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How long can you leave venison iced down in a cooler?
- Thread starter duvhntr
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Omega
Well-Known Member
Both are correct, assuming you keep them at below 40 deg. You can probably leave it a little longer, but that is my average time.
backyardtndeer
Well-Known Member
So long as you keep it drained and ice cold, anywhere from 7 to 10 days will be fine. Sure you could keep it in the cooler 2 weeks as long as you keep it cold and drained.
I wouldn't leave it longer than 7 days if your grinding any of it. It gets mushy and doesn't want to pass thru the grinder after 7 days imo
GumbyGuy
Well-Known Member
As long as you have it covered in ice it will keep a very long time. But think about cutting up that backstrap and rolling it in an egg/flour batter and frying it . I'm afraid it wouldn't be very long before it would be gone.
I'm confused. Are you saying you don't believe in aging meat?
I'm gonna process one tonight that's been on ice for 14 days. Not floating in water though.
I usually go 7-14 days in a cooler depending on my schedule.
I usually go 7-14 days in a cooler depending on my schedule.
Id say many people simply have no clue about meat science.
If done properly, aging meat has no greater health risk than "fresh" meat.
As for letting meat sit in ice water for an extended period of time, it just looks and sounds disgusting. Regardless if its safe to consume or not, it looks fish bait to me.
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"Aging" is simply the breakdown of proteins and connective tissues by natural enzymes, which results in more tender meat with a more concentrated flavor. There is some probably credible thought that deer don't need to be aged as long as beef.
I can tell a big difference between not aging at all and 3-4 days, but I can't tell much of a difference between 3-4 days and 7 days in terms of flavor and tenderness.
The enzyme activity continues and the meat will become "mushy" as timberjack pointed out, but this isn't because of bacteria if the meat has been kept cool.
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This is a really informative read:
www.themeateater.com
The Science of Aging Meat | Wild + Whole
There is a phenomenon that frequently occurs in the world of gastronomy in which food that was once considered lowly, crude, or simple is transformed into the prized fare of the rich and well-heeled. What was once referred to as "peasant" food often finds itself, many centuries later, on the...
I'm going to crawl down the aging rabbit hole and build myself a walk in cooler. If I die from it I'm totally coming back to haunt yall!
I've left them anywhere from 7-16 days. In a cooler. Just let it drain. It's nice to have a rack in the bottom to keep the meat away from any blood or water that may settle as well.
I have a rack built in my cooler that keeps the meat above water AND ice. I don't let anything touch water or let the meat get wet. I leave the meat in anywhere from four to seven days. Mostly depends on when I'm going to have time to process.
Dry aging venison also allows for moisture loss that is usually associated with gamey flavors.
3-4 days might get you there, idk. A lot hinges on humidity, temps and air flow 70% humidity and 35 degrees is a good ball park figure.
As for concentrated flavors, much of those flavors have to do with the environmental molds in the aging area. These are good molds and as expected, each area can have different strains.
Tenderness can be achieved via dry or wet aging (I'm talking about placing meat in a vacuumed sealed bag, not in ice water).
If meat doesnt go through basic rigor it will be much tougher, so 24 hrs is the minimum anyone should "age" meat before processing unless it's going straight to the grinder. I'd guess and say 3-4 days in the minimum you should age one before things start to take a noticeable difference in taste and tenderness. In the beef world, 14 days is a bare minimum to achieve tenderness. Keep in mind beef carcasses are much bigger than typical deer, so in theory I'd think you could probably achieve tenderness in venison by day 7. Maybe on a younger and smaller deer you could get there in sub 7 days, idk but there isn't a truly designed study I'm aware of. Maybe in countries with high farmed venison consumption studies might exist, I haven't look but it would be interesting. I just know in the US most aging research is beef related.
Also, your cooking methods matter too. I wouldn't go through the whole aging process to later grind up most of the deer and/or use wet cooking methods. Or, if you put ketchup on your steak.
For the last several deer I've killed, I boned them out, put them in plastic bags (as air tight as I could get them) and kept them on ice for 3 weeks...very tender after that.
tellico4x4
Well-Known Member
We've got a walk in cooler at camp to let hang if not cool enough outside, but have to run off generator. If it's just me there, I use 2.5 gal Ziploc bags & put boned out deer in fridge periodically draining blood off. Can put a mature buck in 3 of those bags.
That would be defined as "wet aging" and is 100% effective when it comes to tenderness. The down fall is all those juices just set in the meat, some people do not like the flavor profile.
If I did your method, I'd make sure to put the steaks on a rack and let them drip dry in the fridge for a day or two. This would allow those juices to drain and essentially achieve a dry aging profile. I'm one of those who don't like the flavors of any fluids that come out of animals.
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FWIW, the argument against this according to meat scientists is that the muscle contracts during rigor mortis, but if it isn't attached to skeletal muscles, there won't be anything pulling it back to "relax" when rigor passes.
Perhaps if you are aging for 3 weeks none of that matters.
mike243
Well-Known Member
Thats not a proper aging process imo, do they age beef in a water/ice bath? beef are aged in a climate controlled environment that is lower humidity to help stop any bad germs from getting a toe hold. folks hold meat in coolers a lot, I personally think it's a bad idea but I been a HVAC and fridge tec most of my life. I also smoke a lot of meats and try to follow safe standards.
