One fall 20 years ago, I worked at Yellowstone Processing, a wild game processor in Bozeman, Montana. I wanted to learn how to process my own game, plus I needed a job. I learned how to skin, trim, cut, chop and grind everything from antelope to elk to bison. I also learned that there are an infinite number of ways to ruin wild meat—and that hunters do it all the time. Why disappoint your friends and family with “gamey” meat when you can make killer dishes like venison enchilada meatballs? Proper meat care, it turns out, starts well before you pull the trigger. Take these seven tips with you into the field this fall. You and your taste buds will thank me later.
Make the Right Shot
In the West, pronghorn get a seriously bad wrap for tasting like ass. It’s not that they aren’t delicious. They are. It’s that hunters tend to take shots at distances beyond their known lethal range. Sure, it can happen with any animal, but pronghorn have keen eyesight and love the great wide open. Sneaking to within 300 yards can be a challenge. As a result, I saw many pronghorn carcasses come into the meat shop resembling a bloody hunk of Swiss cheese. All those bullets destroy meat, shatter bone, and create bloodshot—the goo that resembles bloody snot and tastes like hell if cooked. The solution to all this is simple. Know your effective range and stick with it.
Shoot a Relaxed Animal
Remember being scared, really scared? Remember the rush of adrenaline coursing through your body to help you survive whatever that thing was that made you want to crap your pants? You’re not alone. The animals we hunt have that, too. Studies have shown that the more an animal is stressed when it dies, the tougher the meat is going to be. Be smooth, slip in quietly and hopefully your quarry will never know you’re there until it’s too late. By killing a relaxed, calm animal, you’re ensuring better meat.
Keep It Clean
You know not to roll the meat around in the dirt and pine needles before bringing it into the processor—at least I hope you do. Don’t drag it behind a horse or ATV either. In fact, if you do decide to haul it, get a game cart or even your kid’s snow sled. You can always buy another one. A little time spent keeping the meat clean in the field will pay off once you get it home or drop it off. Processors will often charge extra cleaning fees or reject filthy animals altogether if they came in too dirty. Can you blame them? Game bags also help if quartering in the field. Use them.
Keep It Cool
When an animal’s heart stops beating, the meat starts to break down. It’s why we age meat in a cooler or cold garage. In the field, though, you want to slow the aging process. If it gets too warm, above 42 degrees, the meat will start to spoil. If there’s snow, lucky you. Skin and pack the quarters in the snow to cool the meat immediately. If there’s no snow, skin it, quarter it, pack the meat in old pillowcases or game bags, and hang them in nearby trees to get air circulating around it. No time to quarter and hang it before dark? At least field-dress the animal and prop open the rib cage. To get air circulating underneath it, roll it onto some logs. Whatever you do, don’t leave it flat on the ground overnight, which is a sure recipe for heat and spoilage.
Predator Control
If you need to leave your animal out overnight, you want to protect it from scavengers that will be more than happy to nibble, gnaw and poop on your meal. Bears and lions will drag off entire carcasses and bury them for future consumption. To prevent this, you want to make the area as uninviting as possible, which means making it smell like you. Drink the rest of your coffee and pee around the area. Take that nasty, sweat-soaked thermal top you’ve worn for three days and hang it close to the meat. If you can’t hang the quarters in game bags, drape some pine boughs on top of the carcass so the ravens don’t swoop and poop. If you can, drag the guts as far away from the meat as you can—or vice versa—the hope being whatever is out there will dine on the offal and not the hindquarters.
Keep the Flies Out
Flies, meat bees, and yellow jackets love venison as much as we do. If you hunt where these pesky bastards live, then you know the pain of trying to break down an animal while being swarmed. Spray the meat with a 50/50 vinegar/water solution. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game recommends spraying the meat with a citric acid solution. They suggest two ounces of citric acid to every quart of water. Spray the meat until the solution starts dripping off. The mixture will create a dark crust on the meat to help prevent flies from laying eggs. Got game bags? Then, use them.
Have an Extraction Plan
Elk are big animals. And if you’re a few miles from the truck, you better know how you’re going to get all that meat out. Quartering and packing it out is incredibly handy over rough and steep terrain. Have some buddies on speed dial or make arrangements with a local packer if you know the weather is going to be warmer than 50 degrees during the day. If you’re near a closed road, use a game cart. I like to use an old bike trailer made for hauling youngins’, which I found in someone’s trash pile. It works much better than it looks and has hauled the meat those kids love to eat.
