Is a meat grinder necessary?

[Catchfish]

Depends on how much meat you got I guess.
Here’s 46 packages of breakfast sausage and 64 packages of burger in 2 lb packages for our winter meat.
Also 3 packages of beef suet left over on top.

 

[KoolBreeze]

I’ve never had one but my bunch don’t care for the ground deer so I never bothered.

I bought a grinder that was on sale that can grind 14 pounds of meat a minute, one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. It doesn’t take up counter space either, it stays in the basement until I’m ready to grind. I have several friends that bring their deer over and we grind everything up at once.
Personally I love the ground venison, so to answer your question it really depends on your taste. I have no problem grinding an entire deer except for the backstrap‘s and shanks, just my style. Either way I hope you enjoy your elk meat!!

What’s your secret? I’ve not had any like better than beef.

 

[Tyson]

I’ve never had one but my bunch don’t care for the ground deer so I never bothered.


What’s your secret? I’ve not had any like better than beef.

Pork back fat, mix about a 10% pork back fat to 90% venison mix. Everyone just assumes it’s beef when they eat it, and with the fat you can do anything with it, even make burgers and throw them on the grill and they keep their shape and size.

But it has to be pork back fat, I’ve done just “pork fat” and it becomes gristle, meanwhile the back fat melts and is delicious

 

[Grisha]

I would say yes - you can a japanese made one that will last a long time for 150 bucks or so.

That said, it is possible to use a large chopping knife to mince meat that you can use like ground meat, but, man, that is a pain in the butt...

 

[afilko]

you might be able to get away without it for elk but if you do more hunting it gets used a lot, especially with deer that have cuts that are not tender enough to make anything but stew or ground. When you have it you will find more uses for it, try making sausage ect.

 

[SuspiciousFish]

If you’ve got a instapot you can turn your “burger” pile into tender stew meat within a couple hours. Or buy your wife a kitchenaid for Christmas—the meat grinder attachment works great.

Kitchenaid stand mixers are really nice. You can even use them to shred chicken. You just cook it on the stove then throw the thighs or breast into the mixing bowel and it will shred it just like a restaurant. It will probably work with roasts too.

 

[sickles107]

I see it as a necessity.

Lots of trim to be had, plus square off whole muscle cuts into clean blocks and grind that trim.

I have basically gone to wrapping backstraps and major rear ham muscle groups whole, everything else is ground. It's just simple and easy to cook with.

 

[Boarmaster]

If you want to make the most of your meat, yes. If not , no. There are any handy uses for ground game meat you just wont get with stew meat or steaks or roast. I use my grinder to make my own pork sausage as well. Your not limited to just game meat. In my opinion your grinder is the cornerstone of your processing equipment. Of course if this is the only game meat your ever going to have then probably not worth the expense.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Thanks for all the feedback. I don’t eat a lot of burgers but I do like sausage. I think I’m going to try and go without it for a little bit and see how it goes. If I get bored with the stewed meat I may just go ahead and purchase a grinder.

If you buy a grinder you will soon find many uses for it. I now buy pork butts on sale for $.99 a pound and we make 25 pound batches of breakfast and sweet Italian sausage when we want. Next it will be summer sausage.

 

[Rob960]

I have already just cubed the meat up that I wanted for burger and froze it in 1.5# packages. I then ground it in the Kitchenaid grinder attachment as needed

 

[crich]

If I were to own only one piece of processing equipment it would be a grinder.

 

[Clovis]

I have had great luck with an all-stainless steel attachment that runs off the kitchenaid mixer PTO--found it on Amazon. If you have the mixer it is a good way to go as others have said it it isn't the Kitchenaid brand one and I think it is better because of the metal construction. Back in the day I used to use a hand grinder and I can't recommend that, though i always wondered if my blades weren't sharp enough on the old hand grinder I used. As to whether you need it or not, it depends on how you like to eat your game meat. I grind a lot and it goes fast around my house. It is just a convenient and versatile way to cook w/venison. I mix with pork butt and grind it coarse and think it makes a better burger than beef,

 

[AKBC]

Good replies and I would add that I like to pressure can some of the meat that I would otherwise grind. I can in half pint and pint glass jars and it makes great taco or sandwich meat. It is also shelf stable.

I do not have a grinder but take trimmed meat to a local processor. For $0.69/pound, they grind, package in plastic chubs, and flash freeze. I can't beat that.

 

[MallardSX2]

Yes. What the hell else will you do with all of the trimmings? Waste them?

 

[Desk Jockey]

If I were to own only one piece of processing equipment it would be a grinder.

This. I would say a few decent knives (I like victoronix) and a grinder are the essentials. I have a pretty good hand crank. Mine is a $50 Weston and stores pretty compact. It works but it is a two person operation really and Not super easy but would be fine for small quantities. A food processor or a less expensive grinder can also handle smallish quantities. I ground a lot of meat with a $100 LEM #8 countertop version. Keep it clean and take your time and it works fine.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

A meat grinder is entirely unnecessary...............................................if you can't fill your tag.

 

[Coopsdaddy]

Ya if you want ground meat,no if you dont.
Simple enough

 

[Ark6]

As a small holding farmer who butchers hundreds of pounds of meat every year for family use, aside from game, this is absolutely a “buy once, cry once” situation. Buy the best grinder you can, go in on one with some hunting friends, keep it clean, keep it dry, oiled, etc, and it will a group of hunters a lifetime. I’ve got the 1.75 hp “meat!” grinder, it is amazing how quickly you can be through all the grind you could want with a good grinder. I’ve used cheap ones, hand cranks, etc, and while they may eventually get the job done, they will be frustrating and make you hate butchering. Over time you should also get on eBay for some used victorinox knives (more than good enough for hunters and they are far cheaper by the lot) get some thick (at least .5 inch) cutting boards, a decent knife sharpening method or a local guy who does it for a fee per knife, two meat tubs, and some packaging method (we use both vac seal and the ground meat bags like you get from a processor) keep it in good shape and you’ll be glad you have it.
I’ll be grinding all the trim and tough cuts from two elk my friends got (4 of us went, 2 tagged out) this weekend, I’ll be glad I have the grinder.


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[Kenai_dtracker]

I love a grinder as I do summer sausage and burger, so it's a must have for me. Geese, ducks, venison, etc. I also do some canned venison with a pressure cooker and that has come out great! Just throw in some stew meat, a little fajita mix, couple slices of Jalapeno, and follow meat pressure cooking instructions. Last for a while on the shelf.

 

[rclouse79]

I started processing my own game seven years ago and just finally borrowed my friend's grinder for the first time this year to turn the front quarters of a cow elk into burger. I usually would just cube the meat you would normally grind and label it stew meat. I actually prefer cubed steak for a lot of things like chili and tacos. When I used to pay a game processor, it seemed like they turned about half the meat into burger. After making a meatloaf recipe we used to make with wild game, I can say we missed having burger. After seeing how well the grinder worked, I am a fan.
As far as space goes, I keep my big dehydrator and the grinder out in the garage based on them being used infrequently.