Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Freezer burn?

If wrapping tightly and not having a frost free freezer you can be fine for a long time. I hate frost free freezers.

Even with vac seal a frost free freezer will eventually ruin the meat due to its constant freeze thaw cycles. Its less likely, and takes longer than wrapped meat but it will kill it.

As long as non frost free freezers are available I'll buy them only.

I don't know the technology about it,but I have use the Reynolds freezer paper for +40 yars and my parents used it when I was young. Can't say I ever experienced freezer burn.
I don't use anyhing special but have always used what is clled the butcher wrap , which is putting themeat at the corner of the paper and wrapping diagaonally.

I have never had frost free freezer though

Frost free also tore up my capes quicker than normal when I was still full time taxidermy! Of course they were not wrapped or vac sealed.

I married a Yankee that never hunted, fished, or saw wild game being processed. I use a vacuum sealer & she helps grind & package. I am frequently reminded that she missed the vow about Get Gory when we were married 40 years ago.

saddlesore,

That's exactly how I learned to do it many years ago, and have never had any problem with freezer burn. We must have gone to the same freezing school!

The processor we have used for years couldn't take my hogs from this past week, so I scrambled for an option. Found another that is open year round, makes their own sausage and has their own smokehouse on site. I was impressed....they don't vacuum pack, they wrap in freezer paper. I'll have a fair comparison soon.

We double wrap in butcher paper...I just gave away the last of a 3 year Bison and it was good..I think it is best to eat all your game within 18 months however, as in our case its a never ending replacement and I just don't hunt until its used up these days. We probably eat 3 or 4 deer a year but that is being eaten by my daughters family also..Just myself and my wife would be hard pressed to eat 2 deer a year these days..My family actually prefers deer to elk or any other wild meat.

John,
I buy my freezer wrap and plastic wrap from a nearby shop that also supplies resturants in the area. Seems like last year I paid approx 30.00 for a roll of plastic wrap 20" wide about 6" dia. Also about the same for a equal amount of freezer paper.
I double wrap everything,Plastic and paper and after three years it is good as new. Also the wide wrapping gives good coverage and easy tight wrapping.
My wife at the urgeing of a friend bought me a vacuum sealer and I have to say the jury is still out on it. The bags are much more costly than the bulk wrap and I have seen some burn with it. In fairness to the sealer I saw some of the meat that I raise on a meatsaw and any sharp bone may punchure the bags where double wraping may insure no air.
I butcher 2 hogs, 4-6 sheep, and 2-5 deer a year for the last 20 years so have opinons on what works.
If you aren't buying paper from a commercial source you are paying too much for a smaller sized paper/wrap.

Ed

I've spent my life in the restaurant business and am very familiar with the causes and prevention of freezer burn:

Primary Causes: Air penetration and temperature fluctuations

What is it: Water molecules working their way to the surface and freezing. As the water molecules work their way out and freeze, it "dries" the meat, makes it tough, burns the surface, and hence makes it taste like crap.

Prevention:

1. Get as much air out of the packaging as possible. Multiple layers of wrap is far less important than the quality of the first layer. Again, the primary objective is eliminating air from the packaging and/or preventing air from entering the package.

2. Minimize temperature fluctuations in the freezer. The biggest culprit is the defrost cycle. Occasionally "Manually" defrost your freezer. Automatic defrost cycles happen too often, and hence, causes frequent temperature fluctuations. This is a much bigger culprit than occasionally opening the door to get something out (much less an issue than in restuarants where the walk-in door is openend repeatedely throughout the day). Defrost only when you have to and take the unit off of the auto mode if possible.

3. Ensure adequate air flow in your freezer. If you use a chest freezer like I do, put a small rack on the bottom so that meats are not on the bottom of the freezer. Allow air flow around the entire cabinet (bottom, sides, and top). The more air flow you have, the more consistent the temperature will remain.

Hope this helps!

I was waiting to see if one person was going to describe the method of wrapping I've been using for years..........

I've wrapped it all with that method, less fish, and never had a problem once, with meat lasting as much as 5 years.

I'm itching to get another vac system, since the ex made off with the last one, but it was kind of on the slow side.... Excellent for fish though.

I spent the better part of my youth digging in a chest freezer and swore I'd never own one of my own. So far I've managed to adhere to that rule and don't see it changing anytime soon................grin.

Yep, we do the "corner" wrap as well, but we have ALWAYS used cling wrap under the butcher paper. We get the bulk rolls from Sam's Club. We've had deer in the freezer for several years that will get buried occasionally and we'll get it out and it's just fine. I've never NOT used cling wrap.

I've lost meat from saran wrapped meat, vaccuum sealed meat, and paper wrapped meat. I have to agree it's all in the seal. The worst I ever had was from my 2005 AR buck I shot. I was visiting my mom for Thanksgiving, and got to hunt on my cousin's farm where I shot a nice little 8 point. I took the meat to the local butcher shop in town, and over paid them. I ended up paying them $97 for the deer to be processed and wrapped. Three months later, I PCS'ed from MT to MS. I stopped at my mom's to pick up some of the meat, only to find over half of it freezer burned. This was only three months after it was picked up and supposidly
"professionally processed".

Growing up, my dad always processed our meat when we shot a deer. He always wrapped it up in freezer paper. I can recall some meat getting freezer burn, but it was usually a package we forgot about and found 2 years later.

Same way we wrap meat. I figure the plastic makes the seal and the freezer paper is mostly to protect the plastic from holes and tears.

While doing a chest freezer clean out this fall I found some wayward deer steaks from 2001! I figured that I would chop them up and feed it to the dogs. Half the steaks were from a mule deer that was wrapped in plastic plus butcher paper. The other half were from a whitetail wrapped in just butcher paper. I was amazed at the condition of the mule deer steaks. I thought about eating them myself. Hardly any signs of freezer burn at all. The whitetail steaks were pretty much completely covered with freezer burn. I'd of had to be pretty hungry to even think about eating them, although the dogs didn't seem to mind. It convinced me that plastic is pretty cheap insurance against freezer burn.

I had a very disappointing experience last year. I shot a bull in January in CO, quartered it, cooled it (not hard!), and took it home in a cooler in four big pieces plus two, long thick backstraps.

I was going to be very busy the next four days so brought it to a local butcher shop to have the quarters processed in the cuts and burger we wanted. But the backstraps were going home with me.

I cut them in about four lb. chunks, wrapped then tight in wax paper and double wrapped in regular butcher paper. They then went in our upright freezer in our garage. Not one escaped freezer burn, bad freezer burn, and within months. Each piece had to have the burned meat carved off of it before we could use it. I've not experienced this before and don't quite know what went wrong. The freezer was gone into only once or twice a week. I've gone this route with elk, deer, pheasants, etc. for years and at most have had small spots of freezer burn after a year and a half.

What went wrong?

My son and I both use a vacuum sealer. I just bought one to replace the last. From now on I'll only buy one with a separate "seal only" capability. The new one has it and I find it much better if you make bags from a roll.

My friend has prepared and packaged meat for many years and has just retired from commercial work. Each piece is vaccum packed and wrapped in freezer paper. According to Ken, this maximizes the probability that the piece will be in best condition and free from burn. I do not know of any piece so treated that burned within a three year period. Bones were not removed, other than for burger meat.

deer and elk are vacuum packed. i've found some 4-5 years old and it was still great. fish fillets i place in a zip bag filled with water - squeeze out the air. squirrels and duck breasts also in water filled zip bag. shrimp treated just like fish.

Long time reader, but hardly ever poster.
Figgered' I'd add my two cents

Lots of good advice on wrapping and packaging has been already posted but I'll add a couple of ideas worthy of consideration.

1. No matter what method you use for wrapping, it will make a difference in the quality of frozen meat, with regards to how fast it freezes. IE: Flash Freezing. The quicker a piece of meat or fish freezes the better. It helps to prevent the formation of ice crystals in the meat which wiil degrade the end product once it is thawed. All of the juice that you see when thawing something is caused by the formation of ice crystals bursting the cells of tissues. Busted cells = juice = dryer meat/fish. Fish is far more susceptible to degrading from slow freezing and the formation of ice crystals than meat is. The whole revolution in store bought frozen foods was founded on this principle (flash freezing) by Birdseye. Idealy, meat/fish should be as cold as possible before puuting it into the freezer. Put it in the fridge or an ice chest, whatever to get it as near as possible to 32 degrees before starting to freeze it. Then place it in a single layer and allow as much airspace as posible to help freeze it fast as posible. An upright freezer with racks works really good for this. Idealy, it should get rock hard in two to three hours.

2. Store your frozen meat in cardboard boxes or plastic tubs in the freezer. By separting and organizing what you have it makes it easier to find and prevents the packages from being tossed around and then tearing or busting the airtight seal. Vacuum bags bust fairly easy, butcher paper - not so much. Non-frost-free chest freezers are best for long term storage but, if you only have an upright or frost-free freezer, putting your items in a tightly packed carboard box will prevent freezer burn from the freeze/thaw cycles.

I've been a hunter and fisherman all of my life and have at one time or another have tried just about every method of packing and freezing you can imagine. What's worked best for me is:

For meat: Either wrapped in plastic wrap and then butcher paper, double wrapped in butcher paper, or vacuum packed. Any of these methods will work if you do it right.

For fish: Vacuum packed and flash frozen is the absolute best. Like JB said, freezing your fish first then vacuum packing avoids the issues with water and sealing. If you dry your fish with lots of paper towels and use a long enough bag this will also avoid the moisture/sealing problem and will allow a slightly tighter vacuum pack. Both methods work.

For birds: Ziploc bags or milk cartons or plastic containers and fill with water to seal out any air.

The key in any of these methods is getting all of the air away from the surface of whatever you freezing and keeping it away. Freezer burn is essentially oxidation just like rust on steel. Keep the oxygen away from it and freezer burn is eliminated. PACK IT TIGHT AND SEAL IT.

I realize if your butchering an elk or moose it's very difficult to have enough room to freeze it in a single layer. Sometimes I pack, wrap, freeze in stages to try and not dump everything in the freezer at one time. With deer and fish it's a little more practical. Flash freezing does make a difference so if possible give it a try.

My two cents and a little food for thought.

You shouldn't wait so long between posts. That's alot of good info you've shared.