Can You Safely Sugar Cure a Venison Ham?

Sue H from Baldwyn, MS asked:

Can you sugarcure a deer ham like you do hog ham & it be safe to eat?

Hello Sue, 

Thanks for the question. Yes, you can cure venison hams in the same fashion that you cure pork hams I have actually produced a few videos on topics exactly like this one. I have videos that show the detailed processing of bone in Venison hams, boneless venison hams and Canadian Bacon made from the back straps. If you really want to expand your processing knowledge you check out my MasteringMarination DVD which deals with all these products. 

The actual step by step details are a little to detailed to layout in text but the videos are very instructional and I truly believe you will enjoy them. 

Thanks and good luck!

Brad Lockwood 

Should I Leave Processing of Wild Hogs to the Professionals?

Grant from Dallas, TX wrote in:

Hi Brad,

Saw two of your three seminars at the NRA Annual Meetings in Nashville. Great work and thanks for putting those on.

I live in Texas and try to shoot as many wild hogs as I can fit into my freezer.

When I get the meat back from the processor it has been frozen solid as a rock. Friends of mine say this "flash freezing" helps kill any parasites that might be in the meat. Is that true? If so, should I leave processing of wild hogs to the professionals or is it ok to age them in my refrigerator and store the pieces in vacuum bags in my freezer?

Hello Grant,

Flash freezing will kill some parasites but the better method is cooking the pork properly. Cook your pork well and you will be just fine.

You can age your pork just like beef and deer with no worries, Simply be sure to cook it well, bloody pork is no good, much different than beef. I prefer to process my own game under all conditions no matter what the animal is. 

The only one I trust with my food is me. That way I'm sure it wasn't cut on the same dirty cutting block with 10 other animals. That way I know the grinder was cleaned properly before my meat was put in. And that way I know it didn't sit out in the warm cutting room while everyone takes lunch breaks. Yep.... I prefer to do it myself! 

I love my garden, my canned deer meat, my own smoked hams, my own bacon. I need a green house in my back yard so I can have my own fresh tomatoes and lettuces year round! Maybe some chickens for fresh eggs. Now I'm getting overboard! However I do feel much better when my food comes from my own hands!

I hope you enjoyed the seminar and I hope to see you next year!

Brad

Aging, Cold Smoking & Food Safety

Dave from Elk Ridge Maryland wrote:

Brad: A quick question... Here, we get plenty of does and my cousin wants to skin and hang a whole deer for about three days in the barn (temp in barn stays around 40 degrees and no more). But, he wants to let it dry and just cold smoke it for five hours, then process the meat after 3 days. How safe would that be? Thanks for your help!


Dave,

If I'm understanding your question correctly then yes, aging a deer in the barn at 40F for 3 days will be perfect! That's the correct amount of time to age and the proper temperature. There are several questions on the blog under aging that will really help you to understand the aging process. This link will direct you to all of of my posts on aging: http://www.loveofthehunttv.com/search/label/Meat%20Aging%20Questions.

On cold smoking... Check out this other post regarding cold smoking procedures and understanding the cold and hot smoking process: http://www.loveofthehunttv.com/2013/08/cold-smoking-vs-hot-smoking.html.

During cold smoking you will need to further process the meat product after the smoking process because you have never applied heat to reduce, eliminate and kill bacteria. If you simply cold smoke then consume the product, you are eating pretty much 100% raw meat, which is not good. If you are going to cold smoke then be prepared to fully cook the product later. 

One of my favorite processed meats is cold smoked sausage. I use a breakfast sausage mix, then stuff into standard natural hog casings. I make sure the casings are wet to the touch so they will absorb a lot of smoke, then I apply 3 hours of cold smoke, keeping the smokehouse cabinet temperature below 100F. I remove the product and immediately refrigerate. Then I pan fry and serve. Great product! On jerky, which is an item that is generally consumed immediately, I would not recommend cold smoking the product.

Good luck with all the does this season and try some cold smoked sausage! You will love it!

"The Meat Man"
Brad Lockwood