Meat Processing

[MikeC1]

How many have had their game processed by a commercial processor with all the cuts being "bone in" you know T-bones, round steaks, rib roasts with the bone still in the cut? Here in Albuquerque most of the meat processors cut the meat all boneless now. I had to go to a new processor this year because the guy who I always used sold out and closed. He did bone in cuts. The one I went to gave a lame excuss about not doing bone in cuts because of CWD (cronic wasting disease) Here in New Mexico there haven't been any confirmed cases of CWD in our ELK. The New Mexico proclamation does state that no portion of the animal may be removed from any unit where the presence of CWD has been confirmed, except processed wrapped meat with no part of the head or spinal column attached. Since there aren't any confirmed cases this doesn't apply.

I think that the processors just want to avoid the extra work without lowering their prices.

Sorry guys I just had to vent because I feel like I have been ripped off by Green Valley Meats here in Albuquerque and to warn others not to use this processor. Its not because they did boneless cuts. I didn't get any ribs at all and none of the "cuts" is really accountable. They have marked the meat with only a bare minumum of labels, Backstrap, sirloin, stew, roast. Not rump roast, shoulder roast or round steak or anything to let you know what you have or where on the animal it might have been cut from, even without the bone. Now who in their right mind would debone ribs and what would you be left with? These people have a big smoker right out front of their store where they advertise smoked ribs! Can you guess where my ribs went?

Do not use Green Valley Meats here in Albuquerque unless you want to get ripped off.

 

[HerbD]

You mean "ribbed off" don't you?

 

[MikeC1]

Ha! HerbD Ya ribbed off! No tenderloins too

Never again will I use Green Valley Meats!

 

[dakotakid]

The only way to assure you get all your meat, and all your meat cut to your specifications is to do it yourself.

Mike

 

[need2hunt]

I agree, w/dakotakid and doing it yourself. It helps give a good meaning to the term "respecting the animal" when you do all the work yourself. I think everyone who gets their game processed commercially is ripped off. Getting a whole deer back in an apple sized box or a whole elk back in 2 of those boxes??? You will see the difference when you do it on your own.

 

[Boman]

You might double check your facts.. I'm pretty sure CWD has been detected in New Mexico.. I believe it was on the White Sands area..

 

[WapitiBob]

I've done all mine for years.
I seperate every muscle then use a fillet knife to cut the steaks , cut down thru the muscle to create a steak the desired thickness, then turning the knife sideways to fillet the casing off the bottom. You have nothing but a clean steak, no casing, bone, fat, tendons, etc.
takes all day but it's the only way to go.

When they cut meat with the bone in they smear all the bone and marrow over the face of the steaks, as well as leave the casing on, yikes. The fat deposits between the muscles stays in there too.

 

[sremim]

he only stated it has never been found in elk. It has been found in deer in NM.

 

[PAL]

I usually do my own processing, but if for some reason I need to take it to a meat packer I always (at the least) cut out the back strap and tender loins.

Sorry, but I just don't trust anyone with my tender loins... (that didn't sound right).

 

[MrBaitnFish]

I agree with Wapiti Bob. Leaving the bone in just puts bone dust on the meat and can really ruin the taste of the meat. I always de-bone, and do it yourself, that way you know what you have.

 

[sremim]

I do all my own processing as well, and I have an illustrated book that tells you every cut you need to make. I have followed these illustrations on several deer and elk, and have found it to be the most informative of any I have ever seen. All cuts come out perfect, and there is almost no wasted meat. It also provides great recipes, and info on how to dress/cook/process small game and birds, not just large game. I found it at a local outdoor store, however, I noticed the CDOW website sells it as well. It is called Dressing and Cooking Wild Game. If you want some guidance on the best cuts to make and how to do it correctly, you will be very satisfied with this book.

 

[MikeC1]

Thanks everyone, I guess I'll be looking for some good books.
I already know most of the cuts and there won't be any doubts about what I have if I do it myself.
The Dressing and Cooking Wild game sounds pretty good.

And yes they have found CWD in deer here, but only 1 or 2 isolated cases.

 

[alsatian]

DakotaKid is right: do it yourself.

It is not hard to do. Like everything, you get better at it, but even your first effort will be entirely acceptable. Why pay someone else to do it, worry about whether they are ripping you off, get cuts done differently from your own preference?

Doing it yourself you can size the portions to the needs of your family. Do you package your portions to feed two alone or a family of five? Two adults and three young children or two adults and three ravenous teenagers?

Also, there is a satisfaction in doing it yourself. While we all have our reasons for hunting, I'm guessing all of us enjoy hunting at least partly because it connects us with earlier people -- our dads hunted, our grandfathers hunted, Daniel Boone hunted, the nomadic people in Europe hunted. We connect with them, in a very real way, because we have to solve the same problems. Where are the deer (or elk or antelope) going to be? How can I get close enough to kill one? These same people had to process their meat themselves. I don't suppose that Daniel Boone took his deer to the processing plant! There is a greater level of self-reliance in processing the meat yourself. And again . . . it isn't rocket science, you don't have to be a board certified surgeon, any dummy can do it!!!

 

[RIMROCK338]

I've worked in a butcher shop and the cheep way to go was to leave the bone in. Chuck it up on the bandsaw and slice away
and just pack it up,not too clean.I know people that cut their
own stakes and roast and will take great pains in cleaning up
their burgar meat just to take it in to have it ground and wraped and not get back their own meat.so ask if you have someone else grind and wrap your burger if you get your own back or if they just trade raw meat for x amount of wrapped meat.

 

[crextin]

I have done it both ways. I have cut and wrappped my own game as well as taken it in to have it done. I have found a local place that does a Great job. Only $.50/lb to cut and wrap.

This year I had various types of sausage done up and it turned out GREAT! Cost a little more but well worth it in my book.

The trick is finding someone who will Gurantee that you get your own animal back.

 

[MikeC1]

The guy I use to have do it was a stand up honest guy. On all his advertising he used to say that you could come down and watch him cut it up yourself if you wanted to. Green Valley Meats makes no such offer. The hell of it was that I had called around to the local gun shops/sporting goods places and asked who they recomended and alot said Green Valley Meats. That was one of the main reasons I posted in the first place is to warn people off of Green Valley Meats here in Albuquerque. The woman that owns the place has a personality that is best described as cold. Should have been my first clue. Like I said, no ribs, no tenderloin, a few small roasts and steaks and alot of stew meat packages. Very vague labeling. No large roasts or big slabs of round steak off of the hind quarters, bone or no bone. In fact almost all the packages are small and don't add up, bone or no bone. The 4 quarters weighed 354 lbs.

I'm going to start doing it myself.

 

[vinihunt]

is that her GINA CHAVEZ and her HUBBY MARK OR SOMETHING

 

[2_Point]

Well, I hate to be the lone voice to disagree but I have to 100% disagree with the above post concerning how the Elk was cut up. I don't live in New Mexico so I don't have any idea about the processor, but I have all my elk done by a processor here in Utah. I do cut my own deer, but I find elk are too big and cost me alot in materials and time.

When cutting up wild game, High Quality processors ALWAYS debone the meat. Wild game is less gamey when the meat is deboned. As was state before, the end product is also much cleaner. When the animal is deboned the weight of the Returned meat is much less, but that isn't bad. Storing bone in the freezer doesn't do much, but worsen the taste and quality. Also, as was stated before, it is much harder and time consuming to bone the meat rather than just run it through a saw. Sounds like it was labled decent enough, and maybe there was a lack of instructions if too much of one cut (stew meat) was received.

I have taken game to people who really do a poor job (bone in, dirty, not your meat). I have found a reputable service which is great (deboned, clean, decent price). I usually pull the tenders, cut off the ribs and take the rest into the processor. The tenders go on the stove and the ribs go in the garbage.

 

[MikeC1]

Vini, Those were the folks I used to use. Wish they were still around.

 

[Bambistew]

I agree with the posters above. Boned out meat takes a whole lot longer to do and is more expensive.

How much meat did you get back? About 145+/- pounds? That should be about what you should get for boned out meat from that much in quarters... depending on if it was shot up badly or not... entier front quarters could be toast... or hinds for that matter. That is unless you like eating blood shot meat!

Of course with bone in you would get a whole lot more gross, but not much more net... If you wanted ribs you should have asked for them, as well as roasts and what not. Ribbs are not normally cut unless asked for. And roasts are generaly cut into steaks, because probably only about 30% of the people ask for them. Other wise it sounds like you got thier "normal" cut and wrap job. Most normal cut and wrap jobs involve, steaks (round, loin, tender loin, and maybe sirloin labeled) the rest is stew and hamburger, wich includes the meat between the ribs unless its all dirty or dried out. Most places really could care less to break it down any farther than that that, its more time consuming and time is money... Its not beef so they don't label it as such.

Did you ask where your tenderloins where? You could have spoiled them with guts or they could have been all cut up, dirty, shot up, etc etc... Most places I've been around keep a record of that kind of stuff. So when Mr. Irate calls up and asks why his tenderloins were stolen they pull out thier little card or whatever and read off the reason... They may have been miss labeled too. Did you open and inspect every package?

I cut meat for a few years too, and have cut my own for years. I've seen more meat thrown away because it was spoiled and not properly cared for in the field than you would care to see. I distincly remember three guys that came in with three bulls that were entirely spoiled. This was of course after three days of vicorty laps aournd town in 50 degree sunny weather... they they had the gaul to say we stole thier meat and sold it. We told them that they would be getting a call from the fish and game for wasting meat... and they pretty much got out of dodge fast!

Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending these guys if they suck. But if you got you own meat back, but wasn't cut to your liking, I really can't see that you have any one to blame but they guy giving out the cutting instructions... To jump to conclusions and accuse them of something could possibly land you in more trouble than its worth. Stealing and selling wild game? I know you're pi$$ed, but just remember...

Two little words, Slander, and Lible...

 

[MikeC1]

OK, I was waiting for this one. The 4 quarters were some of the cleanest you're likly to see. All wrapped in game bags after being cooled out overnight in a locker on the ranch. The shot was broadside through the ribs, no wasted meat anywhere. Yes, I asked for ribs and they even asked how thick do you want your steaks cut? How much hamburger and chili meat? Roasts?
All seemed in order at the time. I did not unwrap and look at everything or take the time to weigh it all, they were frozen. I figured without the bone I might get half of what it weighed. If they sell smoked ribs then they must think there is something to them to keep them intact. Why did they debone mine? This aint my first rodeo bud.

I do know what you mean though about bad meat, as I was unloading mine some guy rolled up with an elk in game bags, deboned, and laying directly on the hot bare metal bed of his pickup. The bags were warm to the touch.