Brine your wild game

[FrankT]

Been asked to post this so always willing to accommodate here goes. Deer, Hog and Turkey I have done this on. My wife is not a fan of wild game taste. I process most my own meat, if I want sausage I brine it at home and then take to the processor.

Butcher the animal, place in ice chest, add salt water to cover, Ice it and depending on your cooler keep it as cold and add ice while letting the liquid flow around the meat..I keep quite a few frozen plastic bottle and this helps preserve the ice longer.

Salt brine is 1 cup salt, Sea or Kosher preferred, per gallon of water, after 24 hrs dump the water save the ice and repeat and leave in brine for 2-4 more days in this step you can half the salt if you want to. Take out, wash off trim, clean and vacuum seal.

This will take out smells and tastes of wild animals but not add salt to the meat. You can for flavor after the first draining add 1 cup or more pineapple/apple/lemon or whatever flavor you would like to add or nothing. Good luck Frank

 

[TEXASLAWMAN]

Thank you very good info Frank!

 

[Ratdog68]

Hmmm... pro'bly good with bear meat.

 

[FrankT]

RD, I have never killed a bear so have no idea. From what I hear is is very greasy and so is a hog, maybe it would work. My pork looks like store bought when I get ready to cook it but tastes much better, more flavor and the brine does not add salt to the meat.

 

[Ratdog68]

I've never killed a bear either... but I'll give one a hot lead injection if I get a chance to. Cougar too.

 

[FrankT]

Me too, both are on my limited bucket list

 

[EGarza04]

I have done similar with deer, but without the salt. Whenever I do it I have to be careful not to spoil the meat as it is hard to keep a cooler cold enough down here. I will definitely have to try it with the salt next time around.

 

[Itsazonik]

I'm hoping to black bear hunt in Georgia this year. If I do I'll bring the meat home and give you some to try frank

 

[FrankT]

Yeah I have a couple of ultra cold coolers, keeps the meat 2 days without adding ice, I have kept meat in them 4-5 days and could go 6-7 easily but use frozen bottles to help the ice.

You pass right by me going home, I'll take you up on the bear meat small amount though.

 

[Itsazonik]

I have a yetti cooler so I'm not worried. If I make it on the trip ill stop by and you can choose what you want off of it and give it a try

 

[FrankT]

See, I can't afford night vision or a Yeti, but I make do...LOL

 

[Itsazonik]

I got my yetti at a yard sale. This little old lad had all her husbands fishing stuff. She wanted $10 for the cooler Nd it was practically new. I felt bad and have her $40 then advised her as to what all the fishing gear was worth. She changed the prices and when I went back later to get a fishing pole she had made $3000 off his gear that she basically had been asking a few hundred for. She gave me the fishing pole free

 

[FrankT]

Good for you, that is the way to do it!! I will start watching the obits closer!

 

[Itsazonik]

It's Florida and anywhere near the coast there's blind to be an old lady with all her husbands crap that we so desperately want

 

[Oscar]

Hey guys, I have never hunted in someone else's property so what do yall do to the scraps after field dressing ? We have always hunted at my gradfather's land in south texas and the scraps we left them out there to lure coyotes and cats , except acelot my grandfather never let us and we never let our kids.

 

[FrankT]

Well we have a gator pond to dump at or another spot I can target for hogs and yotes.

 

[PJW]

Thanks for the recipe. I am going to try your method, maybe my hunting fortunes will be better recieved at home.

 

[FrankT]

You bet, it is the only way I can get the wife to eat wild game and I have to admit I like it better that way also.

 

[FrankT]

OK Read an article by a Professional processor and well maybe, I am going to try this: Since I brine hogs and deer for years I have a garage refer to give this a shot at dry aging...Comments?

"I've often written about the quality of dry aged venison. People read about this but unless they've eaten properly aged venison they really don't realize the amazing difference in flavor that it possesses. There is zero gamey taste, the meat is more tender, the true flavor of the meat is more concentrated, and it has a sweet nutty taste. This can easily be achieved at home and is a procedure I highly recommend. Even though we are in business to do this, I also highly recommend fully processing your own deer. I have done this for the last 15 or so years. It is an extremely gratifying task and is the culmination of the entire hunting experience. To age your own meat at home, simply place the un-covered hind quarters and loin saddle (back straps with backbone) on a rack with a pan underneath in your refrigerator and let it sit for 7-10 days. A refrigerator in the garage works well for this, but if you don’t have one the meat only takes up 1 shelf in the fridge. That's it! The meat will naturally do the rest.

(I won't bore you with all of the technical details). The absolute worst thing that a person can do to their meat is to try and age it in a cooler of ice (Like many people I did this for years without knowing any better). If you doubt this, Google any website about aging wild game. There are 3 main things that occur during the aging process: Evaporation of the wild tasting gamey moisture, relaxation of the muscle tissues, and the tenderizing effects of the enzymes that break down the tough connecting tissues made up of collagen. Absolutely none of these processes will occur in a cooler with ice on the meat. If your only option is to use a cooler and ice, do not take the ice out of the bag. Place bags of ice in the bottom and then a towel or piece of cardboard on top of them. Place the meat on top of this and repeat what was done on the bottom. This will ensure that the temperature of the meat does not come down too quickly (this is called shortening the meat). This procedure is not recommended for more than 3- 5 days but it will help somewhat."

 

[Ratdog68]

That gets me to thinking... the dry aging allows for the evaporative effects, to draw out the gamey tasting moisture. The meat loses weight (8lbs.= 01 gal.) as it dries/ages. I wonder... does that make for a "sponge" effect for the meat when put into a marinade? Will the meat regain a portion of the weight lost? Will it draw more flavor from the marinade?

When grilled, rapid searing of the meat is the goal, sealing the outside and retaining the moisture. Allow the finished steak to "rest" for 10 mins. prior to serving helps it to retain the juices when cut into.

When roasted (prime rib in particular), slow cooking on low heat is the key (after an initial higher temp bake to kill any bacteria on the outside crust). Not allowing the juices to "boil" within the cells of the meat will ensure the juices are retained... since that "boiling" of the juices causes expansion/rupture of the cellular walls... and moisture loss.