#465676 - 11/06/08 01:14 AM
Aging Game Meat
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Fry
Registered: 12/09/06
Posts: 25
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I have always aged game meat (deer and elk) by putting it in a cooler for 3-7 days. In a previousl post, someone suggested not hanging it in a cooler. I have heard that this tenderizes the meat. What do you think? for deer, elk, and moose?
Joe Fishin
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#465751 - 11/06/08 12:28 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Joe Fishin]
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Smolt
Registered: 06/20/08
Posts: 90
Loc: poulsbo, wa
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Moisture control. Dont let the animal be subjected to moisture and it can hang longer. I have always liked to let my animal hang up to a week, depending on temp. As far as tenderizing, I think it definitly helps. Process it yourself, you will be way more happy with the results.
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What we need is more cow bell
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#465752 - 11/06/08 12:30 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: ]
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BUCK NASTY!!
Registered: 01/26/00
Posts: 6424
Loc: Vancouver, WA
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I've heard it go both ways.... This year I hung my elk 2 days including time it was quartered in the woods and it turned out pretty tender. My deer on another hand hung 3 days including 1.5 days at camp 35-55 degrees and the steaks are fairly tough... Another arguement is if an animal works up it's adrenaline..... My elk ran 80 yards, my buck never got out of his bed. So that theory plays out the opposite to what I have with textures in my meat.... Another friend of mine that shot a buck within 500 yards of where I killed mine, dropped it in it's tracks and hung it for 5 days in a locker, cut it up then let the meat sit in the fridge for 1 day before wrapping it. The texture is like the best fillet mignon you've ever had.. Pisses me off really!! So next year I'm going to hang it 5 days and see what happens.... Keith 
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It's time to put the red rubber nose away, clown seasons over.
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#465762 - 11/06/08 01:18 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: stlhdr1]
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Three Time Spawner
Registered: 11/01/06
Posts: 1563
Loc: Silverdale Wa
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We always hang four days before cutting and packaging. It makes a difference. I heard the longer the better but it all depends on what time of year and where you have to hang it. If it gets over 55 degrees it seems to start to spoil. in the 40s is perfect. More reason to have a basement.
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Never leave a few fish for a lot of fish son.....you just might not find a lot of fish-----Theo
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#465778 - 11/06/08 02:08 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: ]
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The Chosen One
Registered: 02/09/00
Posts: 14486
Loc: Tuleville
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Sometimes it make me feel better to soak my flaming cork in Fixed that for ya, you flaming cork soaker!
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Tule King Paker 
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#465785 - 11/06/08 02:23 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: ]
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Carcass
Registered: 09/26/06
Posts: 2312
Loc: Where ever Dogfish tells me to...
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In my limited experience it is all about the quality of the animal at the start. I have cut them up when they are still warm and also let them hang a week and had to cut them up partially frozen. Not alot of diference in the taste or quality of the meat if I started with a good animal. (Wisconsin whitetails).
The biggest difference is doing the entire process myself, from woods to the dinner table, I think that is what brings out the best taste. . . . .
Reminds me, time to pull some more tenderloin out of the freezer for dinner. . ..
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Due to a minor mishap, I now have 15# balls. . . ...
Decisions are made by those who show up.
"Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect." Ralph Waldo Emerson
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#465807 - 11/06/08 03:10 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: FishRanger]
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Repeat Spawner
Registered: 06/18/03
Posts: 1060
Loc: north sound
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Not alot of diference in the taste or quality of the meat if I started with a good animal. (Wisconsin whitetails). Best venison I ever had was a doe from Wisconsin farmland.
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#465824 - 11/06/08 04:10 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: cupo]
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Three Time Spawner
Registered: 03/08/99
Posts: 1844
Loc: Wenatchee, WA
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Also, the vinegar will wipe away the little mold spores that develop.
I try to hang for up to 10 days, but alot of times I'm going on multiple hunts, and I have to get the deer processed within a few days of the kill cause I'll be leaving again.
Another thing is I hate the hard dry crust that the meat will develop after several days. I don't like trimming it off, plus I love wild game so much I hate throwing anything away. If the situation allows (location of kill as well as weather) I will hang the animal with the skin on, even when quartering and packing out.
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..."the clock looked at me just like the devil in disguise"...
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#465868 - 11/06/08 05:55 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Sol]
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River Nutrients
Registered: 02/14/06
Posts: 2540
Loc: Elma
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I hung ducks out in the shed for 2 weeks one time in a cold stretch. They didn't taste or feel any different than if I just let them hang for my normal period of time (starting when I get home, ending when the game is over, or I woke up from a nap), but being that old freaked me out a little (I thought I might get lock jaw, or jungle gut or something).
So, I don't know if it matters for small game at all. Informative right?
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WDFW - Turning outdoorsmen into golfers since 1994.
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#465893 - 11/06/08 06:39 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Sol]
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Three Time Spawner
Registered: 03/08/99
Posts: 1844
Loc: Wenatchee, WA
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I have a hard time seeing you with a pack on your back...lol smart ass!!!!!! I bout broke in half when I packed my moose out!
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..."the clock looked at me just like the devil in disguise"...
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#465954 - 11/06/08 08:19 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: stlhdr1]
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Repeat Spawner
Registered: 02/09/07
Posts: 1422
Loc: Your monitor
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I've heard it go both ways....
+1 I shot a young doe on a hot September day a few years back and butchered it the same day. I let the wrapped meat set in the fridge for a day then froze it. That wheat fed little girl was the best tasting and tender whitetail I have ever had. I believe that each animal probably has a perfect aging time; guessing what that is, is difficult. The meat toughness issue is combination of aging and how you cook it. Meat that has been aged for X amount time may cook a little different meat aged more or less than X. So, if your acustomed to preparing a recipie the same way every time; you will have a different results with different animals. Things also to consider are the age of the animal, thickness of the meat, is it boned or not, sex, time of year...........................................................................................
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For some of us, a bad day of fishing is a bad day at work.
j7 2012
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#465993 - 11/06/08 09:44 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: j 7]
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River Nutrients
Registered: 02/14/06
Posts: 2540
Loc: Elma
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J-7 is right. Just do a Google search on: age, boning, sex, tenderizing, and meat. I'm sure you'll get results you can use.
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WDFW - Turning outdoorsmen into golfers since 1994.
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#465996 - 11/06/08 09:53 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Rocket Red]
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Repeat Spawner
Registered: 02/09/07
Posts: 1422
Loc: Your monitor
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J-7 is right. Just do a Google search on: age, boning, sex, tenderizing, and meat. I'm sure you'll get results you can use. Dont forget to turn off safe search.
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For some of us, a bad day of fishing is a bad day at work.
j7 2012
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#466171 - 11/07/08 02:28 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: j 7]
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Juvenile at Sea
Registered: 08/12/05
Posts: 210
Loc: The Boardwalk, on the way to S...
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I have had good results hanging my deer with skin on for 21 days in a 30-40 degree garage. You just have to be sure the temp never rises over 40.
And you don't want it to freeze either. I find that by hanging with skin on, I don't get that hard shell that needs to be trimmed away.
This is why I prefer late hunts in Eastern WA, and I always haul my deer to the relative's in Spokane.
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#466222 - 11/07/08 05:02 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Moe the Sleaze]
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Spawner
Registered: 09/28/01
Posts: 970
Loc: Seattle, Washington
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The only reason I hang meat is if I don't have time to butcher immediately. In the past I've hung the meat, but it hasn't been any more or less tender when I skip this step. In fact I usually just end up trimming off and wasting more meat that has dried out on the outside of the animal. I've heard because of the very low fat content of wild game hanging doesn't do much to help tenderize the meat.
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#466223 - 11/07/08 05:03 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Moe the Sleaze]
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Spawner
Registered: 01/22/07
Posts: 763
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Hang, no hang, skin on, skin off is always the unbelievable concensus. I skin them ASAP, and pay to have them hung in a meat locker. This year they wanted $25 for a deer which made my eyes pop out.
Gutz should come out ASAP. Being a rifle hunter this time period is always very short, but bow hunters on occasion have another dimension in game processing. Leave it, or eat it.
Edited by GreenRiver (11/07/08 05:07 PM)
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#466360 - 11/07/08 11:57 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: GreenRiver]
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Three Time Spawner
Registered: 03/17/05
Posts: 1799
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bow hunters on occasion have another dimension in game processing. Leave it, or eat it. Holy Cow ! What is the proper situation to decide to leave it ? Is there an official method, or ritual to perform ? What about the horns ? 
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#466382 - 11/08/08 01:39 AM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Oregonian]
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BUCK NASTY!!
Registered: 01/26/00
Posts: 6424
Loc: Vancouver, WA
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What do you mean by bowhunters shoot it and leave it? Keith 
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It's time to put the red rubber nose away, clown seasons over.
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#466395 - 11/08/08 02:38 AM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: ]
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River Nutrients
Registered: 11/26/06
Posts: 4358
Loc: South Sound
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The buck naked buck never left the claim...
I just hung it in the "meat room" in my basement, my house was built a thousand years ago, before there was electricity and has a room for hangin' meat..so that's what I did, busted the buck in half and hung it from sunday through friday..then cut the best steaks and such out of it, pressure canned the rest rather than making burger.
The weather was cold and we were getting frost at night so I would just open the door at night then close things up in the daytime...i 'spect that it hovered around 40 degrees in there, I'm sure that it tenderizes some with hangin', as you're basically just controlling the decomposition of the meat and timing it to the point where it's getting soft...but not too soft.
Ate some steaks last night and can't say that I've had any that were better.
stam
Im no expert but all the old timers I used to know did the same...Even if its just in a well-sealed shed so bugs n crows n schit dont get in. Cold dark dry place. Pheasant and a few other game birds your supposed to cure outdoors for 2-3 days though.
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#466495 - 11/08/08 04:54 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: seastrike]
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Spawner
Registered: 04/10/99
Posts: 913
Loc: Tenino, wa U.S.A.
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Hanging wild game for long periods is a waste of time. It don't have the fat like Beef so won't work the same. We just hang it and cut it up ASAP. Sometimes it's over 1 week and other times it is the next day. Beef we allways hang for 21 days. As long as it's cool outside you won't have a problem. Elk have gotta be skinned as soon as possible no matter how cold it is outside or the meat will spoil next to the bone.
I like to get my deer skinned before they cool off to much as is is much easyer to pull off.
Tenderness and flavor will vary from animal to animal with age and diet. Hanging has the least to do with it. Unless you hang it out in the summer. If it gets mold growing on it it's O.K. that is what the vinager is for. just wipe it down and eat it.
Kris
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#466533 - 11/08/08 10:57 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Rocket Red]
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Spawner
Registered: 12/16/07
Posts: 891
Loc: It's funny to me!
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This year I shot my deer and only hung it for about a day and half. Cut it and had it in the fridge for another two. My cousin shot his and hung it in camp for almost a week. And then striaght to cutting and freezer. His deer was way more tender than mine. And alot less gamey too.
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Boise State- National title, here we come!
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#466573 - 11/09/08 11:08 AM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: dcrzfitter]
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Spawner
Registered: 06/24/01
Posts: 698
Loc: Toledo Wa
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Hanging wild game for long periods is a waste of time. It don't have the fat like Beef so won't work the same. We just hang it and cut it up ASAP. Sometimes it's over 1 week and other times it is the next day. Beef we allways hang for 21 days. As long as it's cool outside you won't have a problem. Elk have gotta be skinned as soon as possible no matter how cold it is outside or the meat will spoil next to the bone.
I like to get my deer skinned before they cool off to much as is is much easyer to pull off.
Tenderness and flavor will vary from animal to animal with age and diet. Hanging has the least to do with it. Unless you hang it out in the summer. If it gets mold growing on it it's O.K. that is what the vinager is for. just wipe it down and eat it.
My wifes family has been in the met cutting business a long time.They say hanging an elk over 24 hours is a wate of time.Its all got to do with the fat.
Kris
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#466735 - 11/10/08 10:20 AM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: ]
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Spawner
Registered: 01/22/07
Posts: 763
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.... but bow hunters on occasion have another dimension in game processing. Leave it, or eat it. .....meaning that you may not find the animal for a while?...overnight/next day? Then trying to salvage the meat of an overheated bloated animal...? +more above Yea that. I've read on various boards where a bow hunter shoots an animal in the evening and then finds it 2,3,4,5,6,7 hours later or even the next morning, and still salvages some of the meat.
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Killin's my business and business is good.
Most people suck at internet........
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#467276 - 11/12/08 01:55 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: ]
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Hey Man....It's cool...
Registered: 08/18/02
Posts: 4323
Loc: seattle
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...if I can get a deer is right. I haven't had the motivation this year. I should probably give it a go. I've gotten a deer for something like 15 years in a row now. I skipped ID this year and just don't have the drive to find new spots this year....though I did try to find that big 3 pt Vedder saw up in the mushroom grounds. Buddy called me this morning and had a 4 pt in his yard all rutted out. He's got a draw tag that opens tomorrow and includes his yard....  Thanks for the info on the canned meat. I will give it a try the next time I put one on the ground. And thanks for the zzzzzziiiiiing.
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#467316 - 11/12/08 03:42 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: seastrike]
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Carcass
Registered: 09/26/06
Posts: 2312
Loc: Where ever Dogfish tells me to...
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Better get ur ass out there tommorrow if you want to get one . .. . . . tic toc tic toc. . . .
_________________________
Due to a minor mishap, I now have 15# balls. . . ...
Decisions are made by those who show up.
"Shallow men believe in luck. Strong men believe in cause and effect." Ralph Waldo Emerson
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#467638 - 11/13/08 02:45 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: ]
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Juvenile at Sea
Registered: 01/05/08
Posts: 125
Loc: Puyallup, WA
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..not sure about that, but...
Sometimes it make me feel better to soak my meat in cider....(insert drumroll...)
bad joke
stam What brand of cider was used? Could it have been Dicken's? Because I have some extra cider from Halloween. These cold nights lots of women love a Dicken's cider.
Edited by TheHunt (11/13/08 05:53 PM)
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#467644 - 11/13/08 03:16 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Joe Fishin]
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bankwalker
Unregistered
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we hung my deer for 8 days. and its the best tasting deer we have had in a long long time. usually we only hang them for 4 or 5 days depending on weather.
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#467803 - 11/14/08 12:27 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: TheHunt]
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BUCK NASTY!!
Registered: 01/26/00
Posts: 6424
Loc: Vancouver, WA
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..not sure about that, but...
Sometimes it make me feel better to soak my meat in cider....(insert drumroll...)
bad joke
stam What brand of cider was used? Could it have been Dicken's? Because I have some extra cider from Halloween. These cold nights lots of women love a Dicken's cider. Good one........ Keith
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It's time to put the red rubber nose away, clown seasons over.
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#468282 - 11/17/08 06:35 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: stlhdr1]
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Spawner
Registered: 09/28/01
Posts: 970
Loc: Seattle, Washington
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I shot a small forked horn this weekend and had tenderloins a few short hours after taking him down. I was surprised how tough the meat was. I'm going to let the rest of the meat sit in the fridge for a week and see if there is a noticeable difference in the tenderness.
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#468426 - 11/18/08 12:38 PM
Re: Aging Game Meat
[Re: Little Fish]
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Spawner
Registered: 01/22/07
Posts: 763
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I have found the tenderloin is not that tender on deer. The strands that run through this piece of meat are much thicker than what makes up the backstrap. These strands remind me of what you would find on beef flank steak. Thick.
Cut thin across the grain, or half inch thick and butterfly and fry.
Fried up some thin rump steaks last night. A little bit tough, but it's all about the flavor.
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