How long in the chiller
- Thread starter Mungo
- Start date
It will be fine - I just hung one for 12 days with its jacket on at warmer temps than I would have liked (between 4-7 degrees due to chiller on the blink) and butchered it and it was absolutely fine.
Most people go with the rule of 40 so divide 40 by the temp and you have the number of days you can hang for, so 40 deg / 2 deg = 20 days
Regards,
Gixer
Great - thanks for that.
I vaguely remembered the 40 degree days thing - good to have my memory confirmed!
It'll be fine.
I used to insist on my beef being hung for a minimum of 32 days, I've eaten pheasant that was hung for 32 days, delicious. So long as humidity is low, your good to go.In wet weather I wouldn't hang a pheasant for more than 2 days. I was told by an old butcher that purpling of meat is a myth, it was killed when too stressed out, too much adrenalin. Head or Neck shot animals hang much better. There is a lot of humidity in a fresh killed animal particularly in a restricted space like a smallish chiller, it means wetter meat, dry meat is the aim.
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How much mould is too much?
Dunwaters
Well-Known Member
That’s up to you, there’s very little worth eating inside the cavity so I tend to ignore it.
You can wipe it out with a salt, vinegar and water mix on a cloth.
2 days max with muntjac with the price of electric also, never noticed any difference in taste from 2 or 7 days.
The prep is the key, grazing animal bang flop bleed out for a while then clean it out, hang in the shed put stuff away then in the chiller.
Anything up to 14 days in the skin, take the skin off and as long as the chiller isnt fitted with vents and is chilling correctly another week just keep an eye on it.
Heym SR20
Well-Known Member
If its moving its too far gone. But then you just eat the maggots!!
Woodsmoke
Well-Known Member
I'm sure it'll be absolutely fine. I've left them 20 days in the chiller before, and they've come to absolutely no harm whatsoever. I'm just amazed you have the energy to start butchering it. I had a bout of Covid last week and it's still all I can do to make a sandwich
I’ll be honest - I staggered out, had a look and a sniff, decided it was fine, and decided it could wait another day…I'm sure it'll be absolutely fine. I've left them 20 days in the chiller before, and they've come to absolutely no harm whatsoever. I'm just amazed you have the energy to start butchering it. I had a bout of Covid last week and it's still all I can do to make a sandwich
Last time I felt this sh*t was when I had malaria!
Woodsmoke
Well-Known Member
Yeah, I can't blame you. I went back to work on Monday and I'm still nowhere near right. I could've done with at least another week convalescing, but having only just started the new position the week prior I didn't have the brass neck. Suffering though, despite testing negative from Saturday. It's a pig of a thing, that's for sure. I certainly underestimated it, for my part
Leec6.5
Well-Known Member
21-28 days is my normal hanging time frame, usually mould can be seen on the internal ribcage!
Then i know its spot on!
I recall some of your earlier views on covid.
That's a very honest comment, fair play
Woodsmoke
Well-Known Member
Most of my views on how it should have been approached by the general public haven't really changed, to be honest. I still think everyone was likely to get it at some stage, and I honestly do still wonder if the lockdowns haven't compromised our immune systems in general though. We've all been under-exposed to the general population for a long time, after all. Regardless though, I had my ass kicked!
This will be interesting - I’ve never gone past 2 weeks with one of my own. It may come to that…
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