Stalking for the freezer and avoiding supermarkets

[Heym SR20]

That's borderline vegetarian.

They are. They don’t eat supermarket meat given the insanity of how far farm animals are transported prior to slaughter. They do eat a little locally sourced meat from neighbouring crofts as well as fish, again locally caught in season. And they don’t eat meat every day, nor in large quantities. They do eat a lot of vegetables, and if hungry the kids go and eat a carrot or an apple rather than craving junk food.

I think in the UK we have forgotten the value of meat and where it comes from. In previous generations meat was for feasts and high days, more recently the sunday roast lasted a family for several days. Nowadays society seems to think we should eat lots of meat three times a day along with lots of junk food and being obese is a perfectly normal and natural state of affairs.

When did you last see an obese overweight wild animal?

 

[dgb]

Vac packed venison will last really well in the freezer.

Also my experience is quite the opposite of people going off it - we have pretty well replaced red meat with venison in my household and I get complaints when we have run out. Considering I was worried whether we would get through the first deer I shot, I’m very pleased about that. Very much down to how it is cooked, I portion most of it into steaks (loins, haunches) and everyone has learned to cook those nicely blushing pink, which is well received. A bit of dice, small amount of mince, the occasional whole slow roast shoulder and anything else to the dogs. I think it’s less forgiving than beef cooking wise so you have to do slightly more than just swap it across on a beef recipe.

 

[sh1kar]

They are. They don’t eat supermarket meat given the insanity of how far farm animals are transported prior to slaughter. They do eat a little locally sourced meat from neighbouring crofts as well as fish, again locally caught in season. And they don’t eat meat every day, nor in large quantities. They do eat a lot of vegetables, and if hungry the kids go and eat a carrot or an apple rather than craving junk food.

I think in the UK we have forgotten the value of meat and where it comes from. In previous generations meat was for feasts and high days, more recently the sunday roast lasted a family for several days. Nowadays society seems to think we should eat lots of meat three times a day along with lots of junk food and being obese is a perfectly normal and natural state of affairs.

When did you last see an obese overweight wild animal?

Or an obese old person

 

[VSS]

Or an obese old person

The obese ones don't get old.

 

[Dazb1967]

I used to regularly have people tell me they didn't like venison, and my response was invariably that I bet they'd had red. I agree with you, in most cases I'd turn my nose up at red deer venison. I once had a summer staggie though, and it was very good indeed. Not good enough for me to seek it out again however. Sika, I found absolutely superb on the few occasions I've shot one. Not tasted fallow, so I can't comment on that. I predominantly shoot roe, and I find them to be consistently superb throughout the year. That would be my venison of choice

Sika and Roe are the only species on the land I shoot on, A few year ago I wouldn't thank you for a Roe but taste buds change over the years and I can't eat enough of it now and find it as good as Sika

 

[User00056]

Sika and Roe are the only species on the land I shoot on, A few year ago I wouldn't thank you for a Roe but taste buds change over the years and I can't eat enough of it now and find it as good as Sika

Gtd only shot a couple of sika, but I have to admit it was some of the finest I've had! I only have roe on my ground though, but I don't feel I'm missing out, that's for sure! I love roe venison

 

[dgb]

Also to add that I don’t hang my venison for long. A couple of days at most. That may be ‘wrong’, but originates from a lack of chiller facilities/space and I’m now not sure I’d change it without experimenting first.

I’ve had plenty of comments from non-hunting friends about the lack of gamey-ness and that they like it, and don’t notice it being tough. Maybe worth considering as a variable.

 

[User00056]

Also to add that I don’t hang my venison for long. A couple of days at most. That may be ‘wrong’, but originates from a lack of chiller facilities/space and I’m now not sure I’d change it without experimenting first.

I’ve had plenty of comments from non-hunting friends about the lack of gamey-ness and that they like it, and don’t notice it being tough. Maybe worth considering as a variable.

That's why I like roe so much. It doesn't seem to become gamier as it hangs. I've butchered the next day, and also after ten days or so in the chiller, and can't really say I've noticed much difference. Hanging certainly doesn't hurt, but I can't say it necessarily improves it, at least in my own experience

 

[DevonRifle]

Also to add that I don’t hang my venison for long. A couple of days at most. That may be ‘wrong’, but originates from a lack of chiller facilities/space and I’m now not sure I’d change it without experimenting first.

I’ve had plenty of comments from non-hunting friends about the lack of gamey-ness and that they like it, and don’t notice it being tough. Maybe worth considering as a variable.

I’ve never had tough roe venison. I hang mine for five days but it’s only for convenience timing wise and there’s less blood on the kitchen table.

I try to shoot 15 roe a year. It’s about right for the land and about right for consumption. Never get tired of it but keep finding new recipes that the family like.

 

[Heym SR20]

I’ve never had tough roe venison. I hang mine for five days but it’s only for convenience timing wise and there’s less blood on the kitchen table.

I try to shoot 15 roe a year. It’s about right for the land and about right for consumption. Never get tired of it but keep finding new recipes that the family like.

I am similar with my views on Roe. Red - not a great fan, especially if really gammy. A fat yeld hind though is good eating.

 

[weblyish]

I grew up in the posh restaurant trade and ate a lot of game as a young lad especially in that August rut and grouse season

Venison was second worst after the 3 day hung blasted grouse pate at the beginning of the season with the glorious 12 gang

I barely ate venison again until I started shooting roe and it was a revelation

a red stag in the rut not only nets the estate a big trophy fee but also butchers out easily with a good yield compared to a munty or roe
Just a shame it is the worst of all the venison meats but happens to portion out to great sized fillets

The only people losing out are the poor f#£#£s that have to pay over the odds to eat it in a fancy restaurant

 

[25 Sharps]

So I’ve nearly got to the end of my little mission to shoot all six of the UK deer species!

My next project would be to stalk enough to stop buying red meat from the supermarket, my problem being I only have roe on my ground and not loads of them. So I need to stalk the most economical big deer possible! I have everything I need for butchery and storage so just the pragmatic part of putting deer on the ground.

This is where I need advice please.

I’d need to calculate how much meat I buy but roughly 750g of mince, four steaks and one roast per week. The rest is other types of meat.

Questions,

1) How much would I get from a red Hind? I’d need to divide that by the above
2) How long does Vac Packed venison last in the freezer
3) Seasonal adjustments based on how long the frozen meat lasts and what to stalk appreciated

I’m ok on all the tools and methods on the above project it’s just the pragmatic part of, when to shoot, and how long all this lasts to be good food.

Thanks in advance folks

You could get 50-60 kg of meat off of a 85 kg red hind.

I had a bbq with friends on Saturday, found a vac packed fallow back strap in the freezer from July 2024, cooked it pink, none of the 11 people who ate it showed any signs of being ill!

 

[25 Sharps]

They are. They don’t eat supermarket meat given the insanity of how far farm animals are transported prior to slaughter. They do eat a little locally sourced meat from neighbouring crofts as well as fish, again locally caught in season. And they don’t eat meat every day, nor in large quantities. They do eat a lot of vegetables, and if hungry the kids go and eat a carrot or an apple rather than craving junk food.

I think in the UK we have forgotten the value of meat and where it comes from. In previous generations meat was for feasts and high days, more recently the sunday roast lasted a family for several days. Nowadays society seems to think we should eat lots of meat three times a day along with lots of junk food and being obese is a perfectly normal and natural state of affairs.

When did you last see an obese overweight wild animal?

Meat doesn’t make you obese, excess protein passes as urea.

 

[muddy42]

Personally I see the freezer as a way of evening out the winter glut of venison and summer drought (when I pretty much stop shooting roe, aside from a session in the rut which goes to a dealer). I'll get it empty and turned off for defrosting in early October

 

[moeggesit]

You could get 50-60 kg of meat off of a 85 kg red hind.

I had a bbq with friends on Saturday, found a vac packed fallow back strap in the freezer from July 2024, cooked it pink, none of the 11 people who ate it showed any signs of being ill!

Almost all Red hinds shot by me over the years were 110-120lb (50-55kg), 60kg is exceptional, with the skin on. That would yield average of 25kg meat trimmed close to the bone. With another 1kg of trim boiled off the bone. I assume your yield include the bones, and offal, etc?

ps. They make very good eating, better than roe and I don’t find fallow any better either. Muntjac is tasty, but it’s more about preparation (field and butcher) and what they eat than the species of deer I think.

 

[User00056]

a red stag in the rut not only nets the estate a big trophy fee but also butchers out easily with a good yield compared to a munty or roe
Just a shame it is the worst of all the venison meats but happens to portion out to great sized fillets

The only people losing out are the poor f#£#£s that have to pay over the odds to eat it in a fancy restaurant

I was once at an awards dinner in St Andrews where much was made of the fact Highland Game were the sponsors. Each course was preceded with a short video of whichever pretentious dick executive chef had produced it, and how. To cut a long story short, the main course was to be venison loin. I had an inkling of what was to come and wasn't wrong! Tough, stringy, bitter, and could've been liver it was so strong.

The only people at our table who didn't eat it were (you guessed it) The guy who ran the wee part time venison business and his wife.

It was so crap that not even the head chef at the Old Course Hotel could make it edible.

 

[25 Sharps]

Almost all Red hinds shot by me over the years were 110-120lb (50-55kg), 60kg is exceptional, with the skin on. That would yield average of 25kg meat trimmed close to the bone. With another 1kg of trim boiled off the bone. I assume your yield include the bones, and offal, etc?

I was talking about live weight to be honest.

 

[moeggesit]

I was talking about live weight to be honest.

50-60kg Meat just seems a lot from a hind considering I don’t get 30kg, but if it’s the carcass with skin on then it tallies.

 

[75]

I was talking about live weight to be honest.

Very confused now! 85kg live weight? So that would be very roughly 50kg larder weight. Which would give you about 20-25kgs of meat not 60kgs?

Almost all Red hinds shot by me over the years were 110-120lb (50-55kg), 60kg is exceptional, with the skin on.

The average red hind weight around here (Derbyshire) is about 70kgs (larder). 75kgs is quite common and the biggest I can recall was 85kgs. I imagine some of those big Norfolk beasties run well beyond that.

 

[25 Sharps]

Very confused now! 85kg live weight? So that would be very roughly 50kg larder weight. Which would give you about 20-25kgs of meat not 60kgs?



The average red hind weight around here (Derbyshire) is about 70kgs (larder). 75kgs is quite common and the biggest I can recall was 85kgs. I imagine some of those big Norfolk beasties run well beyond that.

I’ve only ever shot one red hind in Devon, she was 65 kg larder weight so I extrapolated to around 85 kg live weight and as you’ve both correctly pointed out overegged the meat yield as I didn’t really think about it and didn’t keep the carcass. I was including heart, liver and kidneys as I include those as meat.

Do you really think head, lower legs and gralloch would weigh 35kg on an 85 kg beast? I mainly shoot roe and munties with a few fallow in between but proportions would be similar. 41% of live weight to go in the head, gralloch (excluding edible organs) and lower legs seems a lot.