4" - 6" of ice, close cooler
Once a day drain the water, blood out.
Let age for 14 days.
The idea is to get as much blood out of the meat as possible, to reduce the "strong " taste.
I tried using a "not so super cooler" and had to replace alot of ice.


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[LAKY]

The standardized "Danger Zone" is between 40-140F. Can it be safe holding it in that range for too long? It's an odds game, but plenty of people have done it. Bacteria in that range can double every 20 minutes. Your digestive system can kill some bacteria, and cooking will kill some. Your tolerances may not be the same as someone else's. Keeping meat clean helps. Will you be ok by varying some from that standard? Probably, but maybe not. It's what you're comfortable with feeding yourself or someone else. It's a guideline.

 

[Ckwilli]

I have recently (past 3 years) have been using a new, for me, aging technique.
Let the deer hang 24 hrs., debone completely into larger chunks.
Get a Yeti type cooler large enough for the all the meat in a single layer.
fill the bottom of the cooler with 4" of ice.
Put all the meat in on the ice, cover the meat with aprox. 4" - 6" of ice, close cooler
Once a day drain the water, blood out.
Let age for 14 days.
The idea is to get as much blood out of the meat as possible, to reduce the "strong " taste.
I tried using a "not so super cooler" and had to replace alot of ice.


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I’m going to give this a try. A couple of questions though, do the parts of the meat in direct contact with the ice get damaged? Have you tried putting plastic between the meat and ice?

 

[Weldabeast]

Frozen water bottles works better.... Less grey meat and u won't have to buy ice everyday/every other day

 

[JC3]

I’m going to give this a try. A couple of questions though, do the parts of the meat in direct contact with the ice get damaged? Have you tried putting plastic between the meat and ice?

No meat damage with the ice touching the meat.
You want the melting ice to "trickle" down through the meat to remove the blood.
The nice part about this process is you can work at your leisure as I have let the meat age to 18 days, with great results.

 

[Ckwilli]

I knew an old timer that would brine all his deer in an old fridge for a week or so. He recently passed and I never did ask him the details. He always said it was the only way he’d eat venison. I’ve brined birds but never deer. Anyone else ever brined a deer?

 

[LAKY]

I used to keep the meat and ice together and kept draining it. I switched to the frozen bottle method and like it better. I found it easier to work with the meat when it was dry and it ground better and packaged better. Thawing meat when time to use was better too. This year, I got these dry bags from Walmart. I can either put the ice in them or the meat. This will let me use bagged ice if needed.

 

[Horn]

I knew an old timer that would brine all his deer in an old fridge for a week or so. He recently passed and I never did ask him the details. He always said it was the only way he’d eat venison. I’ve brined birds but never deer. Anyone else ever brined a deer?

I have had it corned, not quite the same it was good. I would not hesitate to brine venison myself

 

[Hall17]

I used to keep the meat and ice together and kept draining it. I switched to the frozen bottle method and like it better. I found it easier to work with the meat when it was dry and it ground better and packaged better. Thawing meat when time to use was better too. This year, I got these dry bags from Walmart. I can either put the ice in them or the meat. This will let me use bagged ice if needed.
View attachment 75211

That’s a great idea!

 

[Ckwilli]

I have recently (past 3 years) have been using a new, for me, aging technique.
Let the deer hang 24 hrs., debone completely into larger chunks.
Get a Yeti type cooler large enough for the all the meat in a single layer.
fill the bottom of the cooler with 4" of ice.
Put all the meat in on the ice, cover the meat with aprox. 4" - 6" of ice, close cooler
Once a day drain the water, blood out.
Let age for 14 days.
The idea is to get as much blood out of the meat as possible, to reduce the "strong " taste.
I tried using a "not so super cooler" and had to replace alot of ice.


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BTW, I was thinking about buying an upright freezer and a temp controller to age my deer. You just possibly saved me a few hundred bucks! Thanks.

 

[NimbleTimbo]

I used to keep the meat and ice together and kept draining it. I switched to the frozen bottle method and like it better. I found it easier to work with the meat when it was dry and it ground better and packaged better. Thawing meat when time to use was better too. This year, I got these dry bags from Walmart. I can either put the ice in them or the meat. This will let me use bagged ice if needed.

I usually wet age 7-10 days. I lightly salt the meat prior to layering in the ice. I think this helps with the flavor, protein break-down, and allows lower ice temps. I tried it a few years ago to give myself a few more days to butcher but it definitely helped the flavor. I think if I used bags I would just fill them with ice. If you put the meat in the bags they would sit in their own juices and probably taste gamier. I lightly followed this link I think:

Aging Venison On Ice (Easy How To) - Woods And Arrow

Aging your venison will result in better texture and flavor. Aging for a few days allows enzymes in the muscle tissue to break it down. There are a number of ways to age venison including dry aging, wet aging, and ice aging. Today we will tell you how to age your venison with ice. Read […]

woodsandarrow.com

 

[LAKY]

I usually wet age 7-10 days. I lightly salt the meat prior to layering in the ice. I think this helps with the flavor, protein break-down, and allows lower ice temps. I tried it a few years ago to give myself a few more days to butcher but it definitely helped the flavor. I think if I used bags I would just fill them with ice. If you put the meat in the bags they would sit in their own juices and probably taste gamier. I lightly followed this link I think:

Aging Venison On Ice (Easy How To) - Woods And Arrow

Aging your venison will result in better texture and flavor. Aging for a few days allows enzymes in the muscle tissue to break it down. There are a number of ways to age venison including dry aging, wet aging, and ice aging. Today we will tell you how to age your venison with ice. Read […]

woodsandarrow.com

I just never cared for the wet aging in an ice chest technique, and I used it for years. I much prefer the texture and workability when dry. My first preference is dry aging on the bone, second is deboning meat and processing it dry as quickly as possible.

 

[Loopwing]

When I hunt out of town I use a modified technique I stole from meat eater. I have a large white marine cooler I can literary put 2-3 quartered deer in (VA deer). I put a hauler rack in the truck hitch and put a brick under the non drain side of the cooler. I keep it packed full of ice and the water just drains out as it melts. Ice and freezing cold water on the meat is not bad, meat sitting in water is bad. I have had deer on ice for 6 days before without a problem. Shot a deer the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and did not get it to the processor until the Monday afternoon. I also added 2 more deer to the cooler during that time.

 

[sokraski]

I have recently (past 3 years) have been using a new, for me, aging technique.
Let the deer hang 24 hrs., debone completely into larger chunks.
Get a Yeti type cooler large enough for the all the meat in a single layer.
fill the bottom of the cooler with 4" of ice.
Put all the meat in on the ice, cover the meat with aprox. 4" - 6" of ice, close cooler
Once a day drain the water, blood out.
Let age for 14 days.
The idea is to get as much blood out of the meat as possible, to reduce the "strong " taste.
I tried using a "not so super cooler" and had to replace alot of ice.


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Been doing this for years. Works great. The key is to get a good cooler. I've had best luck with marine coolers. Fill once with ice and will last at least a week in warm temps,. Longer or only need to fill the first time in cooler temps.

 

[thedutchtouch]

Thanks for the continued conversation all, I'm back up in a tree today with similar temps. If I get a deer today, hopefully I won't get stuck in the mud again on the way out lol. I have skinned and quartered the deer I've shot, and leave the quarters in a cooler, I have been using two stainless jerky trays/drying racks with sections of PVC pipe under them, ice goes in first, then this shelf thing to keep the ice and meat separate. Nice thing about the stainless racks and PVC is it can go right in the dishwasher after. I've left deer for 1-7 days in the cooler and they have all tasted great. I have dreams to build a cooler, but at this point just dreams.

 

[JC3]

It is important to let the meat age at least 5 -6 days to get the rigor mortise out of the meat.
The first couple of days is when the meat is at it's "stiffest" .
Don't be afraid of the 14 day aging, it is a wonderful thing for the meat.
I was a hang the whole deer in a cooler for 14 days until I started using the ice and cooler method,
it really simplifies things.
Don't have to worry about the compressor for the cooler any more and the space the cooler took up.

 

[TexasCountyMo]

there's a chart out there about hanging temps and the amount of days you can hang. Basically anything below 50 is good in the shade with a breeze for about 5 days

 

[Robert loper]

If you leave one.
Make sure you leave a shirt or somthing you wear on the carcass.
this is a must in south jersey or within hours the yotes will tear it up.
Alot of times It keeps predators away especially yotes. But i would go get help and go back and retrieve it as soon as you can.

 

[thedutchtouch]

If you leave one.
Make sure you leave a shirt or somthing you wear on the carcass.
this is a must in south jersey or within hours the yotes will tear it up.
Alot of times It keeps predators away especially yotes. But i would go get help and go back and retrieve it as soon as you can.

Good advice. I didn't consider yotes in town here but I suppose it's possible, there's plenty of deer and parks around