Eating Fresh Game Right After a Hunt

Michael from Courtice, Ontario, CA wrote:

Brad,

My question is about eating freshly killed game meat. I watch a lot of hunting shows on Canada's "Wild TV" and I see guys get so excited after they kill a deer/elk/moose, etc. and they say "We'll have those back-straps on the BBQ tonight back at the camp." I don't know a lot about meat preparation and the aging process. But I would have thought that eating a freshly harvested game meat (same day) would not be the best way to enjoy the meat.

So, would it not be better to dry age the meat 3 or 4 days before cooking it? Or, can you get the same tasting meat from a fresh kill as you would if you dry age it? I am a brand new hunter, in fact I just took Ontario's mandatory "Hunter Safety Course" a few weeks ago and I was surprised that they don't discuss safe preparation/consumption of game meat - other than field dressing/transporting back to camp and keeping it cool as soon as possible after harvesting the animal.

So, before I get out there and harvest my first animal, I would like to know how best to enjoy a fresh kill.

Very best regards!

Michael,

You are correct! Aging meat properly is the best way to truly enjoy wild game meats! Be sure to look around on our blog page as there are several great questions and replies under the aging meat link.

Yes, you are correct and I have done it many times myself! Harvest an animal and just for tradition cook up some fresh meat for a celebration. It's more tradition than enjoyment but anytime you can eat what you harvest it's all good! To properly explain how to process meat and perform proper field dressing would take more typing than I can do!

My best advice here would be our Deer & Big Game Processing DVD, which deals with field dressing a trophy animal & a meat animal, skinning and caping your trophy, aging your animal and then deboning all the quarters of the animal and defining all the cuts from each and every primary muscle in the animal. This DVD is a must have for every hunter - Beginner to Advanced. It's used by many states here in the USA during the hunter's safety classes to instruct students on proper field dressing.

I would check it out and good luck in your new adventure!

"The Meat Man"
Brad Lockwood
Outdoor Edge's LOH TV