Processing Your Own Deer

[CatDaddy]

How many follow similar technique to this? What do you do different?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWwXF9iuXw0

 

[riverview]

why is the deer is gutted and still has cock and balls? why make a full length cut 4 inches away open cavity. I just skin from the hind legs down below the hind quarters then do the front shoulders then skin down.

 

[ShootnBlanks]

To be one with the deer, he keeps the twig and berries under his pillow for a few days

 

[KDM]

My method isn't even close to this.

1. During the field dressing process, cut around the bunghole instead of through the pelvic bone so I can hang the deer from the pelvis and not use a gambrel.
2. When the deer is hanging from the pelvic bone, I cut the skin along the inside of the hind legs to beyond the gland at the knee and cut all the way around.
3. Pull the hide off the hind legs until the only thing left on is the tail.
4, Cut through the tail and pull the hide down to the beginning of the rib cage.
5. Remove the hind legs at the knee. (The idea is to remove all hair above the exposed meat so it doesn't fall onto it and you have to pick it out)
6. Peel the skin down to the front shoulders.
7. Cut the skin up from the knee on the front legs to the armpit area on both sides and then remove the front legs beyond the joint.
8. Peel the hide over the front shoulders and when you reach the cut in the front legs, peel that down and off the front legs.
9. Peel the hide as far down the neck as desired and remove the head.
10. Run a propane torch over the entire carcass to remove any hair that may have fallen onto the meat. (There will always be some)
11. Remove the front shoulders and process.
12. Remove the backstraps and process.
13. Remove the hind quarters and process.
14. Remove the tenderloins and process.
15. Dispose of rib cage, legs, and other bones properly and NOT ON AN APPROACH OR IN A DITCH for everyone to see and enjoy.

If deer is to be mounted, the skinning process is substantially modified.

 

[CatDaddy]

My method isn't even close to this.

1. During the field dressing process, cut around the bunghole instead of through the pelvic bone so I can hang the deer from the pelvis and not use a gambrel.
2. When the deer is hanging from the pelvic bone, I cut the skin along the inside of the hind legs to beyond the gland at the knee and cut all the way around.
3. Pull the hide off the hind legs until the only thing left on is the tail.
4, Cut through the tail and pull the hide down to the beginning of the rib cage.
5. Remove the hind legs at the knee. (The idea is to remove all hair above the exposed meat so it doesn't fall onto it and you have to pick it out)
6. Peel the skin down to the front shoulders.
7. Cut the skin up from the knee on the front legs to the armpit area on both sides and then remove the front legs beyond the joint.
8. Peel the hide over the front shoulders and when you reach the cut in the front legs, peel that down and off the front legs.
9. Peel the hide as far down the neck as desired and remove the head.
10. Run a propane torch over the entire carcass to remove any hair that may have fallen onto the meat. (There will always be some)
11. Remove the front shoulders and process.
12. Remove the backstraps and process.
13. Remove the hind quarters and process.
14. Remove the tenderloins and process.
15. Dispose of rib cage, legs, and other bones properly and NOT ON AN APPROACH OR IN A DITCH for everyone to see and enjoy.

If deer is to be mounted, the skinning process is substantially modified.

Thanks for the detail KDM! I figured most don't do it the way it's done in the video and very curious of the different methods folks use. Yours makes perfect sense. Is it fair to say his advice of "inside out" is sound to avoid hair contamination? I'm a noob and want to get my boys into deer hunting because they've asked to do so.....

 

[Kentucky Windage]

My method isn't even close to this.

1. During the field dressing process, cut around the bunghole instead of through the pelvic bone so I can hang the deer from the pelvis and not use a gambrel.
2. When the deer is hanging from the pelvic bone, I cut the skin along the inside of the hind legs to beyond the gland at the knee and cut all the way around.
3. Pull the hide off the hind legs until the only thing left on is the tail.
4, Cut through the tail and pull the hide down to the beginning of the rib cage.
5. Remove the hind legs at the knee. (The idea is to remove all hair above the exposed meat so it doesn't fall onto it and you have to pick it out)
6. Peel the skin down to the front shoulders.
7. Cut the skin up from the knee on the front legs to the armpit area on both sides and then remove the front legs beyond the joint.
8. Peel the hide over the front shoulders and when you reach the cut in the front legs, peel that down and off the front legs.
9. Peel the hide as far down the neck as desired and remove the head.
10. Run a propane torch over the entire carcass to remove any hair that may have fallen onto the meat. (There will always be some)
11. Remove the front shoulders and process.
12. Remove the backstraps and process.
13. Remove the hind quarters and process.
14. Remove the tenderloins and process.
15. Dispose of rib cage, legs, and other bones properly and NOT ON AN APPROACH OR IN A DITCH for everyone to see and enjoy.

If deer is to be mounted, the skinning process is substantially modified.

Front shoulders?

 

[CatDaddy]

Step 11

 

[Velva_zv21]

My method isn't even close to this.

1. During the field dressing process, cut around the bunghole instead of through the pelvic bone so I can hang the deer from the pelvis and not use a gambrel.
2. When the deer is hanging from the pelvic bone, I cut the skin along the inside of the hind legs to beyond the gland at the knee and cut all the way around.
3. Pull the hide off the hind legs until the only thing left on is the tail.
4, Cut through the tail and pull the hide down to the beginning of the rib cage.
5. Remove the hind legs at the knee. (The idea is to remove all hair above the exposed meat so it doesn't fall onto it and you have to pick it out)
6. Peel the skin down to the front shoulders.
7. Cut the skin up from the knee on the front legs to the armpit area on both sides and then remove the front legs beyond the joint.
8. Peel the hide over the front shoulders and when you reach the cut in the front legs, peel that down and off the front legs.
9. Peel the hide as far down the neck as desired and remove the head.
10. Run a propane torch over the entire carcass to remove any hair that may have fallen onto the meat. (There will always be some)
11. Remove the front shoulders and process.
12. Remove the backstraps and process.
13. Remove the hind quarters and process.
14. Remove the tenderloins and process.
15. Dispose of rib cage, legs, and other bones properly and NOT ON AN APPROACH OR IN A DITCH for everyone to see and enjoy.

If deer is to be mounted, the skinning process is substantially modified.

On the next episode of ( KDM's skinning minute? ) Haha (grin) could have a whole new series ther kdm

 

[Kentucky Windage]

Step 11

Not to be confused with the back shoulders, right?

 

[KDM]

Just call me Major Obvious. However, it amazes me sometimes how little deer hunters know about the quarry they pursue. Unfortunately, many just shoot deer, gut deer.....poorly, take deer to locker plant, pay locker bill, put venison in freezer, let venison sit for a year in freezer, throw venison away after it's freezer burned, and then repeat. I know at least 3 that do this every year like clockwork. Such a waste of a good deer.

 

[Velva_zv21]

Anyone that throws meat away I'd be willing to take it 9 months in advance of you throwing it away....I have a 5 year old that loves jerky

 

[Meelosh]

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How to cook buck balls.

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[KDM]

Thanks for the detail KDM! I figured most don't do it the way it's done in the video and very curious of the different methods folks use. Yours makes perfect sense. Is it fair to say his advice of "inside out" is sound to avoid hair contamination? I'm a noob and want to get my boys into deer hunting because they've asked to do so.....

Good for you!!! If you don't have a place for them to hunt, give me a call/pm. I got a pretty good place for youngsters just starting out in deer hunting. I'm planning on building an 8X8 little house on stilts this summer. Should be a good winter project to design and gather supplies for. Tired of freezing my azz off in a stand during the late season and it will be nice for the youngsters to be out of the elements for their first go around in a blind.

 

[Maddog]

For what it is worth, here is what we do in a nutshell. We used to skin our deer with the carcass hanging from the rear legs. That involved quit a bit of relief cuts in order to remove the hide. A number of years ago we switched to skinning out with the deer hanging from the head. Then we do one cut around the neck and one extending the cavity cut up to the neck cut. Then when pulling off the hide there is no relief cuts needed at the legs. If you are careful you get less hair on the meat and thus can do a cleaner job with minimal meat contamination. We try to NOT touch the hide (hair side especially) and then touch the meat. When skinning our goal is to not touch the meat with hands/knife. We then spend a judicious amount of time removing tallow/fat on the exterior of the meat PRIOR to any other cutting. Once again to minimize meat contamination when "playing" with it on a cutting board/table. We then remove larger chunks of meat from the carcass and then on the bench cut them into serving sizes as desired and overwrap/freeze. Through out the process we often wash our hands to keep everything as clean as possible. Prior to cutting up meat we also fully clean our knives. I have done quite a few deer through the years. Figure I have done/helped with over 100 deer so far in my life. We have a lot less sausage/sticks made than the average hunter. The last deer I processed was solely cut up into roasts, steaks and ground for hamburger.

 

[Kentucky Windage]

Just call me Major Obvious. However, it amazes me sometimes how little deer hunters know about the quarry they pursue. Unfortunately, many just shoot deer, gut deer.....poorly, take deer to locker plant, pay locker bill, put venison in freezer, let venison sit for a year in freezer, throw venison away after it's freezer burned, and then repeat. I know at least 3 that do this every year like clockwork. Such a waste of a good deer.

I’m guilty of referring to the shoulders as the “front shoulders.” My dad points that out to me every time! I think it’s because they walk on all 4’s making all the quarters appear as “shoulders.” I haha’d and felt better about myself knowing I’m not the only one!

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For what it is worth, here is what we do in a nutshell. We used to skin our deer with the carcass hanging from the rear legs. That involved quit a bit of relief cuts in order to remove the hide. A number of years ago we switched to skinning out with the deer hanging from the head. Then we do one cut around the neck and one extending the cavity cut up to the neck cut. Then when pulling off the hide there is no relief cuts needed at the legs. If you are careful you get less hair on the meat and thus can do a cleaner job with minimal meat contamination. We try to NOT touch the hide (hair side especially) and then touch the meat. When skinning our goal is to not touch the meat with hands/knife. We then spend a judicious amount of time removing tallow/fat on the exterior of the meat PRIOR to any other cutting. Once again to minimize meat contamination when "playing" with it on a cutting board/table. We then remove larger chunks of meat from the carcass and then on the bench cut them into serving sizes as desired and overwrap/freeze. Through out the process we often wash our hands to keep everything as clean as possible. Prior to cutting up meat we also fully clean our knives. I have done quite a few deer through the years. Figure I have done/helped with over 100 deer so far in my life. We have a lot less sausage/sticks made than the average hunter. The last deer I processed was solely cut up into roasts, steaks and ground for hamburger.

Besides the cuts made while gutting, a deer can be skinned upside down with zero relief cuts.

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Cutting around the neck and from the throat down to wherever you stopped along the sternum from gutting........2 messy relief cuts from watching friends skin deer this way

 

[Davy Crockett]

Venison ribs are probably the most under rated part of a deer and worth a try if you haven't. Probably should be off a bigger deer though, Wife shot a doe one year and there wasn't much on them.

 

[Maddog]

I’m guilty of referring to the shoulders as the “front shoulders.” My dad points that out to me every time! I think it’s because they walk on all 4’s making all the quarters appear as “shoulders.” I haha’d and felt better about myself knowing I’m not the only one!

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Besides the cuts made while gutting, a deer can be skinned upside down with zero relief cuts.

- - - Updated - - -

Cutting around the neck and from the throat down to wherever you stopped along the sternum from gutting........2 messy relief cuts from watching friends skin deer this way

Well, it works for me. : ) Perhaps some people aren't careful and don't understand/appreciate how to cut the hide and not hair.

And it sounds like your way works for you. : ) Which is awesome.

It isn't a competition. : )

 

[Kentucky Windage]

Well, it works for me. : ) Perhaps some people aren't careful and don't understand/appreciate how to cut the hide and not hair.

And it sounds like your way works for you. : ) Which is awesome.

It isn't a competition. : )

Right, it’s a talk forum, not a competition. People talk. You have me curious about how one skins a deer, cutting the hide without cutting any hairs? Outside of shaving it first, I’m not sure how to pull that off.

 

[shorthairsrus]

I cut that layer that maddog isnt touching off. aka Membrane--

If the deer is fresh shot ---- that hide comes off without much effort --- hide and neck, horns is dealt with one pair gloves, Sawsall the thing in half, cut a quarter and start making steaks and trim. This is making me hungry.

If anybody wants any help for a few steaks - let me know.

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PS -- if your deer is frozen and the hide is still on -- dont call me

 

[Maddog]

Right, it’s a talk forum, not a competition. People talk. You have me curious about how one skins a deer, cutting the hide without cutting any hairs? Outside of shaving it first, I’m not sure how to pull that off.

put your blade of the knife on the inside of the skin and solely penetrate the skin while cutting

you will cut hardly any hairs . . .

just like when you gut the deer

When I am casing out the legs, I fully pull the skin down past the knees and then cut the bone below the knees with a bone saw. Then on the floor I cut the hide free from the attached legs. All the leg hair stays away from the meat.