Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Food, Cooking, and Game Preparation How to get your deer butchered

So I shot a pretty big 6-pointer (3x3 for you westerners)today. My sister took him to the processor, I told them to get him made into sausage and some jerky, then burger the rest.
1. How old should this deer be? I'd guess 2.5 years, I think he is way too big to be only 1.5. But his rack isn't an old looking rack, pronghorn style with brow tines, not a nice curved rack.
2. Would he have been better served as steaks and roasts?

I was thinking he might be tough, but then I was rethinking tonight that maybe not.
I'm planning on taking at least one more doe for steaks and roasts and such.
I'll add a picture later, I'm at work right now.

Venison tough is venison cooked wrong......

Tenderloins whole, 8 inch chunks of back strap, a roast out of each hind, a pile of canning chunks, some cube steaks if I feel like messing with 'em...the rest grind for burger and sausage.

We do it ourselves.........

I'm with Roy ...take care of it properly from the time it it's the ground til it hits your plate and all will be good....Butchering it yourself and not over cooking ensures this

Given that Whitetail can probably live to somewhere around 10 to 12 years old, a carcass from a 2 1/2 year old deer is at its prime, and shouldn't be "tough" unless its been handled incorrectly, or cooked badly.

With regards the age, I'm not familar with Whitetails, but I'll bet you can age it pretty accurately up to about 18months old or so by tooth erruption..

Basically all deer gain their permanent molars at a set rate, which varies from species to species...If you learn to identify the pattern of erruption you can use it to age a deer in the first 18-24 months of its life pretty accurately (depending on species) but after that its a lot more difficult, with tooth wear being a reasonable indicator method, but its by no means fool proof. Antler growth however is one of the least reliable methods as it has been proved to vary so much, even within localised areas.

The rut may also affect the carcass quality of a whitetail buck , (Fallow bucks, and Sika and Red stags are not good to eat rut and post-rut) but I've no experience of this so I will leave others to comment on this...

As for how to cut it up, how do you and your family like your venison?

Personally, I like it hung for abut week to ten days and then cut it up as required...I tend to steak out as much as possible, and use the off cuts for stewing meat and/or burger mince, but I have had whole carcasses turned into sauage and burgers before now...

I would be very leery of dropping off a carcass at a processor unless they had an excellnt reputation. I would want to know I was definately going to get my meat, and only my meat, back and that the carcass was going to be boned properly and not cut up whole sale with a bandsaw as many do...

Regards,

Peter

Not being a deer roast fan myself, mine go tenerderloins whole, backstraps into butterfly steaks, hind quarters and part of front quarters into steaks and the rest to burger. I agree with Pete on aging it. We have a couple of very good, clean and honest processors here adn I use them on occassion. You can also get the butcher at the local grocery store to grind your burger after normal meat cutting hours.

You will really enjoy the meat more if you learn to butcher yourself. I was self-taught due to budget restraints. There are tons of do-it-yourself websites out on the web. You'll need a grinder and a vacuum sealer and a few sharp knifes. That will cost less than having your first deer processed. The key to self processing is patience. Take your time and go for clean and ready to cooking. Get all the silverskin/fat off where possible and freeze in a deep freeze if you have one. A young deer shouldn't be tough. If you get it cooled quickly in the field it should taste great. I shivered when you had every ground or jerkeyed.

I keep the backstraps and tenders whole until cooking time. I love chicken fry, so I make most of my cuts on the large muscles 1/2" to 3/4" thick and pound thin prior to cooking. I burger all the scraps and a shoulder. I'm keeping one shoulder whole for smoking this year.

I couldn't afford to get it processed.

We've got #'s 7, 8 and 9 hanging now and it's 65 or 70 bucks a pop to get 'em cut around here.

That's a lot of cash I'd rather spend on powder and shot.

Thanks, but we'll happily cut our own, we've got knives......grins.

Thanks for all the comments.
I guess I will learn how to butcher!
It is unseasonably warm here during the daytime (close to 70's) that hanging it outside, as is the norm around here, isn't really possible (I think).
This was the first deer I've taken in at least 7 years, but I'm "on" again to hunting, I hope to take at least one more this year, and can take up to 6.
I have an old buddy who used to butcher, I'll have him come and show me the next time I get one.
Thanks again,
Patrick

Patrick,

The warm weather plays havoc with hanging a carcass. If your only dealing with one or two at a time, keep an eye out for an old soft drinks cabinet....Very old if a shop or garage is getting referbished you can pick the old ones up quite cheaply. For a whitetail, you'll need something about 20" wide x24" deep x 65" tall internally...

I use an old commercial fridge I bought of ebay for less than $100 delivered...Its a bit smaller than the measurments above but is fine for our small Roe deer.







I

One can also partition off a back corner of a garage into a walk in "cooler", or build a 4'X 4' X 8' tall free standing "building".

Insulate walls/roof with blue foam board, and stick an old air conditioner in the wall set on max cool.......

Ok, thanks for those!

This deer arrived home and was skinnned and quartered,quarters put in spare refridge and garage cleaned in about 1 hour....Doesn't take much to get it into a refridge....don't think whole carcass think breaking it down into parts

That's the way I do it as well. Brought home skinned quarters in a cooler yesterday - some clean / prep (not full trip) and they went in a spare fridge last night. Give them several days, cut them up, package, and eat or freeze. Good stuff!

OK, I have a question. What is the purpose of hanging the deer?

I always get them butchered (We do our own)as soon as possible. Never had any bad tasting meat. Tom got a deer yesterday morning around 9 a.m. it was in the freezer cut and packaged by 6 pm. Never had any strong taste in them and they are always tender when cooked.

Ages the meat. Enzymes break it down and make it more tender. But to age it you must keep it under 40� (?) but above freezing.

Deer needs to either hang or be left quartered in a refridge to let the chemical reactions take place..rigor mortis sets in after a bit and needs a couple days to relax and have nature take it's course and have the meat "un stiffen" and become tender


"First, the muscles go into rigor mortis, a stiffening lasting at most 24 hours. Butchering a deer during rigor mortis is one of the worst things you can do. It can cause a phenomenon called shortening, where the muscles contract and remain tougher than if butchering took place a day later.

Proper aging begins as soon as rigor mortis ends-and this process is definitely not controlled rot. Rot is zillions of bacteria eating the muscle cells, their waste products creating the familiar stench of decaying flesh. Bacteria attack only after meat is exposed to the air, and bacterial rot is accelerated by higher temperatures. It doesn't happen at all if the meat is frozen. To properly age your deer, you must keep it at temperatures above freezing and below about 40 degrees. This holds bacteria (and rot) at bay, allowing natural enzymes to do their work."

I used to do that and had similar results, only in hindsight I would go as far as saying the meat was quite bland...

Hanging changes/enhances the flavour, but whether that change/enhancement is considered an improvement to the taste is of course down to the individual eating it...

While I don't particularly like "strong" or very gamey tasting venison, I do like my venision to taste of "venison" if that makes sense...if you have the faciliy to hygienically hang a caracass at just over freezing, give it a go for say 10 days and see if you like the results...

Regards,

Peter

Hey Keith, i'm with you on the roast thing but I do roast cuts anyways then I steak them after i take em out of the freezer.

this works ok for me cause it cuts down on eposed meat surface for freezer burn possibility & I can cut the steaks how ever thick or thin i like for who ever i might be cooking for at the moment.

Plus it's a quick way to get a deer cut up & in the freezer

Always butcher your own if you can. Regardless of where it's processed always save the back straps/tenderloins. Don't grind them up!!! This is what I call venison candy! The best of the deer at any age.

Yep on all counts - and even if you do take it in to a processor - take out the tenderloins yourself! They are right there in the body cavity and dry out quickly so don't let someone mess these up for you. Take the 60 seconds extra to remove them and enjoy!

And don't leave your deer, elk or antelope hanging out where I can get to the tenderloins! Bwaaaahahahahahaaaaa!!!! (wish they had an evil grin icon)

You keep out of my extra fridge

I'd like to learn how to process one myself, its a minimum $75 charge at the local meat shop + anything special like summer sausage, breakfast sausage, bacon, etc.

Are there any good videos on YouTube or websites that go in depth on what needs to be cut where and all that?

A buddy this weekend did this small doe he killed. Kept the 2 rear legs, the backstraps and the tenderloins. But, he did a pretty sloppy job on cutting those pieces out and looked like there was alot of waste.

There are several videos out there, but I don't have the links handy on this PC. Perhaps someone else can post those for you as I haven't checked them in a while. My first few were pretty sloppy (didn't waste a lot - just had more in the "grind" pile than I should have). I'm getting better but we use a lot ground and in sausage so it doesn't have to be perfect. I get the good stuff out, then take some choice roasts / steaks where appropriate, and whatever I decide to grind from there is OK by me. I also take some of the smaller cuts and use them in stew or for fajitas, etc. where I can get away with small pieces.

In other words - I don't think there is any better way to do it than to learn as much as you can and just jump in and give it a shot. You'll be more comfortably fairly quickly and you'll take more pride in how you treat the product than your processor is likely to.

The place I trust and use on occassion is $65 for a deer or antelope or bighorn sheep. Elk and moose they go by the pound. I would rather do them myself too but sometimes it just is not possible. Besides if I take it in they make the best jalapeno/cheese salami I have ever eaten and I have sampled several different version.......burp!

Used to have a place like that in my hometown - GREAT sausage and it was worth taking some meat there. They always had samples out and even fed you dinner when you brought one in to drop off - GREAT marketing We've just started the sausage making ourselves in the past couple of years. Before that I did some with my wife's family but it was just summer sausage and not a lot of variety. Good processors are great to have but I'd still do my own and just take the trimmed meat to them to just grind and mix for sausage. The exception is when time / conditions don't allow anything else (shooting last day of a travel hunt, etc.). Whatever you do - enjoy that venison!

"Tough Sausage" ...... I don't think so.

'Scuse me?

??

On another note, I did find a couple of really good sites with full step by step pages and great photos. I'm pretty confident I can cut one up now...may not be very pretty the first few times but it'll damn sure beat $75+ every time!

Only way to learn is delvin boys....you'll get the hang of it after one or two....worst that can happen is ya have small pieces,but still will eat good....follow mucsle groups in the hind quarters,backstraps leave whole or cut into steaks,front shoulders I clean up and leave whole for slow roasting on the grill either that or cut up for ground or stew...just finished quarteing up my second,I know it's mine,clean and taken care of as well as $130 still in my pocket

Right on I'm heading back to the field tomorrow evening...had 2 days out of the woods due to alot of rain, I'm itchin to get back out there!

Like many others, we butcher our own, can be a lot more careful than a packer will be. No silver skin, no fat, no glands, no bone goes into our freezer. We used to cut the loins into steaks and the hams into steaks, but I'm starting to do like some of the others and just do it all in whole muscle groups, that way you can cook it either as a roast whole, or slice into steaks, or slice thin for jerky, just depends on what you're wanting at the time you thaw.

After cutting to the size piece we want, it gets wrapped in the saran type freezer wrap, making sure all air is pushed out, and then that is wrapped in freezer paper, again, making sure all air is pushed out.

We used to just make 1 1/2 lb patties of burger and wrap like above, but a couple years ago bought a horn to go on the grinder, and have been stuffing the pre-made 'burger bags'. Bought the little tape machine that LEM has, take the full bag, twist the top to remove air, then push through the taper. Couldn't work any slicker, and gives a good product a year down the road when you thaw it out.

Well didn't get to go today, however, I am going in the morning. I've been reading my "butcher diagram" I found online and I think I can do it.

Picked up some saran wrap, freezer bags, and 2 coolers of ice which should hold me till I get home and can finish them off....if I get one

Craig,

Best of luck, let us know who you get on!

Regards,

Peter

Thanks, however today was the worst day of the season so far. Didn't see anything this morning, then changed stands for this evenings hunt and saw a big doe come out about 125 yards right at dark, I wasn't confident with that shot with the light so I passed.

Tomorrow is another day!

dvdgeorge,

Was just wondering where the quote on your post of 11/16 came from, the one about rigor mortis and muscle shortening?

Yup, I think I read that in a book I just received.

Amazing!

Think I saw it on the innanet or summpin....grin

Gee, that wouldn't be from SLICE OF THE WILD by Eileen Clarke, one of the few game cookbooks with photos from field to table?

I think I've heard of that (and have a copy) is it the one that you can order from this link where it will be delivered in time for Christmas?

http://www.riflesandrecipes.com/ind...ry&layout=blog&id=4&Itemid=6

Just finished nothing to it

Best thing you can do to cut up your venison, after it is quartered, is use a 6" filet knife. Keep it sharp and it will save you lots of time trimming off the silver skin etc...

Long

I took 2 this morning, a nice bodied 4pt and a doe. Cut out the backstraps, tenderloins and deboned the meat on the rear and forelegs (on the big deer) on the doe I just took the back leg meat, front legs were too small to be worth the trouble. I used a filet knife to cut the meat once I had cut the hide loose with my main knife. Worked quite well. It's not as pretty as the above pic but it will still eat the same way

Don't know where you are, but in MT that would be waste of game if you disposed of the front quarters.

"front legs were too small to be worth the trouble"??? sounds like wanton waste

Why is it waste? If the deer was small, the front legs were too small to do much with considering I don't have a grinder.

If deer were a thinning species I could understand the need to get every usable part...but they're not, they're quite plentiful here, in KY, and leaving a couple of front legs isn't considered waste.

They definitely weren't worth the time to skin and debone for what, 2 lbs of meat maybe 3?

If disposing of 2 small front legs is a waste, wouldn't disposing of rib meat and neck meat also be a waste as well?

I get a reasonable amount off the neck for grinding but if someone can come up with a way too cook deer ribs that doesn't leave my lips stuck together with nasty fat I'd be happy to hear it. I've tried a bunch and now just leave them.

A gal at our bank told us their favorite part of the deer is the ribs. She said they slow cook it in the oven until the fat is cooked off and the meat gets alittle on the crunchy side. They use seasoning salt for the spice. I have not had the opportunity to try it yet.

This depends on the size of the deer guys. Down here they are smallish and have nothing but bone for ribs. You might get 1/2 cup of trim meat off of the entire ribcage. We are allowed to leave the ribs in the field.

If a deer is to small to get meat off front quarters it must be Bambi's 2 day old sibling

Do you have the foggiest idea whether or not KY has a wanton waste law? If so, what does it say?

I'm fairly certain they do not considering you don't even have to take deer to check stations anymore. It's all tele-check now done over the phone. Legally, you could shoot a deer, cut off the antlers and throw the carcass in a ditch.

I searched the current game guide for 2009 as well as across the internet and the answer was no wanton waste law.

You can buy a hand grinder at a local farm store usually for $30. A processor will often grind boned out meat for a minimal cost. There should be enough meat on the front shoulders/legs to mess with.

You're right, there is no wanton waste laws in Kentucky that I could find, other than for migratory birds.

yup, birds is all I could find too.

Grandpa taught me how to butcher out a deer when I was 12. Been doing it myself ever since.

We used to take the trim in to have it ground, and then when my wife's family was cleaning out her late grandfather's house, we found an old kitchen-aid stand mixer with a grinder attachment on the front. Everyone agreed it should go to me and the wife, since we were the only active hunters out of the family at the time. So now we do all of it ourselves, and couldn't be happier (although that decades-old mixer and grinder are getting a bit tired, so we'll likely be investing in one of the smaller-size ones from bass pro soon enough).

We usually keep the upper leg muscle whole, boning out as one giant muscle at first. Lower leg muscle, neck, brisket all become trim for the grinder. Hindquarters are boned out much the same as the forelegs, with the rump roasts set aside for the crock pot. Tenderloins and backstraps are kept whole. All fat and silverskin get trimmed before the foodsaver bags are filled and vacuum sealed.

It's always delicious...and i'm thinking a backstrap wrapped in bacon sounds like a great way to start out the week tomorrow.

Wilds, about 15 yrs ago a friend and his dad built one of those 4x4x8 "bldgs" w/ the blue foam board on the inside walls and a little window AC unit built in the side. At first, I thought 'no way, that's crazy crackhead' stuff, but dang it worked great. For as simple as it is, you can get a really good age on that meat, expecially if it is a warm December.

The lower leg muscles seemed to be wrought with what looked like long stringy tendons (is that right?)...are those parts of the leg only good for grinding?

I tried a piece of the backstrap day before yesterday. Thinly sliced it and dredged it in flour mixed with season salt, ground pepper, and a Jack Daniels BBQ season I got down in TN. Lightly fried it in bacon grease.

My god....I have never, EVER, had deer so fresh tasting as this. Every deer I have ever taken to the processor always came back with a very gamey taste...very strong. No matter if it was a youngin' or an older deer.

This backstrap tasted unlike anything I've ever had. It was quite intoxicating...and I wish I had cooked more!

Even when cutting up the meat I took home, it smelled totally different than meat back from the processor. Hell, when I was cutting the meat off the deer in the field, it was all I could do not to carve off a small piece and eat it right there, raw, in the field

Tendons, blood vessels, and connective tissue, yes. I'm sure the meat could be used for other stuff too like stews and such, but we just toss it in the grinder and make sausage.

Apparently it's working out okay, cause now anytime the smoker fires up, my neighbors are poking their heads out to see what they can come pilfer.

There is an EXCELLENT new book called "Gut it, Cut It, Cook It". It is one of the best books I have ever read on deer processing. I would highly recommend it. I have seen it at both Border's and Barnes & Noble, but you can also get it on line.

I just seen that book mentioned on bladeforums.com, one of the makers there had one of his knives pictured for that book.

I save the shanks for chili, the connective tissue produces gelatin when it cooks which gives a nice texture, and I think a fuller flavor, to the chili. I cut into thumb-sized pieces, about half shank and half trimmings/stew meat. Using all shank yields too much gelatin.

I was thinking about this post when I was cutting up 4 deer on Thursday. There are 2 in the cooler waiting for me today. At the club I belong to, I'll cut up a deer for anyone who asks. Well, I've been showing people how for 4 years now hoping they will get the idea and start cutting up their own. A few have but some folks just don't want to do it. They'd rather pay a hundred bucks to have a butcher do it. I've been told there used to be a guy at the club who charged fifty bucks and he got a lot of business. I'd have made over a thousand bucks last year! Even 20 bucks say, for beer money. It would pay for all my Christmas shopping or whatever. It's so hard to ask for money though.

Do it. They can and should pay for the service, IMHO.

I tend to agree..Doing one or two as a favor is one thing, but once it gets regular, I would charge. Plus it will encourage people to do it themselves...

Go for the beer money. Volunteer to help those who are learning, but make them do most of the work.....

It is quicker sometimes to do it youself, but once someone gets the ides, they usually don't bug you agsin

Randy

As to the original poster question, I'm convinced it's worth every penny to get the equipment to do it all yourself. A decent grinder, jerkey gun and vacuum sealer will pay for itself in short order if you take many deer. You just need an extra fridge/freezer to store some of the meat while your waiting to work with it. Just finished making 25lbs of summer sausage that turned out very good. No body elses bloodshot meat got mixed in with mine and very little silver skin, venison fat, or lymph glands get ground up when you do it yourself. My processer wants 100$ for a basic butcher job with a little breakfast sausage included along with steaks, roasts, stewmeat and cubed steak. Add summer sausage (which his is terrible..looks like a meatloaf log) or jerky to the order and cost goes up significantly.
Math: 2 deer per season- $200-minimum, x 3 years = $600 (atleast)
Do it yourself: Grinder-Cabella's 3/4 hp ($349), Cabella's jerkey blaster (large)-49$, Vacuum sealer $89, Dehydrator $49 = $536...The satisfaction of doing it yourself---"Priceless". Then you come out way ahead for years to come.

For all you using vacuum sealers--

I bought one, have used it, but not quite happy with it. It pulls the vacuum, seals, the seal is waterproof, no leaks, no sucking air. But after freezing, it seems I'm losing my seal somehow. I know to be careful, don't poke holes in, etc, but it still seems like I'm breaking the seal somehow. Any tips?

We just wrap in a saran type wrap to cover all meat, then roll up in freezer type butcher paper, making sure to get at least two layers of paper on each face of meat. Meat seems to keep just fine, and I don't have to worry about the seals/bags leaking.

All steak. This old ranch kid bones them out and cuts the meat 1/2 inch thick, no fat or grissel left on the meat..I don't hang it except maybe overnight..freeze it...Thaw in hot water until the meat bleeds out. double dip it in egg and flour and fry..Put a dollop of pico de Gallo (chile sauce) on it, Have pinto beans, white gravy, biscuits and mashed potatoes..A basic ranch meal. It just doesn't get any better....ground deer meat is akin to a road kill IMO...steak and chili meat is the only way to go and do it yourself, those damn butchers run a saw through bone and ruin the meat. Deer marrow and fat are rancid by nature.

Cheezy -- Some Vacuum Sealer bag material seems to be cheaper than others. I have used two different ones and have noticed the same problem with the cheaper one. Even the better product one will have leaks but far and few apart.--Web