How long do you let deer hang before processing?

[billp0806]

How long do you typically let your deer hang before processing? Any advantage to quartering before "aging"?

 

[wapitibob]

I quarter so I can pack them out, put in a cooler with ice and head home, leave them in the cooler till I cut them up a day or so after I get home.

 

[PredatoronthePrairie]

As long as it takes me to debone and pack out in the field.

 

[Jermh]

Obviously a more backcountry type hunt is different but for whitetail here at home we built a walk in cooler a couple years back and I like to let them hang about a week. Gut them, pull the inner loins, and let hang with skin on. I do think it makes a positive impact for both flavor and tenderness...and just not having to deal with the whole thing when you kill in the evening or when it's warm out is a definite plus

 

[billp0806]

We’ve considered a diy walk in cooler

 

[Steve300xcw]

Depends on the temps. They will darken up a bit, and I normally decided based on when I have time...


First deer I packed out, I deboned. Shoulda left things in as large of pieces as possible. Lost a bit of meat because of that

I have also had deer cut up, vac sealed an in the freezer within 8 hours of killing it.. Have also had them hang until they start to mold a lil. Both ate fine.

Anymore, unless I can drive a truck to them, they are going to be quartered up




I think how they die makes a hell of a lot more difference. You have a rodeo with one and you might as well just grind the entire thing.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

In the perfect conditions, I'll let them hang a few days or more. But where/when I hunt, that rarely is possible. Then they get quartered and in the coolers.

 

[tkat]

A couple days, in the cold area with fans running

 

[ScreamingPotato]

In Texas so don't hang them, but quarters and trim will be on ice in coolers 7-10 days unless I'm headed out two weekends in a row. I'll typically start processing the next Saturday and finish Mon/Tue depending on timing. I definitely try to keep it iced at least 7 days, gone up to two weeks before but rather not go past 10 days.

 

[journeyman713]

Temperature permitting, I hang it with the hide on for 7-10 days. The hide helps preserve the meat.

 

[Wolfshead]

We like to let them hang for about a week if we can.
We gut them remove the tenderloins and hang them head down with hide on.
We have no walk in cooler so ours is a shed and usually the temps are below 30 degrees or so.
Last season my deer went five or six days and then we began to have a warm-up so we had to process them

 

[Sadie]

10 to 12 days at 38 degrees.

 

[KenLee]

5-12 days, depending on what's going on and when I can get the time.

 

[MallardSX2]

I leave mine on ice for at least 5 days and up to 10 days.

 

[Boarmaster]

I would hang them for a week to 10 days if I had my way. But sometimes situations don't allow me to do so. At very least I hang them field dressed for 36-48 hrs before skinning and cutting them up. Then sometimes they are in the cooler for over a week.

 

[Yotekiller]

3 to 5 days

 

[curtyj23]

If I can keep the hide on and get it cooled off quickly, typically a week. If I pack it out or it is deboned then I usually get it done a day or so after I get home as to not dry it out too much.

 

[WCB]

It really depends. usually it is just the next day after killing it or getting home from a trip. Even more so when it is cold enough to freeze or warm. I don't have a controlled place to hang them. Also, I just don't get enjoyment out of walking by a hanging deer for a week and everyday in my head knowing I have to cut it up eventually. Just get it done and get the mess cleaned up. That way when I get another chance to hunt or do something I don't have to say "can't...got a month old dead deer i gotta cut up." Juice aint worth the squeeze to me.

 

[MtnW]

Depending on the temps, but if cool enough without hard freeze , 5-7 days seems about perfect

 

[brancher147]

I haven’t hung one in about 10 years. Kill 5-10 a year and debone on the ground and pack out. All my meat gets processed into ground for burger or bacon or summer sausage. Big roasts I use for jerky or pastrami or chunk up for canning. Only meat I cook whole is backstrap or loins and those usually get dry brined in fridge after thawing from frozen.