January 18, 2007

Bad Tasting Venison

Below is a great comment and question I received from Troy in Indiana.

Troy talks about how his ground venison tastes bad. Read Troy's comment then look below for my solutions to solve this issue.

Wow, this was a great one (newsletter) Marty. Shot my first deer this season, and had actually been wondering on this exact subject since I'm a 3rd generation Rib bbq'r and lover (beef & pork). My family (wife-4 kids) and I have been enjoying the steaks and stew's and chili with the roast meat. Next year though, not having ANY ground. That's all I have left is pounds and pounds of not very good tasting burger. I've been thinking about buying a jerky gun and using the wrest of the ground for jerky sticks. I wonder if it’s for the same reason, the processor didn't clean it properly and just threw fat and all in when grinding?

Troy
Native Californian now happily in Crawfordsville, IN and loving it.

Troy,

Congratulations on harvesting your first deer. If you would like to share your hunting story and a photo of your deer, send it to me. I will place it on the Free-Deer-Hunting-Tips.com Blog.

I am glad you found the tip on venison ribs helpful. In my experience I have found barbequed venison ribs can turn off even the most die-hard barbeque lovers.

I am sorry to hear your ground venison does not taste good.

Here are three common causes of bad tasting ground venison…or venison that just doesn’t excite your spouse and kids.

I have not met a kid yet (barring a committed vegetarian) who doesn’t finish off a plate of ground venison when it is processed correctly. This includes even the pickiest of eaters. Often ground venison is the only meat parents could get them to eat.

I’ve processed over 7,807 deer, so I helped parents feed a lot of kids.

Hopefully these three deer processing tips will help you and your family.

I would be delighted to see your family really love the ground venison you provide for them. As a fellow deer hunter, I know and understand what it takes to provide good, natural food for loved ones.

Three Reasons Your Deer Meat Tastes Bad…And Two Great Solutions

Deer Meat Reason #1

When a deer is processed properly, with all the deer fat, bruised meat, glands, tendons and gristle removed, ground venison tastes great. (Yes, even from “swamp bucks.” If you don’t believe me, read on…)

If a deer processor did not remove venison fat, bruised meat, glands, tendons and gristle from your venison trimmings before the meat was ground, this will definitely produce bad tasting venison burger.

If the deer was cut bone-in, the fine bone-dust and bone marrow will be spread across the meat. This is tedious and time-consuming to remove. If bone-dust and bone marrow are left on the meat and it is ground, your ground venison will taste bad.

Meat from big bucks and swamp bucks must be very well cleaned. The actual meat tastes decent. This year I harvested a big swamp buck and it tasted better than doe meat. Here’s the secret.

The wild or swampy taste is in the bone marrow, fat, bruises from the harvest, glands, tendons and gristle.

Trimming all this excess from your deer meat takes more time. Very few processors take the extra time to remove it all before the meat is ground, because time is money in a meat shop.

You may consider processing your own deer. Many people are doing this, because they want their venison to taste better. They want to avoid the very real and common problem of a freezer full of pounds and pounds of not very good tasting venison burger. In just a few minutes, I’ll talk more about making this a viable option.

Dear Meat Reason #2

Your deer might taste bad because, at the meat shop, your meat may have been put in the grinder with deer meat from those who did not take care of their deer like you did. Very few meat shops keep the deer trimmings separate.

Most meat shops have big mixer/grinders that can grind and mix 300 pounds of meat and more per batch.

Again, in most meat shops, time is money. So they can really save time by mixing 20 people’s venison at once rather than doing 20 separate batches.

Deer Meat Reason #3

And, even if they did keep your meat separate, your meat would have been ground with a grinder that was used all day.

So if the meat before yours was bad, remnants of that bad meat could have still been in the grinder when yours was put in. Bacteria could have been ground into your good meat and may explain why it now tastes bad.

Two Great Solutions

Great Tasting Venison Solution #1

If you want someone else to process your next deer, have the processor NOT grind your trimmings. Have them package your trimmings and give them back to you.

When you get your deer meat home take a look at how clean the trimmings are.

Remove as much of the fat, bruised meat, glands, tendons and gristle as you can. Keep cleaning until the venison trimmings are clean like beef stew meat.

Once the meat is trimmed correctly then grind some into burger. You can use a food processor or pick up a home grinder. The burger will taste great.

Great Tasting Venison Solution #2

If you want to make sure your venison always tastes great, and your venison is from your deer then learn to process your own deer. The reason I learned to process my own deer is because, years ago, I had a problem with the taste of my first deer like you are having with yours.

Since then, I’ve processed over 7,807 deer producing great tasting meat and burger, been to outdoor stores to give “How to Process Your Deer” seminars and have taught many, many people how to process deer successfully, mostly non-meatcutters.

There is just something so rewarding about processing your own deer.

Now, I used to make my living processing thousands of deer for deer hunters. If you choose to continue to have someone else process your deer, I totally understand. Just make sure to see solution #1 above.

Plus, processing your own deer is not for everyone. It’s really for those who want the experience and pride of providing for their families with their own abilities from field to table.

It is also for the people who want to make sure their deer stays their deer. After all, you have spent money to go deer hunting.

When your family can’t or doesn’t want to eat what you have brought home, it produces a “this wasn’t such a good idea” feeling in the pit of the stomach. I hate that feeling. It verges on feeling like a “loser.”

I really like for my family to be happy with what I am able to do for them. So the extra hour or two I invest to process my own deer is totally rewarding when I see the smiling faces of even the pickiest eaters in my family as they ask for second helpings.

And because of this, my wife tells me to go deer hunting. It’s actually on my “Honey Do List.” She even helps juggle our family schedule, so I can go deer hunting more. You’ve got to love that. It’s totally worth it.

I am just finishing up a really affordable “How to Process Your Own Deer” training program, which includes videos and support. I take you by the hand and walk you through step-by-step.

I’ll keep you updated on the “How to Process Your Own Deer” training program as it becomes available, because it could be a great option for you.

Let’s Talk Deer Jerky

You mentioned buying a jerky gun. I think jerky guns are great tools. There are quite a few different brands out there today. I have tested many different kinds.

The one I use is a more heavy-duty model. The cylinder is made of heavy gauge aluminum and holds 1½ pounds of seasoned meat. It has different attachments that allow me to make a single jerky strip, a double jerky strip, a single snack stick or a double snack stick.

The better jerky gun kits will also have cleaning brushes included. These brushes are essential to make sure you are able to clean your jerky gun properly.

Keep one thing in mind when you go to make jerky from your current ground venison. Although you will be able to mask the taste of the burger by adding seasonings, you may not totally get rid of the bad taste of your burger completely. The reason being the venison fat and other things are already mixed into the burger.

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop

Posted by Marty Prokop | Questions and Comments (1)

January 2, 2007

Aging a Deer

I have seen some hunters try to age a deer in their garages at home. I do not suggest deer hunters try to age a deer this way. A garage does not have the proper temperature or humidity control needed to age a deer safely. Bacteria could grow rapidly, causing the deer meat to spoil. Or if the garage is too cold, the deer could freeze.

Without proper humidity while hanging, the meat will dry out quickly creating a jerky-like surface. This dried out meat must be cut away and discarded. It will not reconstitute. This leaves the deer hunter with less meat to put into the freezer.

In a prior post, William talked about the importance of learning to skin a deer carefully. I agree the tarsal glands, if extremely wet, could drip down onto the deer rounds or steak meat and produce bad taste in the meat.

It is also important to field dress a deer properly. Take special care to leave the bladder, stomach and intestines intact.

If the bladder is punctured during the field dressing process, urine will run directly into the steak meat and soak into the tenderloins.

If the stomach or intestines are punctured, the contents of either will come in contact with the rounds, tenderloins and, of course, the rib meat.

The solids, like undigested food, can be wiped away. But the liquids, such as urine and stomach acids, will soak into the meat. Once these liquids have soaked in, it is impossible to get them out. I recommend throwing away any meat that comes in contact with urine or stomach acids, but I have known people who eat it for reasons I can’t explain.

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop
www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com

Posted by Marty Prokop | Questions and Comments (0)

November 1, 2006

More Information On How to Field Dress a Deer Wanted

Mike Q. semt me an email asking about More Information:

Hello Marty, My name is Mike Quinn. The deer season closed this past weekend. I really enjoyed the hunting. I looked up your site because the person that process our deer was not going that week, so I hoped to get some useful info on how to butcher our deer. I was all over your site, I read the 9 points and I`ll say what the .... Did I miss something here. Great kit info but ya know no meat and potatoes. Ya Know What I Mean sir!! Please tell me where I went wrong. Sincerely, Mike Q

Mike,

Thanks for your email.

No you did not miss anything. Actually the Free Deer Hunting Tips come out weekly. You had read about Feild Dressing a Deer, last week's topic. Believe it or not I get asked about the proper way to Field Dress a Deer quite often. This is why that topic was posted for this past week.

How to butcher a Deer will be in one of our upcoming weekly newsletters. I am also putting together a video on How to Butcher a Deer as well. On this video I take hunters step by step on how to process their deer. I have used these techniques to train hundreds of hunters how to cut their venison into pieces similar to that of beef and pork. I also show you how all of this can be done with just two knives..no saw needed. I cover the proper way trim your venison which will create the best tasting deer meat you have had. I cover proper wrapping and storage as well as basic grinding and sausage making. This video will be available in a short while.

There are quite a few steps involved and to answer your question, I need to know what your current skill level is to help you best. What specific questions do you have about cutting your own deer? Would you like to start at the beginning with skinning?

Feel free to email me what you would like to know specifically and I will be glad to answer those questions for you.

Thanks again for the email.

Marty
www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com

Posted by Marty Prokop | Questions and Comments (0)

October 25, 2006

Remove Wind Pipe when Field Dressing a Deer?

I received the following question from "Nikky"

Nikky asks

"we've come to a question that i havent found an answer to yet i have got a field dressing and deboning video and they leave the wind pipe in all the way through the deboning process, but i have several friends that say that ruins the meat and needs to be removed when field dressing. can you please help with this as i'm not sure which way is right. thankyou for your help"

Nikky,

Thanks for your great question.

I have been processing wild game for over 24 years and have seen a lot of venison wasted because of improper field dressing.

Your friends are correct. Leaving the windpipe in could cause the meat in the neck to spoil quicker. This is especially true in warmer weather.

The only time to leave the windpipe intact during field dressing is when you have harvested a trophy buck and you plan to take it to a taxidermist.

For a trophy buck, you will not cut through the ribcage during field dressing. Rather you will stop where the ribcage begins and carefully reach up into the chest cavity as far as you can with one hand and pull on the windpipe. Then, very carefully with the knife in your other hand, cut as much of the windpipe out as you can.

You will want to cape the deer yourself or have the taxidermist do it for you. Have the caping done as soon as possible.

As soon as the cape has been removed and your deer is hanging, then cut through the ribcage and down the deer's neck to expose the windpipe.

Once the chest cavity is open, wipe the inside of the cavity with damp clean towels. Follow up with dry paper towels to insure all excess liquid is removed.

Place a small block of clean wood in the ribcage to open the chest cavity to allow air to cool the inside of the deer.

By field dressing a deer properly, you allow the body heat to escape quickly. This allows the meat to cool much quicker and reduce the chance of spoilage.

Marty Prokop
www.free-deer-hunitng-tips.com

Posted by Marty Prokop | Questions and Comments (4)