Posted: 1/4/2012 10:38:47 PM EDT
| Do y'all process your own meat? I have been taking my deer to a local shop to have it done and its pretty expensive. I was wondering what kind of equipment you use, and any books or DVD instructional videos on meat processing? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Good hunting. |
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I usually do my own, but got lazy this year...and...well..last year too. If your gonna do your own, get one of these:  (you could also use a good sturdy wood handle for a gambrel, instead of buying one) Then a deer processing kit, like so  (you don't really need it...a good skinning knife will do) Then one of these to burn the hair off the carcass after skinning it,  As far as instructions, there are videos on YouTube. If you have any deer hunting friends, I would see if any of them have done it, and see if they can show you how. |
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Quoted:
I usually do my own, but got lazy this year...and...well..last year too. If your gonna do your own, get one of these: http://images1.americanlisted.com/nlarge/never_used_deer_gambrel_pully_and_rope_set_25_burlington_iowa_8569801.jpg (you could also use a good sturdy wood handle for a gambrel, instead of buying one) Then a deer processing kit, like so http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/511htF-meqL._SL500_AA300_.jpg (you don't really need it...a good skinning knife will do) Then one of these to burn the hair off the carcass after skinning it, http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploads18/ul1001297297967.jpg As far as instructions, there are videos on YouTube. If you have any deer hunting friends, I would see if any of them have done it, and see if they can show you how. Thanks for the info. 
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| I've done the last six myself. I like it a lot better than having it done. Doing it myself I am sure that i'm getting my own meat back, and I know exactly how it was handled. I use a tree branch and ratchet straps to hang and butcher them, I bought a cheap butchering set from bass pro, it's working out just fine. |
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I've been doing my own for about 25 years, I use a hack saw, skinning knife, small meat grinder and a roll of butchers paper. If you can hang it up that's great, for a few years when I lived in an apartment I did all my butchering on a folding table in the living room with some plastic on the floor to keep the carpet clean. It really doesn't take much, a knife , a saw, something to put the cut up meat in.
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Some tips:
Use good quality knives, nothing sucks like having dull knives or having to sharpen then frequently. This also means using wooden or soft plastic cutting boards. The work is easier if the meat is nearly frozen. Warm, squishy meat is a pain in the ass to cut up. Borrow or rent (?) a good meat slicer. BE CAREFUL with it, but it does make things go much faster on large critters. I don't think I'd ever do my own moose again without a slicer. Have an experienced friend work with you so you can learn the ins and outs. It is a real pain in the ass to figure out as you go and you can really screw up the meat. Evacuate any cats or other critters you may have running around. Just trust me on this. |
Over the years, I have kept buying more and more stuff for meat processing. I have moved up in the world and mounted an electric winch in my shop with a game gambrel on it. You also need a good knife or 6. Also, for some reason, I am addicted to LEM products. I have one of their meat grinders, slicers, and dehydrators. You also need some good freezer paper and wild game bags for your ground meat. You don't need all this stuff, but damn it makes it nice and easy 
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Good tips here so far. I was going to pay someone to do mine this year bas I'm traditionally busier than a cat covering shit on ice but I ended up shooting a doe and lost it in the pouring rain and didn't find it unti the next morning so I did it myself to do it immediately. (It was cool over night but not really cold cold)
I work in the garage that is ambient temp and I normally don't bother to kill a deer until it's circa freezing out. I like to hang mine 5-10 days if the weather permits, You rid yourself of excess moisture and the meat tenderizes a bit naturally. If it's not cold enough don't do this as it'll turn on you. My tools; -for hanging, I'm currently getto, I use two ratchet straps off the garage rafters as my gambrel seems to have walked. (I use my ATV winch to do the majority of the lift) -back cut saw or wood saw for remving the legs at the joint - for skinning I use a hunting knife with a good round blade belly and I need a stone or crockstick near by as it dulls easily on hide -for most of the cutting I'm using a fiskars 7" or 9" fillet knife that has it's own sharpener crock in the sheath and I touch it up constantly -for in the house deboning of the legs I use a 7" kitchen deboning knife -for steaking cuts I go right back to the fillet knife as it's already out but no reason you can't use a long chef's knife -I hang mine hind feet up, saw off legs at joints. skin it down to the base of the neck and saw the head off, save the hide for a friend normally, if you're smart you'll cut and pull the skin/hair away from where you will be sawing. A saw will generate a lot of loose hair to foul your meat up. Sometimes I don't bother on the forelegs as they're low down anyhow and the hair will drop away. -remove tallow from neck, back, and rump, remove hairs that inadvertently get stuck to meat -removing the hide and tallow is much easier when the deer his still hot/warm. - trim up the messed up bits and flank steak and bacon zone (yeah there's no deer bacon but the abdomen muscles) - remove the tenderloins from the inside before you screw them up somehow (learned from experience) - this is where I usually stop if the weather lets me hang for 5-10 days - cut off the fore shoulders and set aside on clean butchers paper - cut out backstraps, then neck meat, debone around your neck if you want a nice neck rolled roast, tie up with string. I normally just hack it off and dice for stew meat - while things are still hanging well, cut off all your edible scraps that you like the look of for hamburger. - now is when I cut the hind quarters off the pelvis, look up some videos on line on where you should be cutting to reach down to the joint, to pop the joint I switch from my long fillet knife to a stout thickback knife to insert and pop the ball out of the socket. Trim off any meat off the remaing spine/pelvis for burger and discard. At this point you'll have your 4 legs, backstraps and probably already ate the tenderloins if you're like me. Now is when I go inside the house on the kitchen table and work. Semi frozen meat is the best way to work. (also for grinding) I trim the tendon skin/silver skin from the back strap, cut up into eight inch hunks or into 1.25" thick steaks and wrap. The bigger hunks keep and let you decide the steak thickness later. Thick is good for steaks as only rare venison is good venison. The ends of the backstrap I leave whole and pan fry and slice for on salads with crumbly blue, red onions and a balsamic vinegar reduction. The upper forelegs are cut into stew chunks, the lower portions get as much silver skin removed as possible then added to the burger grindings. Some of the larger chunks I can slice against the grain for jerky meat. I'll also grab some from the hind quarter for jerkymeat too. The rear legs I cut into primal muscle groups and leave as roasts or cut into steaks. Odd ball pieces go to stew and grinding. wrapping for the freezer; This is where I started to go full on retard; I double wrap with saran wrap, then wrap in freezer/butcher paper, tape that with masking tape, then put in ziplocks. I don't suffer freezer burn at all. Some day I'll vac wrap for the last stage. Don't forget to date and label what cuts are inside on your freezer paper with a marker. Sucks to plan on steaks to find you thawed stew. |
| We do our own. A gambrel, a boat winch and sheave, knives (skinning, boning, carving), steel, a grinder, and the all important foodsaver. Takes us about 2 hours to do a whole deer. Butchering Deer by John Weiss is a great book and simple to read/put into practice. |
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Do it yourself it is easy.
I arrowed my first deer on opening day this year, watched a couple of utube videos, took a sharp kitchen knife and a hack saw out back and had it quartered and in a cooler in 2 hours. Took another 4 hours to make roasts, stakes and stew meat. I don't have a grinder, so all the scraps are stew meat. ( and chili meat ) |
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my family group hunts and we also process all our own meat.
did about 750ish pounds total this year, we make roasts,tenderloin steaks, sausages, and burger. the burger and sausages are mixed 60-40 with pork. aside from cutting,skinning and getting the meat off the bone which is all fairly simple. equitment we use, grinder large scale mixer stuffer (if doing sausages) vacuum sealer and bags. as well as a smoker for the sausage. its really not all that hard to do it yourself
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Quoted: I usually do my own, but got lazy this year...and...well..last year too. If your gonna do your own, get one of these: http://images1.americanlisted.com/nlarge/never_used_deer_gambrel_pully_and_rope_set_25_burlington_iowa_8569801.jpg (you could also use a good sturdy wood handle for a gambrel, instead of buying one) Then a deer processing kit, like so http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/511htF-meqL._SL500_AA300_.jpg (you don't really need it...a good skinning knife will do) Then one of these to burn the hair off the carcass after skinning it, http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploads18/ul1001297297967.jpg As far as instructions, there are videos on YouTube. If you have any deer hunting friends, I would see if any of them have done it, and see if they can show you how. You fail on the hair removal using that torch. The ARFCOM way is using one like this while its still hanging.  From there I do "The gutless method" on everything we roll over. |
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my family group hunts and we also process all our own meat. did about 750ish pounds total this year, we make roasts,tenderloin steaks, sausages, and burger. the burger and sausages are mixed 60-40 with pork. aside from cutting,skinning and getting the meat off the bone which is all fairly simple. equitment we use, grinder large scale mixer stuffer (if doing sausages) vacuum sealer and bags. as well as a smoker for the sausage. its really not all that hard to do it yourself
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c183/J75player/hunting/IMG_20111203_145308.jpg http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c183/J75player/hunting/IMG_20111203_145244.jpg http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c183/J75player/hunting/IMG_20111203_144729.jpg That's pretty much how I do it with the wife and kids helping. ( But on a MUCH smaller scale , as I only shot two deer this year, and I don't group-hunt anymore other than with my son. My brothers just aren't into hunting anymore, and my Dad and most of my hunting Uncles are long gone.  )
You're right that it isn't really all that hard and the kids LOVE to cut meat and run the grinder and stuffer!
How many deer did you guys get this year anyway? 750-ish pounds is a LOT of venison, even if you figured in the weight of the added pork... Looks like you do enoughof it to make the setup and cleanup chores well worth the trouble. 
Good work! |
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we had 9 dear this year, our smallest number ever but they were good sized and we had a few very nice ones.
we uselly have enough so that non of our family have to buy any store bought meat all year. last couple we have come up a bit short. then we just butcher a couple of cows to go with it. I have a 26cuft chest freezer nearly packed solid with veni and highlander 
yup, we have a pretty good set up. turn the FIL's garage into a butcher shop for the weekend grinder is a bit 240V commercial food service one. we mix in a 30 gallon cauldron using a large power drill and a bent piece of rebar at the mixer. large Cabelas stuffer for the sausages and we built a 10x8 smoke house to do the smoking in. kids actually have a good time and they get to learn where their food comes from 
my 2yr old son is always asking what animal were eating when we sit down for supper 
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we had 9 dear this year, our smallest number ever but they were good sized and we had a few very nice ones. we uselly have enough so that non of our family have to buy any store bought meat all year. last couple we have come up a bit short. then we just butcher a couple of cows to go with it. I have a 26cuft chest freezer nearly packed solid with veni and highlander
yup, we have a pretty good set up. turn the FIL's garage into a butcher shop for the weekend grinder is a bit 240V commercial food service one. we mix in a 30 gallon cauldron using a large power drill and a bent piece of rebar at the mixer. large Cabelas stuffer for the sausages and we built a 10x8 smoke house to do the smoking in. kids actually have a good time and they get to learn where their food comes from
my 2yr old son is always asking what animal were eating when we sit down for supper Good times! Nice to be able to eat GOOD meat year-round! Thanks for posting. |
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Thank you for all the information. I'm heading out to Cabela's in the morning to look into some meat processing products. Dont waste your money, you can get everything you need and more at academy or maybe even walmart. My one tip- when you cut the hind feet below the joint for hanging (1st step), make sure you leave plenty of joint left because those two spots will obviously be holding your entire deer. Cut a couple inches below that joint. Good luck! |
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Thank you for all the information. I'm heading out to Cabela's in the morning to look into some meat processing products. ...snip... My one tip- when you cut the hind feet below the joint for hanging (1st step), make sure you leave plenty of joint left because those two spots will obviously be holding your entire deer. Cut a couple inches below that joint. Good luck! Yes. And you might as well skin out the entire joint right away, so you don't have that thatch of hide and hair hanging directly above all your meat for the remainder of the butchering process. Probably isn't a bad idea to wash the knife after doing that and before continuing, in case of possible scent contamination by the musk in the tarsal glands on the hock. And another tip- use vinegar to wash any bloodshot or otherwise damaged meat. It has great antibacterial properties and won't affect the taste of the meat, as long as you don't soak it, etc. |
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Over the years, I have kept buying more and more stuff for meat processing. I have moved up in the world and mounted an electric winch in my shop with a game gambrel on it. You also need a good knife or 6. Also, for some reason, I am addicted to LEM products. I have one of their meat grinders, slicers, and dehydrators. You also need some good freezer paper and wild game bags for your ground meat. You don't need all this stuff, but damn it makes it nice and easy I was going to mention LEM Products––great outfit.
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