Processing Time - Start to Finish?

[BearFoot]

Took a few weeks to get the burger, dogs, sticks back. Still some good eats!

 

[Bullshot]

A deer takes about an hour to quarter, take backstraps, tenderloins, and usable from ribs, neck, brisket area. Then I usually put tenderloins and backstraps in the fridge, quarters on ice to process later. That takes about 3-4 hours incl grinding, vacuum sealing, cleanup. I am pretty detailed about trimming. And the stuff my dog gets is probably what a butcher would use for grind. (But dogfood is damn expensive too and cutting with venison helps!) It has been made tremendously easier once I got over worrying about grinding “good cuts” and once I kept shoulders whole for braising/pulled venison.

 

[howl]

I get them in the cooler in about an hour plus drive time. It was faster before I had a kid "helping". Processing takes me no time because my wife fired me. Apparently I'm not meticulous enough to suit her. Whatevs.

 

[Derek44]

1/2 a bull elk. Solo. I had about 7 hours actual knife and grind/package time into it. I’m EXTREMELY picky on trim though. And I’m one that when I pull a pack out of the freezer to cook, it’s time to cook, not continue the trim and process step. Tenderloin whole. Shank whole but off the bone. Higrade steaks from backstrap and hind quarter. Ground and packaged with food saver. Sadly the food saver is not speedy. But I’m happy.

 

[Caseknife]

Takes me about 8 hours to completely process a deer by myself. All the steak and roasts are kept in whole chunks to slice when I cook. The shanks this year were kept whole, the blade roasts now have the scapula retained, quicker, and did two bone in shoulder roasts. My burger is probably not as pure as some, but there is no hair or bloodshot, but silverskin and a bit of fat are good to go. Grind my own with a 1hp grinder and add nothing, gets packaged in 1lb in a quart freezer bag and then wrapped in freezer paper. All the cuts were vacuum sealed this year. I was taught to clean everything off the bones as a kid, only thing left is around the bullet wound.

 

[Potsie]

Granted, I spent a healthy portion of my childhood in my grandpa’s butcher shop, but I can knock out a deer in 2 hours, complete with double ground burger and single ground set aside for whatever sausage I’ll make. We eat the hell out of roasts and burger so that’s where it all goes. Plus it’s easier to pull a roast out and turn it into steaks than the other way around. This years elk took me 5 hours but I had an insanely curious 4 year old trying to help. I’m not over the top with my trim, but catch the silver skin, glands, and fat. I am, however, over the top about hair - downright obsessive would probably be a better term.

I’ve got about 20 pounds of antelope and elk to make into sausage, and a ziploc of last year’s deer to get put up in cans waiting for a home weekend. Brats and polish this year, maybe some chorizo.

 

[WestKyHunt]

Finally

 

[redandwhite_72]

By myself, it took me 5 hours to skin, quarter, debone, and trim out all the meat on my sons small whitetail buck. Probably took another hour to slice and grind all the meat.

 

[Steiny77]

Killed a doe a couple days ago. Gutted in the field then loaded up and hauled back to hunt camp.
Got it on the gambrel & skinned, then broke down into the following pieces; front legs whole, neck meat, back straps, inside loins and hind quarters. I don't mess with meat between ribs, we can shoot lots of deer. This process took an hour or slightly less to get the meat broken down, on ice, in a cooler ready to travel.

Yesterday I processed it for the freezer, took about two hours to fully process, grind, vac seal, etc. with a buddy helping.

3-4 Hours total would be a pretty safe bet.

 

[nastynate]

. I am, however, over the top about hair - downright obsessive would probably be a better term.

Since you grew up hanging out in a butcher shop, this isn’t really for you. But If you’re skinning the whole critter (aka not the gutless method) I’ve found the details of these guys skinning process has really helped reduce hair issues, particularly how they start the hocks before hanging and what they do on the head/front quarters.

Also, a propane torch makes those pesky hairs vanish right quick.

 

[Boarmaster]

I do it in 3 parts as I’m 9 hrs from home to my hunting lease.

Part 1: It takes me about 10 minutes to gut a deer. Then I leave it hang.

Part 2: A half hr to skin and debone and get a deer in the cooler.

Part 3: Once home it takes me about 2.5 hrs to break down , trim , slice, grind and package.

If I have more than one deer I estimate it takes about 45 minutes to an hour per additional deer.