Thread: Advice on handling meat after the kill

What everyone else has said, it depends on lots of things, everyone that’s done it for a while has a different recipe. I’m probably a bit fussy but my personal method for goats is once on the deck get it in the shade if possible (flies aren’t as keen on shade but they are still keen). Then cut the head off and then get the guts out. I generally carry the carcass out whole if it’s not too long to walk. Goats are fairly light to carry and keeping the skin on keeps the bush off the meat.
Having a gambrel hook and a couple of pulleys is well worth while along with some running water to rinse the knife as you’re skinning.
I hang in the garage with a fan keeping it cool and skin and butcher within two days. At butchering time I just cut the back stakes off first and then any front wheels that aren’t bulleted. Then one back wheel taking as much meat with it as possible and then the spine comes off the other back wheel which is still hanging. Spine and ribs are given away as dog tucker. Everything else goes in the freezer.
I do the final breaking down in the kitchen after defrosting the part that I need for the meal.

I use the back stakes for spicy roasting usually for meals to serve 1-2
One back wheel makes a curry that lasts two of us two nights.
One back wheel and one front wheel for a curry to take to a potluck.

If anything does go wrong with the meat between shooting and freezer/table it will most likely be maggots after it’s had a visit from flies, mould after getting wet, or sweat after being suffocated in a hot bag in the sun. In all of the above you will know by looking/smelling and how to avoid it happening.

Different handling techniques may elicit different flavours but after it’s full of curry spices I don’t think any particular popular way would consistently win the Pepsi Coke challenge.