I am curious and puzzled by the comments about meat being tough after boning while still warm. I have done this for years - since I pack meat out on my back - for elk, deer, sheep, goat, and antelope, even bison (the quick boning that is). Compared to the rare whole-animal retrieval and hanging the unboned carcass, I have not noticed a difference. I have only experienced one really tough animal after this treatment and that was an old post-rut worn out bull with no remaining body fat. That bull was tough everywhere, even after extra aging on backstraps.
A few have commented on tough meat, but no one has mentioned how the meat was handled between boning and arrival on a plate. Do you age it, freeze it immediately, cook and eat it immediately...?
Seems meat frozen within a day or two of death will be tough when you thaw it out since aging was truncated. But if you allow it to sit refrigerated for several days after thawing it, aging picks back up and it is much more tender.
I generally try to age steaks the equivalent of 2 weeks (adjusted by temperature and time before I get it under refrigeration). This is on meat I bone out as soon as possible because I want to get the meat away from the carcass quickly where a griz may show up while I am gone - or even before I am gone. I have not had any trouble with meat being tough when handled this way.
What are y'all doing to the meat after boning?
