Grinding deer meat, die size?

[chef k-dude]

Dad already got an 8 point this season and we skinned, quartered and deboned it while still warm. It was 67 degrees yesterday here in Virginia, so no letting it hang for days. Nice deer, so clean, zero odor...which is kind of a disappointment lately, the deer we've got for the last several years are so mild, you cant taste any "deer"!

So I'm now tasked as usual (dad always had his butchered until he built and moved next door to me) with vac sealing the meat. Got about 50lbs off the bone to deal with. About half of that is destined for grinding. I may grind some of the roasts and larger pieces but for now will vac seal those and freeze in the interest of time.

I have always ground deer meat with the 3/16" die. I grind my burger meat from chuck using the 1/4" die for maximum texture, but with deer meat, there is always some connective tissue etc in the lesser cuts so I figure a smaller grind will make that stuff less noticeable, and it usually works. But, that finer grind texture easily identifies that it is deer in chili, etc..

That's all good, but I thought to ask the opinions and experience of others.

For those blessed with deer meat, how do you prefer to grind it?

I dont usually blend in any fat but just checked and my local country grocer sells both pork and beef fat on request. What are your thoughts on adding one of those fats?

 

[Timber II]

I clean my deer meat really nice -very little connective tissue and run it once through 3/16 and then it’s good for chili, etc.

A buddy of mine gave me some ground elk and it had 10% beef tallow in it and it was wonderful. I may try to do that for some of my own ground deer.

 

[indaswamp]

We also take our time and remove all tough connective tissue. Can be a PITA, but the final product is better....we run it through the 4.5mm plate.

 

[chef k-dude]

I may have miss-typed on the connective tissue. I do cut away anything hard-ish, remove any fat and what silverskin that makes sense. There are some parts that are layered and impossible to remove the silver skin that I wont let go to waste. My ground deer is always good, no weird chewy stuff.

Thanks for the replies.

 

[luvcatchingbass]

Best deer burger I have ever made was around 80/20 (maybe 75/25) deer/beef brisket fat. Not sure on my die size but I normally do a double grind through what I call the medium die. I'm working on getting my hands on some ribeye fat trimmings from a local butcher shop/local cattle ranch.

 

[doubles shooter]

I grind my burger twice. First grind both meat and 20% beef fat is with a 3/8"plate. The meat is mixed in a meat lug to better distribute the fat, then through a 1/8" plate. Works for everything from burgers to tacos.

 

[indaswamp]

I may have miss-typed on the connective tissue. I do cut away anything hard-ish, remove any fat and what silverskin that makes sense. There are some parts that are layered and impossible to remove the silver skin that I wont let go to waste. My ground deer is always good, no weird chewy stuff.

Thanks for the replies.

The stuff that has a lot of tough connective tissue and tendons, we use as stew meat. Cook that down for 4-5 hours and it turns to gelatin much like what happens to a brisket. Makes for great flavor in a stew. This would be the shanks, some parts of the shoulder and neck...

 

[Gonna Smoke]

I grind my burger twice. First grind both meat and 20% beef fat is with a 3/8"plate. The meat is mixed in a meat lug to better distribute the fat, then through a 1/8" plate. Works for everything from burgers to tacos.

I do similar except I like 25% beef fat and start with the ½" plate...

 

[hoity toit]

I do 3/8 plate., mix 20% beef fat, then either 1/4 or 3/16 plate for final grind.

 

[chef k-dude]

Thanks all. The largest die I have is 1/4". I can see where a double grind for fat infused deer meat makes sense to distribute the fat better.

I have a basic Harry-Homeowner grinder. If I were to get some beef fat from the local butcher and shoot for 20% fat, how should I go about the grind? Typically I cut the meat in to chunks no bigger than an inch, and if its pork with its fat, I try to distribute the fat best I can as I grind, then mix gently by hand once ground before vac sealing.

I think I'm going to freeze the trimmings for grinding until I can get some beef fat and give it a whirl.

 

[luvcatchingbass]

Thanks all. The largest die I have is 1/4". I can see where a double grind for fat infused deer meat makes sense to distribute the fat better.

I have a basic Harry-Homeowner grinder. If I were to get some beef fat from the local butcher and shoot for 20% fat, how should I go about the grind? Typically I cut the meat in to chunks no bigger than an inch, and if its pork with its fat, I try to distribute the fat best I can as I grind, then mix gently by hand once ground before vac sealing.

I think I'm going to freeze the trimmings for grinding until I can get some beef fat and give it a whirl.

I normally mix my chunks of meat and fat and eyeball as I grind when to alternate then a light mix in the tub to get the meat to fat look even then run one more time through the grinder to really get the mix. Obviously I try to do this with as cold of meat as possible so depending how much I'm doing I might throw things back into the freezer for a bit between grinds.
Little tip for cleaning grinder out is run 2-3 slices of bread at the end to help get the fat and sticky stuff out.

 

[pineywoods]

I do as most here do I use the coarsest plate I have for first grind then fine plate for finish. I usually grind some without fat first and then mix 15-20% with the rest and I just try to eyeball it and like others mix again in tub.
During the season I bag and vacuum seal all my grind meat and freeze it then just grind it all after hunting season.

 

[Gonna Smoke]

If I were to get some beef fat from the local butcher and shoot for 20% fat, how should I go about the grind?

Have him grind it one time through a coarse plate. Then you can mix it in with your beef either before you grind it the first time or after...

 

[chef k-dude]

I appreciate the advice. Need to find some freezer space for the meat to be ground. I have already vac sealed it in 5lb batches. I like the idea of waiting a bit to grind it. I've stood over the worktable butchering and vac sealing too much the last couple days. Be nice to take a break. Problem is, my freezers were fairly packed and I didn't imagine dad popping this buck on day two of the season!

 

[SmokinEdge]

3/16 to 1/4” is my preferred grind, but sometimes if grinding with silver skin I’ll separate the worst of it and grind that through 1/8” plate, then mix it all together. That’s a good trick in sausage making too.

 

[conradjw]

3/4" first grind
3/16" second grind
1/8" is only for burger you buy at the store, where they have to grind it fine to hide all the crap they throw in that they shouldn't.
Also when you use grinding plates smaller the 3/16" the burger patties turn into hocky pucks.
On good burger never go anything less than 20% on the fat.

 

[tallbm]

Dad already got an 8 point this season and we skinned, quartered and deboned it while still warm. It was 67 degrees yesterday here in Virginia, so no letting it hang for days. Nice deer, so clean, zero odor...which is kind of a disappointment lately, the deer we've got for the last several years are so mild, you cant taste any "deer"!

So I'm now tasked as usual (dad always had his butchered until he built and moved next door to me) with vac sealing the meat. Got about 50lbs off the bone to deal with. About half of that is destined for grinding. I may grind some of the roasts and larger pieces but for now will vac seal those and freeze in the interest of time.

I have always ground deer meat with the 3/16" die. I grind my burger meat from chuck using the 1/4" die for maximum texture, but with deer meat, there is always some connective tissue etc in the lesser cuts so I figure a smaller grind will make that stuff less noticeable, and it usually works. But, that finer grind texture easily identifies that it is deer in chili, etc..

That's all good, but I thought to ask the opinions and experience of others.

For those blessed with deer meat, how do you prefer to grind it?

I dont usually blend in any fat but just checked and my local country grocer sells both pork and beef fat on request. What are your thoughts on adding one of those fats?

I do 1 grind with 3/8 plate.
I also grind the fat I use (beef brisket fat or pork backfat) with this plate.
Also, also, when making sausage from pork butts or brisket meat still use this plate, it's pretty much my go to.

Why 3/8? The grind is big enough for burger and sausage making while not breaking down too fine when mixing seasoning for sausage making.
When making sausage the seasoning mixing process usually breaks down the ground meat even further to basically a rough paste which means there is no need to do a 2nd grind to break down the meat more. The mixing process does this more than I actually want but hey, gotta get the meat tacky.

Will grinding 2x work, sure. Will it be necessary or useful... I've never found that to be the case for burger grind and sausage making. Others may have a good reason to grind more than once for what they are doing, but I never have and it was more work for no payoff in my cases.

Now you mention connective tissue in the deer meat. I would highly encourage you to solve this problem BEFORE you grind by cleaning silver skin and any skin film off the meat.
Also don't grind shake meat, heel meat, or any cuts that have silver skin all through them. Use those cuts for braised dishes and you will get a much better use of the meat as that tissue breaks down during the long braising process.

I learned a long time ago the rule: if there is any tissue in the meat that you would NOT throw in to the skillet, season, cook and eat... then it does not belong in grind, on steaks, or in jerky.

I fought the rule and lost. I followed the rule and wow, never had any issues.

The one muscle/cut you can get away with a grinding and leaving some internal silver skin on is the Sirloin tip roast (see below "Sirnloin"). clean off all white fat, silver skin, and slimy skin you see off the top, ends, and back end of it. Any internal silver skin will be ok but this is more of an exception than the rule.

The heel is that big round muscle where "Rear Shank" is written, the regular shank meat is on the bone beneath the heal. Clean this up a little cutting off obviously thick silver skin and tendon and then you can just braise this as is but it's not grind OR jerky worthy IMO and according to the rule I mentioned.

 

[pineywoods]

I appreciate the advice. Need to find some freezer space for the meat to be ground. I have already vac sealed it in 5lb batches. I like the idea of waiting a bit to grind it. I've stood over the worktable butchering and vac sealing too much the last couple days. Be nice to take a break. Problem is, my freezers were fairly packed and I didn't imagine dad popping this buck on day two of the season!

Tell Dad that he needs to buy you another freezer to keep up with his deer processing