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Got a sika on the weekend, whenever we get anything we can usually hang it in a friends chiller but not this time and the flys are pretty bad at home so we butchered it (steaks and whole hind leg roasts) and threw it in the freezer. Not ideal I know. Will it still be good eating or a little tougher than usual?
Should be all good.
In my very limited experience, it will be just fine.
All I do these days is cut it up in the field, throw it in the fridge when I get home, tidy it up in a few days, into bags and in the freezer. Sure yours will be fine
Thanks all!
The test is when it's time to cook and eat it, if back steaks are tuff (not from poor overcooking) then mince the rest for burgers/sausages or cuts for slow cooker or just suck it up and chew a lot more.
If you cannot hang it, a week in the fridge spread over racks on blood catching trays below also works or vacuum pack straight away also in fridge for at least a week and a half to two before freezing.
Congrats Chelsea :)
i find if you dont age it in a chiller it will taste better with a bit of time in the freezer
like in a month or so it will start tasting better
I often start skinning and cutting up minutes after cutting the throat
pop in in my canvas meat bag and im away.
you can also give it a little aging in the fridge once its defrosted
Sika are all tough. Won’t be different. [emoji23]
People eat venison? I thought you just left it on the ground after you posed for the pictures?
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you can age it after you thaw it too...just leave it in fridge for 2-3 days...I put a pudding bown upsidedown inside a large SS mixing bowl and sit venni on this...that way any blood that drains out can bugger off into bowl and wont taint meat....
if all else fails get stuck in with Maxwell....
Freezing blows the cells open a bit which is kinda what you do when you hang it. It starts decomposing ( doesn't sound very good when ya say it like that :)
I did a sheep a couple of months ago and the chiller at work was broken so put it whole in the freezer for a couple of weeks then chopped it up. Seemed fine to me but then I still have most of my teeth left :)
If you really want to find out the art of hanging game.....come over here.....the English are nuts:::XD: you heard the saying hang it till the feet drop off, well I have seen that with pheasants:sick:
Sure yours will be fine.
If tough make up a good marinade let it soak in that for 48 hours and it will be fine.
Battle of two great grand fathers and grand father advice from the UK for pheasants:
1. Hang the pheasant with bailing twin by the neck - when it fell it was ready...6 - 10 days.
2. Wrap it in brown paper and place into dung heap for a week - ready for Sunday lunch.
Personally after experience i would shoot the bird on Thursday for a Sunday roast and no more!
I vacuum pack everything now as it keeps better with no freezer burn if you forget something in the bottom of the freezer.
You can vacuum pack it and then age it for 3 weeks in the fridge before freezing it. That way you don't get it too dried out
If you just leave it in the fridge for 3 weeks.