The better to butcher you, my deer.
Every year, about this time, hunters travel deep into the woods stalking that elusive beast, that delicacy of the forest: the deer.
This year I learned how to process a deer. That's right, process a deer. From forest to freezer. Please allow me to inform you - step by step - of the wondrous circle of life - err, death - which befalls deer during this season:
1. The deer must be killed. This isn't a necessary step because the following steps will accomplish this if it's not already done, but it is rather difficult to finish step #2 if step #1 is not done.
2. The deer must be "field dressed." Field dressing is rather straightforward. With a sharp knife, cut a slit from genitals to ribcage and allow the internal organs to slide out. The organs may be left at the kill site as a testimony to your hunting prowess.
*At this point most people take the deer to a butcher/processor. This is also the point at which my practical experience comes in. I visited Eric and Penny Bingman, a husband/wife duo who, along with their children and my housemate, Travis, opperate a rather successful deer processing facility.*
3. Skin the deer. I won't go into all the gory details, but I'll tell you the main ones. Hang the deer (head up or down) and cut the skin around the neck and the lower half of each leg. Pull the skin back. Use a knife to cut the skin from the body when it refuses to leave that hollow, meaty carcass that once roamed the forest.
4. Remove head and lower portion of each leg. The head can be saved to mount on a wall (especially if antlers protrude from it). Otherwise, the head and legs are a waste product. Feel free to throw them in the trash. Or, if you happen to have a neighbor who owns a coyotee farm, the animals find the legs to be a delightful snack. You may want to save the brain if you plan to make a leather out of the hide (more on this later).
5. Butcher the carcass. This is an interesting (and fun) process. All cuts generally follow a bone, which is a logical action if one is looking to maximize meat return. The four legs are removed and the meat is cut from them. The back straps (which run along either side of the spine) are removed. Finally the neck and rump meat is removed. In my experience, a lot of this meat was ground into chuck, but some of the better meat (back straps, for instance) were cut into steaks.
6. Throw away the remaining carcass in a dumpster parked outside the "kill barn." The carcasses can then be taken by the garbage man to the nearest landfill.
As I lay down to sleep that night (and the smell of deer meat wafted up from my beard to my nostrils) I thought about all the practical applications of field dressing.
This year I learned how to process a deer. That's right, process a deer. From forest to freezer. Please allow me to inform you - step by step - of the wondrous circle of life - err, death - which befalls deer during this season:
1. The deer must be killed. This isn't a necessary step because the following steps will accomplish this if it's not already done, but it is rather difficult to finish step #2 if step #1 is not done.
2. The deer must be "field dressed." Field dressing is rather straightforward. With a sharp knife, cut a slit from genitals to ribcage and allow the internal organs to slide out. The organs may be left at the kill site as a testimony to your hunting prowess.
*At this point most people take the deer to a butcher/processor. This is also the point at which my practical experience comes in. I visited Eric and Penny Bingman, a husband/wife duo who, along with their children and my housemate, Travis, opperate a rather successful deer processing facility.*
3. Skin the deer. I won't go into all the gory details, but I'll tell you the main ones. Hang the deer (head up or down) and cut the skin around the neck and the lower half of each leg. Pull the skin back. Use a knife to cut the skin from the body when it refuses to leave that hollow, meaty carcass that once roamed the forest.
4. Remove head and lower portion of each leg. The head can be saved to mount on a wall (especially if antlers protrude from it). Otherwise, the head and legs are a waste product. Feel free to throw them in the trash. Or, if you happen to have a neighbor who owns a coyotee farm, the animals find the legs to be a delightful snack. You may want to save the brain if you plan to make a leather out of the hide (more on this later).
5. Butcher the carcass. This is an interesting (and fun) process. All cuts generally follow a bone, which is a logical action if one is looking to maximize meat return. The four legs are removed and the meat is cut from them. The back straps (which run along either side of the spine) are removed. Finally the neck and rump meat is removed. In my experience, a lot of this meat was ground into chuck, but some of the better meat (back straps, for instance) were cut into steaks.
6. Throw away the remaining carcass in a dumpster parked outside the "kill barn." The carcasses can then be taken by the garbage man to the nearest landfill.
As I lay down to sleep that night (and the smell of deer meat wafted up from my beard to my nostrils) I thought about all the practical applications of field dressing.
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