Does the ice water slush at the bottom of the cooler really matter?

[Mikido]

I’ve read a lot of posts both ways. Anybody have real world experience with both “soaked” game bags at the bottom of the cooler, and “dry” game bags, held up somehow or water constantly drained?

Thanks

 

[LoggerDan]

Oh man, no slush for me! I drain that thing. Rock salt and lots of it keepthat ice longer.

 

[SloppyJ]

That's one thing I'm a stickler about. Always drained. Don't like water on my meat.

 

[ScreamingPotato]

I don't think it matters, but I don't like slush on the meat at all both for the meat care and for when I'm processing it I prefer it to be bone dry. I keep the plug open and meat should be on top of a layer of ice to keep it off the bottom. Bacteria needs moisture, obviously there's moisture in the ice but there's a lot more if it's in water. I age everything at least 7 days and usually about 10 then start processing depending on timing of the kill and the trip, etc. A long time ago I had some quarters develop some rancid film when they were left with water in the bottom, it was around the 5th day or so. Back then they weren't completely submerged and I'd unplug the cooler once a day when I got home from work (I was concerned about flies on the drain) so the meat kinda got wet/soaked then dried then repeat. I don't do that anymore.

 

[SloppyJ]

I don't think it matters, but I don't like slush on the meat at all both for the meat care and for when I'm processing it I prefer it to be bone dry. I keep the plug open and meat should be on top of a layer of ice to keep it off the bottom. Bacteria needs moisture, obviously there's moisture in the ice but there's a lot more if it's in water. I age everything at least 7 days and usually about 10 then start processing depending on timing of the kill and the trip, etc. A long time ago I had some quarters develop some rancid film when they were left with water in the bottom, it was around the 5th day or so. Back then they weren't completely submerged and I'd unplug the cooler once a day when I got home from work (I was concerned about flies on the drain) so the meat kinda got wet/soaked then dried then repeat. I don't do that anymore.

I built a PVC stand for my cooler that I can put all of my meat on and keep a layer of ice underneath. Works really well.

 

[Maverick1]

Once had an elk quarter get submerged in an ice water bath inside a cooler. It drained all the blood out and that meat ended up a different color than the other quarters. Smelled fine but was lighter in color with all the blood drained out. Didn’t segregate it when it went in the freezer so I’m not certain if it affected the taste compared to the other sections of meat. Put the ice inside clear plastic bags now. And put the quarters in clear bags, too. I try and keep them separated.

 

[Boarmaster]

I think its best to keep meat dry and cold. Wet and cold is probably ok , wet and warm is a bacteria factory. We soak wild hog meat in an ice bath for days as a general practice in Florida as hogs are butchered right after killing them If its too warm to hang them. I use ice blocks for my hunts for whitetail in Alabama to keep meat dry. We hang there as its cold and put the boned out meat in 2 gallon ziplocks on top of the blocks with the tops open. Meat is cold going in the cooler. Regardless if there is bagged or loose ice in my game cooler the drain is open or drained periodically.

 

[GSPHUNTER]

I put wire racks on the bottom of my ice chest then a layer of meat, covered by ice, more meat, ice, and so on until chest is full, and last layer is ice. I open drain and put chest in bed of pickup with end of chest slightly elevated toward drain end. Chest is in very back of truck bed. When I get home I leave it for at least ten days to wet age meat, making sure to check daily to be certain meat is completely covered with ice and drain is open and clear. I have wet age seven elk this way with very good results.

 

[Red Letters]

30 or so years ago that was the only way I did deer. In my mind I was draining the blood, I would leave anywhere from a couple days to a week. Nothing wrong with the taste or anything else, as another poster mentioned it made the meat pink instead of red.

 

[rclouse79]

I freeze gallon water jugs so the water stays in the jug as they start to melt. It works pretty well and saves a lot of money compared to buying ice at the gas station every trip.

 

[butcherboy]

It doesn’t “hurt” the meat as long as it stays cold. It will change color. Also, if there is any dirt, hair, fecal matter on the quarters the melted ice will spread it onto the other quarters. My advice is to freeze water bottles or any plastic bottle or small jug and fill one cooler completely full and bring one empty cooler. Frozen bottles go in the bottom of the empty one then meat on top and continue adding frozen bottles where needed. Use the other cooler for more meat with frozen bottles as needed.

 

[S-3 ranch]

I’m a wet age fan , every time I’ve have some deer or nilgai I put them on ice with drain open , 4-7 days and add ice as needed with block ice on bottom, bags or big ice on top.
bloody slush is no bueno and promotes bacteria imo.
I use a 100qt ice chest ( 1 nilgai or 3-4 deer) that happens to have a hose connection I use to keep the blood and water flowing out the truck or garage .
the butcher I use guarantees I get my meat processed independently from other people’s , so it’s at top level quality from field to table
i make my own ice @ home so 4 day minimum

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[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

I use baking racks and frozen bottles to keep any meat from sitting in water.

Cooler Racks & Wet Aging

Found this out a little by accident but it's proven to be pretty awesome. You can find tons of sizes of cooling racks for baking on Amazon. I bought a few for cooking, but at some point realized they fit perfectly in the bottom of my Rtic 65. Very useful for when I wet aged my deer last year...

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[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Am curious if those folks that feel it is a great idea to soak wild game for days on end in ice water, do they also do the same thing with their domestic meat such as beef, pork, turkey, chicken, catfish, etc?

Takes zero effort to remove a drain plug, use plastic bottles with frozen tap water, dry ice, etc for transport home.

 

[SteveAndTheCrigBoys]

Am curious if those folks that feel it is a great idea to soak wild game for days on end in ice water, do they also do the same thing with their domestic meat such as beef, pork, turkey, chicken, catfish, etc?

Takes zero effort to remove a drain plug, use plastic bottles with frozen tap water, dry ice, etc for transport home.

Well...beef and pork from the store is already aged.

I would dry age if I had the space and money, but I don't and wet aging seems to work well too. 5 days seems to be the sweet spot.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

I'm another frozen jug guy. However, if the meat gets wet, I don't worry too much.

 

[Smithb9841]

I built a PVC stand for my cooler that I can put all of my meat on and keep a layer of ice underneath. Works really well.

Great idea thanks for posting think I’ll have to try the same

 

[NRA4LIFE]

Just an FYI for those using dry ice for the first time. Make sure the ice is very well insulated from the meat. I have used 3-4 layers of corrugated cardboard or 1/2" plywood.

 

[EdP]

Rock salt and lots of it keep that ice longer.

This is an often repeated myth and is simply WRONG. Adding salt to ice, as in an ice cream maker, lowers the temperature of the water/ice slurry. Doing it to your cooler will make inside your cooler colder which increases the temperature difference between inside and outside of your cooler. Heat movement is driven by temperature difference so your ice will melt faster because the temperature difference is greater.

Ever notice that highway departments salt roads in bad weather? They don't do it to make the ice on the roads last longer.

 

[DoubleAron]

Growing up in TX it was a common thing to put whitetail in a cooler full of ice water for days. The way I was shown was to skin and quarter at the rack, wash with water to clean and put them in coolers full of ice water. Then add ice as needed draining off some of the water. After two days they would move to a fresh cooler for a few more days. Meat was always excellent.