Leadtag- my opinion is that aging isn't required, and I honestly only have this year's experience as an indicator. My method this year resulted in a tasty elk. He hung for 10 days at 50°F. I have also eaten elk that was processed the day of the kill, and it was just as good. It may depend on the animal (old, adrenaline soaked, in the rut, etc)

If conditions permit (which they rarely do in the desert), I like to hang game animals for 2-3 days. I see no reason to age longer than that. At a minimum, it's nice to hang them for about 24 hours. That allows rigor mortis to set in, then relax, ensuring the muscle fibers are stretched and loose. This provides a much more tender cut of meat, as the muscle fibers don't contract when cut away from bone, tendons, etc. If hanging isn't an option, I try to get them quartered and on ice to serve the same purpose. Sometimes though, like when you have to debone to pack out, this isn't possible.

I've been butchering and processing my own meat all my life. Three times I took meat to a wild game processor. Once it wasn't fit to eat. Once I was able to choke half of it down threw the rest away, and once it was excellent.

I'm all done with that and am spending a pretty good sum this year at Cabela's with all new stainless motor driven equipment.

It should be a lot more fun and faster now but I never once, ever thought it wasn't worth it.

Cabela's Meat Processing Equipment

$bob$

From the USDA - meat spoils above 40F, as far as tenderizing freezing is the equivalent of 5 days aging, aging should be done in a proper butcher's cooler 34-38F . Hanging in the garage - hide becomes spoiled [ rancid] and that penetrates the meat, meat picks up wonderful flavors from gasolene and oil .That's the "strong gamey" flavor. Mine is always dressed immediately ,brought home ,hung ,skinned ,cooled, butchered , and in the freezer within 12 hours of being shot !!

If time will permit I will always age my game animals. I like to skin and quarter ASAP. Into a cotton game bag, into the refrigerator @ approx 35 degrees for a week. I will rotate the meat and change game bags once during the aging. I would love to have a walk-in cooler so I could hang everything, and store more meat.

I normally grind everything ASAP as ground does not need to be aged.

If not close to home, eveything goes into an ice filled cooler.

I like to have mine on ice ASAP and certainly within a couple of hours. Most of my deer hunting is in sunny and warm Georgia. Often late morning temps are in the 80's. I want that meat cool as soon as the quarters can be carried out and in there with the Budweiser. I age mine on ice, draining off the bloody water every few days, for at least a week maybe more. I try to get around to working it up before 2 weeks pass. It tastes pretty good. I have to say that water doesn't seem to hurt it as long as the water is ice cold. Good hunting. "D"

quote:

Anyone got a good venison sausage recipe that they would care to share.

Swede

Italian Venison Sausages, one of 301 Venison Recipes

2# venison, ground
1# fresh lean pork
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons black pepper
1\2 teaspoon oregano leaves
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 1\2 cups white wine
4 ounces sausage casings

Mix ingredients, blend well. Stuff venison sausage into casings 1" thick and twist into 6" links. Fry in olive oil. Enjoy!

Butchering comes natural when you're raised on a farm. Cooking is a whole other story. Most of the old-timers recipes have imprecise measurements. Seemed every batch came out different. So some years ago I found a very good cookbook:

301 Venison Recipes by folks at Deer & Deer hunting magazine. They run the gamut from super simple to, at least for me, quite complex. Check it out if you need more ways to prepare your hunting bounty.

If you do age your meat it should be only a couple degrees above freezing. Someone mentioned 10 days at 50 degrees???? Yikes. While it ages the moisture evaoprates from the meat thereby "concentrating" the flavour a bit...it might actually increase the gaminess. The natural enzymes break down the meat making it more tender. One choice it to promptly strip and freeze the cuts that you will be grinding, making jerky etc out of. The pieces you will use for roasts and steak can be aged in a refrigerator for a while. If aging in the fridge be aware that it is a lot more moist than a meat locker and will promote mold and spoilage. Don't wrap in plastic if you can help it.

People dont realize that store bought meat is never aged nowdays unless it's from a quality butcher shop. It goes into the cryovac bag and onto the shelf within a couple days. The butcher might cut the steaks or roasts at the local Safeway etc.--the only aging is on the shelf.

the chef

I used to manage a meat department years ago. We handled whole beef from local ranches & from commercial feed-lots. I learned the trade from a small shop where we also did wild game. 15 years in the business, here are my observations:

1) There are few things more critical to taste that keeping the meat clean (of dirt, hair, excess blood or body fluids, etc) and getting it COLD as quick as possible after the kill. I wash my game off w/ water & vinegar, dry it, bag it and get it in a locker between 34-38 degrees as quickly as possible.

2) After that time (providing the caracas is washed, clean & all bloodshot & hair removed) hanging doesn't change the flavor of the meat. What the animal has been eating, his general health (gaining or losing weight) and horomonal issues (rut), have decide the flavor before you shot it.

3) However, hanging at that cold temperature does allow the meat to begin to break down, regardless of what some writer things. I have tested it my eating one white tail hind 1/4 2 days aver it was killed and the other 7 days after. It does make the meat more tender. How much more? Depends on a host of variables surrounding the condition of the animal.

Assuming that the animal is in the cold locker at said temperature w/in 4 to 6 hours after the kill, without being exposed in the interim to undue heat, 5 to 10 days is what I prefer depending on the size of the animal. I've done 14 days on elk, but couldn't see a measurable difference.