Deer hams - information needed

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bearcarver, I brought the two goose breast up and washed them off and resugered and cured them, in seperate bags. Hopefully they didn't take much over night or I'll be eating some salty stuff. We will find out ina week or so. :) The deer had drawn more water out also.

Thanks Dave
 
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bearcarver, I brought the two goose breast up and washed them off and resugered and cured them, in seperate bags. Hopefully they didn't take much over night or I'll be eating some salty stuff. We will find out ina week or so. :) The deer had drawn more water out also.

Thanks Dave
That could easily give it more salt & cure than needed, because it was Full strength for a Day---Twice, so after you cure it for the right time length, cut a couple slices & give them a Salt-Fry-Test in the frying pan. If it tastes too salty, soak it in cold water for a couple hours, changing cold water every half hour. Then try testing it again. Do that until it's not too salty. Then get your pellicle on it & Smoke it.

Bear
 
These went in Sunday night to the basement fridge. All noticeable change pretty much happened in the first 24 hours. The salt and sugar disappeared and water extruded from the meat. All meat got thicker, or less flexible quickly. How are you sure when its done ready for smoking? I have no problem waiting until Monday to smoke it, but why wait 6 or 7 days when tenderquick says right on the bag it its ready in a day? It says 4 - 6 hours to full cure?

So why does everyone on forums like this say to wait 6 days or so and Morton's says it can be ready the same day? Does it just cure from Botulism in 4 - 6 hours and not penetrate into the meat fully?
 
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These went in Sunday night to the basement fridge. All noticeable change pretty much happened in the first 24 hours. The salt and sugar disappeared and water extruded from the meat. All meat got thicker, or less flexible quickly. How are you sure when its done ready for smoking? I have no problem waiting until Monday to smoke it, but why wait 6 or 7 days when tenderquick says right on the bag it its ready in a day? It says 4 - 6 hours to full cure?

So why does everyone on forums like this say to wait 6 days or so and Morton's says it can be ready the same day? Does it just cure from Botulism in 4 - 6 hours and not penetrate into the meat fully?
Morton's doesn't give proper directions for curing things for smoking, on the package.

Even in their book, they end up cooking the meat at 350°.

I include how I calculate my curing in all of my Step by Steps (including the one I gave you above).

I go by a formula I learned here 7 years ago:

2 Days for every 1/2" (thickness), Plus 2 Days.

Then I add another 2 or 3 days to that. (whichever suits my schedule best)

Others go by 7 Days per Inch.

Both are fine. IMHO

Bear
 
I just went down and measured the deer shoulder and it is 1 3/4" thick.

So by your timing 7 or 8 days + 2 days to 9 or 10 days Or 1 3/4 weeks for the other way.

Wednesday evening will be 10 days and a week and half for the deer roast. The goose is done, I am sure, and maybe overly salty just bathing waiting for the smokehouse to warm up.
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I just went down and measured the deer shoulder and it is 1 3/4" thick.

So by your timing 7 or 8 days + 2 days to 9 or 10 days Or 1 3/4 weeks for the other way.

Wednesday evening will be 10 days and a week and half for the deer roast. The goose is done, I am sure, and maybe overly salty just bathing waiting for the smokehouse to warm up.
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Yup---As long as you had the proper amount of cure in there, 9 or 10 days should be fine. Or as long as 14 would be OK, but I wouldn't go any longer.

Bear
 
Well they are out in in the smokehouse, but I am having trouble keeping the temperature low. It easily hopped to 135° with just coals now in the fire box. I have the damper on the intake closed fairly tight and its still hot. I assume I need to have a lot of practice fires to get used to this thing and trying to get low temps. Maybe I need a dampers into the smokehouse from the fire box??

Deer is at 124 and the smokehouse slowly dropping to 133. I will probably start to warm it now slowly to cook by days end. Looks like to am going for cooked like you did Bearcarver. I think 135° is a bit high for died venison. What do you think? Curign and dried food might need to wait for the next try.

This was it going in. This little goose fish are probably going to be jerky.

 
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Well they are out in in the smokehouse, but I am having trouble keeping the temperature low. It easily hopped to 135° with just coals now in the fire box. I have the damper on the intake closed fairly tight and its still hot. I assume I need to have a lot of practice fires to get used to this thing and trying to get low temps. Maybe I need a dampers into the smokehouse from the fire box??

Deer is at 124 and the smokehouse slowly dropping to 133. I will probably start to warm it now slowly to cook by days end. Looks like to am going for cooked like you did Bearcarver. I think 135° is a bit high for died venison. What do you think? Curign and dried food might need to wait for the next try.

This was it going in. This little goose fish are probably going to be jerky.
If you're talking about the kind of Dried Beef I make, I try to get it into the area of 160° Internal Temp, but mine gets sliced paper thin, because it is actually Venison Dried Beef.

Bear
 
Old time smoke houses like yours had a way to let heat out of the FB or the duct work leading to the smoke house....    A "TEE" with an adjustable damper in the smoke pipe was one way...   A duct on top of the FB where it connects to the smoke pipe.....    Or they opened the door to the FB wide open to let heat out...    If you open the door, which I would try, place some bricks in front of the fire, if needed, to reduce the chance of inrushing cold air to fuel the fire.... 

Your smoker will work very well after a few smokes and some tinkering with temp control....

You could also add some adjustable fresh air inlets to the smoke house...  That would do about the same as the upper air inlets on a RF smoker... 

 
 
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It worked and did a hot smoke, but cold smoking was not an option. More experimenting and learning to do.
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I got it up to 180 in the house and decided to heat it up on. The fire box got hot!! The plastic anchors gave way and the door fell off.
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Now I need to research lead anchors or masonry screws as a substitute. I had to pop a 12" square walking stone against to door to hold it in place. LOL

but its done and I'll post pics tomorrow.

We ate the goose fish already and DAAAMN it was good. Very dry but didn't even taste like goose. It was a dark red probably darker than ham.  I can't wait to slice this tomorrow.
 
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My wife likes this stuff, and she doesn't like deer and hates goose unless marinated to cover it. I had to almost slap my daughter as she was eating the goose like candy. I think I lost maybe an ounce to her and other taste testers.

The goose was salty as I cured it twice. The second batch was only half the cure but the same amount of sugar. My wife actually like it better than the deer. She thought the deer needed more cure/salt. The deer had a light salt taste but still very nice. I think I am going to do an entire deer later this year all at once.this is Awesome. Great recipe Bearcarver!

This was it coming out of the smokehouse. One fish is missing as it was tasted tested before I could get my phone out.


The goose goose breast sliced


The deer shoulder


Deer being weighed, 25oz


Goose sliced weight

 
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That's Great, Rob!!
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Glad you all like it !
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Nice Job of sticking with it.

The Bear would never steer you wrong! 
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Bear
 
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OK, the heat bypass has been made. I posted on Masonry fire boxes in the smokehouse forum.

Now its deer killing time and my buddy wants me to do some full deer hams. His FiL used to make deer hams and said coat in salt and so many days its done. So, I am back to beating this horse again. I tried reading on here, but just am not seeing the country hams being made and not from venison.

I want to bone out the hams and coat them in a sugar cure of 1tsp cure and brown sugar per pound and rest in the fridge and then slow smoke in the smoke house at maybe 85 - 90°. Thoughts? Yes Bear, the whole leg bone out cured cut open then bound when smoked. Some will be for the freezer and eating and I want to learn to leave a few dry hanging like cured country hams. 

I am also thinking about trying the kosher salt with inst-cure (#1 powder) and using that for the cure. 
 
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