Hanging, skinning etc…

[Andy seatrout]

I’ve just finished processing a fallow pricket and its raising some questions about how to go about it all…been stalking about three years now.
I’m confident in the grallock ( done about thirty now with some for friends) but apart from hanging up in the estate larder I’ve taken about seven home for personal consumption. I’ve now access to two drinks fridges all set up and ready to go…

So my question; when you shoot a deer grallocked in the skin how long do you hang it in the chiller before skinning it and butchering it, and at what temp? A farming field says skinning them ‘fresh’ is a lot easier before they chill down, there’s also a question of tenderness of the venison… in the past with no access to chillers we’ve just shot/ grallocked/ skinned and cut up within a few hours…. We have left one overnight in a chilly gutting room and skinned the next day, it was a lot harder to deal with ( these were sika) …

What do you do by preference?

 

[wb2710]

Hi Andy,
My preference is hang in the skin for 7 - 10 days at or below 4 degrees C then skin and butcher. Muntjac don't like having their coats taken off if hung for too long though.

 

[KimE]

I have always skinned them as soon we came back from the hunt, If you have been out in sub zero temperature leave the skin on until you can get the carcass inside a shed/slaughterhouse with a temperature on the plus side. If its warm outside let the carcass cool down in the slaughter house over the night (if it can hang in acceptable temperature) dont hang in a new warm carcass in the cooler if you already have a hanging one in the right temperature.

 

[ZimCoxy136]

I gralloch, then hang in the chiller at 2-3°C in the skin until I have some free time to skin and butcher it. Normally within 5 days.

 

[Firefly]

7 days hanging for me.

 

[jacre1993]

Any chance I get the following week

 

[nun_hunter]

10-14 days at 2-3⁰C

Skinning is much harder but I do notice a difference (for the better) when hanging as the meat is much more tender.

 

[Will the chippy]

Just think how a slaughter house works. Kill it, gut it and skin it. Then hang for a week or two before cutting it.
Got to be a good reason they do it this way. Not always practical for those who only process a couple a year.

 

[lochty]

Just think how a slaughter house works. Kill it, gut it and skin it. Then hang for a week or two before cutting it.
Got to be a good reason they do it this way. Not always practical for those who only process a couple a year.

Cattle are a different ball game from lamb, pigs or deer. They benefit from ageing, whilst the others don't. So my butcher mate tells me. I usually skin (mostly fallow) the day after shooting and butcher 3 days after that. Atb Dave

 

[Freeforester]

”… my question; when you shoot a deer grallocked in the skin how long do you hang it in the chiller before skinning it and butchering it, and at what temp?”



“it depends”:

Not all chillers are equal: In a larger volume well ventilated chill or room you can hang the carcase for longer without it becoming forcibly dried as they tend to become in a fridge or converted drinks chiller. The temperature it hangs in is also a determining factor as to how long it will take for the enzymes to begin to work their magic and tenderise the meat, as will any draught, or indeed lack of same.

Not all carcases are equal: Internal fat covering varies from gender and age as well as species and season. A yeld hind is generally going to produce a better end product than a hind with calf at foot, and a ‘skinner’ is generally best chosen from the pick of any yeld hinds, as seen either on the hoof, or once the internal fat covering, stomach fat etc are all considered; a hind with a low parasitic burden is going to produce better venison when compared to one with a lot of warbles, lice or other parasites. There’s therefore not really a fixed timespan for hanging, imho. It’s ready when it’s ready, and not really before then.

Not all venison is equal: Everyone has different ideas about what their venison should be like; if you’re aiming to get venison similar in quality as glistening ruby-coloured marzipan, best you start by leaving the jacket on your prime beast until the day before you intend cutting up. If you prefer it akin to darkish mahogany, skin when warm. There’s little doubt that they skin much more easily when warm, but it’s at the cost of the development of tenderness when it comes to eating. Leaving the jacket on the carcass until hanging time has worked its magic and you get to butchering time prevents it drying out too quickly, albeit at a cost in terms of elbow grease when it does come time to remove the jacket (a subject in itself) and thereafter turn it into something more useful and delicious.

Any short cuts are usually at the expense of the quality of the end product, as can be demonstrated by the supermarket beef, which can be packed under an hour after the animal has been stunned in the aforementioned slaughterhouse: just because someone has a knife and a job to do, it doesnt mean they are necessarily going to make the best stuff.

Not all palates are equal: everyone has differing views as to what passes muster and what does not. In the end you must please yourself, and aim to do likewise for those who intend to dine on your venison.

 

[Mike L]

I did 2 yesterday morning for my outlet, one was 5 days at 4c the other overnight at 4c, not a huge difference in ease of skinning, fresher slightly easier but less ‘grippy’

 

[75]

For me, let them cool for a few hours at 7-10C to avoid cold shortening. If you chuck a warm carcass into a 2C chiller before rigour has set in then there's a chance of cold shortening and tough meat.

Then I hang them in the jacket to avoid drying of the meat. Venison doesn't age like beef but it does become nicer to butcher if hung properly - I always find it a bit wet and soft if cut too soon but develops a leathery surface if you hang without the jacket on. All very approximate depending on what else I'm doing but usually hang at 2C and roe for 5ish days, fallow 7ish days, reds 7-10 days.

 

[maximus otter]

Gralloch in the field. (I only shoot "handbag" deer, i.e. up to & including roe.)

Skin as soon as I get home.

Hang in my converted, vertical-format household fridge at 4° to 7°C...

... Until I can be arsed to butcher it. (Usually 1 to 5 days.)

maximus otter

 

[slider]

Skinning warm is certainly much easier. As for hanging I find it makes no difference on Roe, I butcher when it suits, could be 12 hours or 12 days, other species may be different

 

[SDC7x57]

Like many above, we hang them (usually roe) in their jackets for 5 to 10 days, depending on age, condition, etc. We like to let the carcase cool for a couple of hours at least with a chest spreader in place before hanging in the chiller.

 

[FISH BOY]

Hang mine until a day before the bin men come

 

[Andy seatrout]

Hang mine until a day before the bin men come

That’s only once every three weeks where I live!

 

[Andy seatrout]

Thanks for all your answers everyone, really helpful…. Of course I was looking for the impossible ‘hang for ten days then the skin falls off on its own’ answer, but I appreciate the response….

We’re ( my stalking mate and I) going to let the next one hang for a week…. Commonly we shoot mornings - on the condition we’re available for domestic duties from 11am onwards…. So putting the deer into a fridge for a week or so would give us time to schedule a skinning and butchery session… otherwise it’s a bit of a marathon to go - stalk, shoot, grallock, retrieve, skin and butcher in one sitting…

I’d be interested if the haunch of venison is a bit tenderer having not been frozen the same day as shot…..

 

[Tazz]

Hi Andy,
My preference is hang in the skin for 7 - 10 days at or below 4 degrees C then skin and butcher. Muntjac don't like having their coats taken off if hung for too long though.

Yes this ^

 

[biffo]

The magic number 40 : 8 days at 5 c, 10 days at 4c etc etc …..but not 1 day at 40c!!