Tips on cooling meat when it’s hot

[Bmac7]

Any tips on cooling meat when it is hot out?

 

[2rocky]

1) shade
2) breeze
3) running water (hang over running water in the bottom of a draw close enough that the air coming off the water is cool but the meat isn't getting wet.
4) Cooler Full of Gallon jugs of water frozen solid
5) moving blanket or sleeping bag around cooler to add insulation

Goal is to cool it down under 4 degrees Celsius within 24 hours (approx. 40 deg F)on the carcass surface in commercial beef plants. You aren't going to do that in the field unless nights are dropping below freezing.

If you are on foot in the early season, my rule of thumb is once something is down, then we pull up stakes and get meat to refrigeration. Killed a tule elk at dusk in 90-95 degree temps and drove it directly to the locker at 11;30 at night. Luckily the locker owner waited up for me. Has a good chill on it before I put it in the cooler for the 6 hour drive home.

 

[MULEPACKHUNTER]

my son came up with a good one a while back on a hot 6 mile meat hike, we stopped in a wash and found a damp shaded area in a bend and burried the meat while we napped and waited for the sun to get behind the hills then we finished the hike. Meat was pretty dang cool when we dug it up.

 

[Bmac7]

my son came up with a good one a while back on a hot 6 mile meat hike, we stopped in a wash and found a damp shaded area in a bend and burried the meat while we napped and waited for the sun to get behind the hills then we finished the hike. Meat was pretty dang cool when we dug it up.

Interesting. I’ve never heard of that. Thanks for the tip

 

[Trumpkin The Dwarf]

Airflow, and shade, preferably near a creek. Once the meat has dried off a bit you can stick it in a trashbag and submerge in the creek for a couple hours. Citric acid spray can buy you quite a bit of extra time as well.

 

[Justin_Tree]

To add to what others have said, I like to put the meat in my sleeping bag during the day after cooling in a breezy area at night.

 

[TradLife406]

Cache it in a stream in a drainage bottom in contractor bags. If the meat gets wet it doesn't seems to effect it.

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[JRMiller]

Assuming had access to a cooler, Mix salt with the ice cubes or crushed ice in the cooler

 

[idahohikker]

Cache it in a stream in a drainage bottom in contractor bags. If the meat gets wet it doesn't seems to effect it.

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If there’s stuff in the creek you don’t want, the meat can get ruined.

 

[Wrench]

Think about how you can get the largest temp swing on your favor the fastest way possible.

Cold air sinks. Evaporative cooling is your goal when temp is in your favor, insulation and shade when its not.

Water cools a bunch faster than air, does have some risk of bacteria and or viruses....but I've never seen one that lives through a BBQ.

Kill it quickly, get hide off and big muscle groups broke down to start evaporative cooling, use every thing you can to get as much cool air moving through your meat and send the ph level lower.

It takes a long time for meat to spoil if you get it cooled and off the bone.

Don't be afraid. Guys have been killing elk in hot country without freezers for a loooong time.

 

[Rich M]

We shoot a lot of deer down here in 90 degree temps - couple hours before the cooler don't hurt 'em. Longest I've gone is about 5 hours - gotta get em out of the woods, have a beer or two, cut em up and put em on ice.

Some of my hunting areas are only about an hour from shot to cooler - that meat is tougher as a rule.