Hairs on meat - any tips or tricks

[PeterWilson]

After skinning and then butchering Venison, I am finding way too may hairs on the meat. I was considering using a blow torch to singe the hairs off where the skinning cuts would be.
Does anybody have any useful methods for minimising hair on the meat please?

 

[HonestJohn]

In winter coat it’s hard to avoid, and the blowtorch works well if used carefully

 

[Tim.243]

After skinning and then butchering Venison, I am finding way too may hairs on the meat. I was considering using a blow torch to singe the hairs off where the skinning cuts would be.
Does anybody have any useful methods for minimising hair on the meat please?

@Norfolk Horn
Mark said to me use a kitchen (new one) with the sponge/and green side type. Not tried it yet but will do on the next one.

 

[finnbear270]

I tried a strip of this, Just the hook side, worked very well, just combed over the meat gently.

 

[Ruby Tuesday 2]

I always use a clean tea towel to rub them off, usually effective.

 

[sauer]

Roll of new blue dish clothes from supermarket..take a new one ..slightly dampen it ..and wipe skinned carcass down then dispose
Not soaked ..lightly damp ...and if you use too much water and carcass wet then wipe down to finish with blue roll

Paul

 

[slider]

Wipe down with food safe kitchen surface "wet wipes"

 

[User00056]

Hang from the front legs while skinning

 

[PeterWilson]

Hang from the front legs while skinning

This is an interesting one. The rationale being that there are no cuts at the business end of the carcass?

 

[PeterWilson]

I tried a strip of this, View attachment 407124Just the hook side, worked very well, just combed over the meat gently.

Do you just wrap a strip around your hand? Did you find the hooks picked up alot of the hair?

 

[User00056]

This is an interesting one. The rationale being that there are no cuts at the business end of the carcass?

The pelt seems to hang a lot better, and of course you eliminate the cuts on the inside of the haunches. I prefer to skin all my winter does this way

 

[TringSaint]

The pelt seems to hang a lot better, and of course you eliminate the cuts on the inside of the haunches. I prefer to skin all my winter does this way

Never tried that approach.
Assuming you hang from the base of the neck?

 

[User00056]

Never tried that approach.
Assuming you hang from the base of the neck?

I usually hang from the front legs. You just need to be careful not to pull the carcass off the gambrel as you don't have the same strength as hanging from the hocks

 

[Jelen]

Never tried that approach.
Assuming you hang from the base of the neck?

Our Keeper does his small deer in a similar manner. Hang head up using baler twine round neck. Cut down the back along the spine then remove skin like a hospital gown. I found it surprisingly easy - once I'd got past the neck skin of an old Munty buck .
Use the blue disposable kitchen wipes as stated above.

 

[Rob 71]

Minimal use of the knife and always cut from the inside out, a clean damp microfibre cloth takes any stray hair off the carcass

 

[finnbear270]

Do you just wrap a strip around your hand? Did you find the hooks picked up alot of the hair?

Yes, Same as if you were combing down dog hairs off a nice jacket.

 

[Tim.243]

This is an interesting one. The rationale being that there are no cuts at the business end of the carcass?

I modified this to a rounded tip from the "sharp" one it had, use it from reds to muntjac hanging from their hocks,
start and the front leg then all the way to the hock/gambrel. Find the sweet spot angle and it will keep going, use the back of the blade also.

 

[VSS]

After skinning and then butchering Venison, I am finding way too may hairs on the meat. I was considering using a blow torch to singe the hairs off where the skinning cuts would be.
Does anybody have any useful methods for minimising hair on the meat please?

If there's so many hairs left on the carcass that you're considering resorting to the use of a blowtorch then there's something wrong with the way you're doing the skinning.
Address that issue first.
Always cut from the inside.
Use the "clean hand / dirty hand method".
Ensure that the skin is always falling away from exposed meat as you remove it.
Don't skin in your butchery area.
Wear a different apron or jacket for skinning.

 

[NoIDeer]

Damp new J cloth works well, don't butcher until you are happy you have removed the loose hair, plus all of the advice above.

 

[VSS]

A lot of people recommending wiping with a cloth, but I would caution against that. It'll certainly make the carcass look more presentable, but a lot of hairs will simply be rubbed into alignment with natural creases and fold on the surface of the carcass, rendering them almost invisible. And hairs will also be rubbed off the cloth onto parts of the carcass that weren't previously contaminated.
The only really reliable way to get rid of hairs that adhere to the meat is to pick them off one by one. There should only be a few, if the skinning was done tidily.