Beginner’s luck so far, but now next steps

[protegeV]

Awesome, I read every word of it!

Same here. It was a very detailed and captivating story

 

[wilcam47]

I will always wonder how many points this buck was. It was a huge deer.

The one I saw was at least a 10pt...its antlers were half an ear length wider beyond its ears...he was in velvet and of course out of hunting season. I haven't seen him since season opened still a stud of a buck.

 

[HogCommander]

Great write up Ray and sincere Congrats on your first deer!

 

[HazyDayz]

Awesome story! I'm glad you had a good hunt. I'm hoping to replicate it next year.


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[danb]

Well done, and sounds about right... like what happens over 50% of the time I climb a tree. Too much noise! Is is the right tree? Am I facing the right direction? Dang, there goes a deer and I missed a shot. Did I hit it?

Don't worry, over time you will learn to lie, well, like an experienced hunter. I set up for wind, I knew where they were coming from, it was the biggest deer I saw all day, came right out for the perfect shot.

 

[lazarus]

A belated congrats. My single experience so far, field dressing wasn't particularly gross. Didn't notice any real smell other than that strong barnyard stink that deer have. Only thing that bothered me is how easy it was to cut it up. From a physical stand point. I've butchered plenty of chickens and turkeys as well as tons of steaks, etc. however, cutting open a minutes ago living creature and the blade cutting through hide and connective tissue that easily bothered me a little. Made me feel super fragile.

Well, that and how tough the urethra was. I thought I had cut it lose and tossed the poor guys junk. It was only an hour later after I got the buck back to my car I noticed I'd been dragging his penis and testicles across 300yds of brush and trail a few feet behind him.

 

[MikeTF]

A belated congrats. My single experience so far, field dressing wasn't particularly gross. Didn't notice any real smell other than that strong barnyard stink that deer have. Only thing that bothered me is how easy it was to cut it up. From a physical stand point. I've butchered plenty of chickens and turkeys as well as tons of steaks, etc. however, cutting open a minutes ago living creature and the blade cutting through hide and connective tissue that easily bothered me a little. Made me feel super fragile.

Well, that and how tough the urethra was. I thought I had cut it lose and tossed the poor guys junk. It was only an hour later after I got the buck back to my car I noticed I'd been dragging his penis and testicles across 300yds of brush and trail a few feet behind him.

I'll just bite my tongue about some of the 'practical jokes' that hunters play on each other involving animal body parts.

 

[HogCommander]

I definitely don't enjoy dealing with the genitals/anus during field dressing. Generally use pruning shears to break the pelvis on either side of the lower intestine/anus, then remove with a knife. Tried the Butt-Out tool once with some success but it's still unpleasant work

 

[lazarus]

I dunno. I just used a 4" knife to cut all around the anus and pulled it up through the pelvis. I am sure I spent an extra 2 minutes or so to do that, but it wasn't that hard.

I don't get grossed easily. The only thing that gets me gagging is carnivore feces. Human/dog poop, I just have a really hard time dealing with it. Guts and gore, herbivore poop, meh.

 

[outrider58]

I dunno. I just used a 4" knife to cut all around the anus and pulled it up through the pelvis. I am sure I spent an extra 2 minutes or so to do that, but it wasn't that hard.

I don't get grossed easily. The only thing that gets me gagging is carnivore feces. Human/dog poop, I just have a really hard time dealing with it. Guts and gore, herbivore poop, meh.

Any deer hunter worth his salt has a good a$$hole knife.

 

[aray]

I bought the butt-out tool too, but my buddy just cut around his rectum carefully, and pulled out his colon several inches. I tied it off with some dental floss. He never even cut through the bone in that area. Later, when all else was separated, we just rolled the deer over and all of the stuff just spilled out onto the ground.

 

[wilcam47]

Any deer hunter worth his salt has a good a$$hole knife.

 

[aray]

I picked up my deer from the processors on Saturday - 37 pounds of meat.

But as a newbie I have to admit I'm confused. I thought the back straps and tenderloin were the same thing, yet I got two packages each labeled separately. What's the diff?

Finally, now I'm looking for some good venison recipes. In the past I've found venison from others to be very gamey - a common complaint of course. However a year or two ago my friend brought over some venison steaks that had been marinated; they were outstanding. So of course I'm trying to get the marinade recipe from him. That's also why I asked the processor to give me as much steak as possible. I got that, plus some roast, and the rest ground. I'm also thinking next time maybe instead of straight ground, perhaps I should have asked for sausages where they'd mix it with pork or other fat and add in some seasoning. That might alter the gamey taste to make it more palatable. Any cooking, prep, marinade, or other suggestions for me?

 

[Speed3]

I picked up my deer from the processors on Saturday - 37 pounds of meat.

But as a newbie I have to admit I'm confused. I thought the back straps and tenderloin were the same thing, yet I got two packages each labeled separately. What's the diff?

Finally, now I'm looking for some good venison recipes. In the past I've found venison from others to be very gamey - a common complaint of course. However a year or two ago my friend brought over some venison steaks that had been marinated; they were outstanding. So of course I'm trying to get the marinade recipe from him. That's also why I asked the processor to give me as much steak as possible. I got that, plus some roast, and the rest ground. I'm also thinking next time maybe instead of straight ground, perhaps I should have asked for sausages where they'd mix it with pork or other fat and add in some seasoning. That might alter the gamey taste to make it more palatable. Any cooking, prep, marinade, or other suggestions for me?

Tenderloins are the section that is inside the chest cavity and runs from the spine back towards the pelvis. They are generally regarded as the most tender of them all. The backstraps outside of the chest cavity and runs from the neck along the spine down toward the pelvis.

If you are trying to get rid of the "gamey" flavor, marinades with salt in them do well at that.

As for burger, I mix 70% deer, 30% pork shoulder and throw in a 1/3lb of bacon to each lb when making my own. Doesn't taste like deer at all and the entire family eats it with zero problem.

 

[outrider58]

Tenderloin= hanging tenders or some call them the 'fish'. They are located on the inside cavity on the latter half of the deer.

Back straps run the length of the body on either side of the spine(where the ribs meet the spine). Also called loin roasts or rib roasts depending on how they are cut. You can also make chops out of them. I grill them like filet Mignon cut 3" thick wrapped with bacon and grilled med. rare. The trick about venison is: you can't cook the gamyness out of it, only into it' meaning don't over cook venison. It ruins the texture and flavor.

EDIT: I've grown to like the taste of venison and I gave up trying to change it's flavor. I eat the backstraps as steaks, I use the leg steaks for stew meat(it's the best!), burger makes the best chili in the world and I slice the roasts up for jerky or into the crock pot whole for pot roast.

 

[danb]

I picked up my deer from the processors on Saturday - 37 pounds of meat.

But as a newbie I have to admit I'm confused. I thought the back straps and tenderloin were the same thing, yet I got two packages each labeled separately. What's the diff?

Finally, now I'm looking for some good venison recipes. In the past I've found venison from others to be very gamey - a common complaint of course. However a year or two ago my friend brought over some venison steaks that had been marinated; they were outstanding. So of course I'm trying to get the marinade recipe from him. That's also why I asked the processor to give me as much steak as possible. I got that, plus some roast, and the rest ground. I'm also thinking next time maybe instead of straight ground, perhaps I should have asked for sausages where they'd mix it with pork or other fat and add in some seasoning. That might alter the gamey taste to make it more palatable. Any cooking, prep, marinade, or other suggestions for me?

Just buy ground pork/beef from the grocery (or a farmer), and mix as desired. You can get a couple books that have excellent sausage recipes, everything from deer bratwurst to chorizo. Also, you can get some pre-mixed packets to make deer bologna, summer sausage, or jerky.

I do my loin chops, tenderloin, or backstraps medium rare (about 144 degrees), just some salt and pepper. I do not know what gamey venison tastes like, I have never had it. Nor do I ever marinade my steaks. Pan seared in a little butter or bacon fat is excellent also. I use my ground venison just like extremely lean ground beef. If you use it for chili or soup, you have to cook it a little longer, and you might have to add some fat because venison tends to be as lean as chicken breast.

If you want a real treat, try pan searing the steaks in some butter (with some Canadian bacon or pancetta), then serving them with a reduction of maple syrup, butter, a little garlic. Might even throw in some marsala wine and melt a slice of provolone over it.

 

[HazyDayz]

Any deer hunter worth his salt has a good a$$hole knife.

Any suggestions as to type of knife for that?


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[outrider58]

Any suggestions as to type of knife for that?


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I use a Buck 110. Been using them for years Holds a shaving edge and zips through breast bones.

http://www.buckknives.com/custom-knife/customizable-110-folding-hunter-knife/CKS110/

This is for reference purposes.

 

[HazyDayz]

I have a 110 copy that I might have to break out then. Thanks.


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[HogCommander]

Picked out a few excerpts for this reply:

I picked up my deer from the processors on Saturday - 37 pounds of meat.

Finally, now I'm looking for some good venison recipes. In the past I've found venison from others to be very gamey - a common complaint of course. Any cooking, prep, marinade, or other suggestions for me?

ARay...I'm in the camp that believes any bad taste comes from fat (tallow) and silverskin. Trim ALL that stuff off with a sharp knife and I think you'll enjoy the results. The other challenge as previously said is to not overcook the venison; for that I use a meat thermometer to avoid guessing and overcooking.

Will send you a PM with my recipe book if you're interested but I generally cook venison as follows:

Roasts (my favorite cut): Apply spicy rub overnight, then smoke to 145 deg internal temp. Wrap in foil, then put in cooler wrapped in a towel for 15-30 min after removing from the smoker. Usually takes 2-3 hrs to smoke at 225 deg cooking temp. Slice against the grain into 1/4" slices.

Backstraps: I cut them into dollar bill lengths and cook them in a skillet after marinading overnight. Sear on high heat for 1 min each side, then reduce heat to medium and give them another 4-5 min each side...I cook to 150 deg internal temp which gives me medium-rare. Sometimes I'll smoke large backstraps like I would a roast.

Stew meat: I grind using a coarse grinding plate and make chili. Have also made venison-bacon burger (2/3 venison, 1/3 bacon) which turned out amazing. Can also make jerky using ground venison & a jerky gun.

Of note, the thing that tipped the scales for me to buy a grinder was the amount of fat & silverskin that the last two processors left on the meat when they ground it. Now I process my own deer and take the time to get rid of all the stuff that doesn't taste good before grinding. The grinder paid for itself the first time I processed my own deer rather than paying someone else to do it.