What Happened to my Venison??

[tperk100]

Am only a Monday Morn cook. Have cooked many “experimental” Anova Sous Vide recipes. Most come out very good and some not so good………but definitely still appealing. My 48 hr cook venison shanks has always been very good.

Finally had a disaster and cannot figure out why. Tried to change up …added something different, sauerkraut and capers, to venison shanks and cooked at 130 for 50 hrs. Upon opening bag was almost knocked down by the terrible smell, seemingly of rotten meat. Bravely I tasted a piece and it was VERY tender and KIND of tasted OK…….but no one could possibly eat this with the smell it was reeking of. To the garbage can it went.

So what happened???? Need advice from a REAL cook!

 

[indaswamp]

The sauerkraut has live lactose fermenting bacteria in it. You added it to meat so the bacteria started going to work on it. The shank also has a bone, and bone is where a ham will go sour when drying so it could have had some bad bacteria in the bone and it started going to work as well. Or if you removed the bone, the meat was contaminated.

I recommend to Never 'experiment' with sous vide cooking unless/until you know the science behind it and know what you are doing. 50 hours is a very long time to sous vide any meat...follow pasteurization tables for time/temp.

 

[indaswamp]

paging chef jimmyj

 

[indaswamp]

I do not recommend sous vide with bone in cuts under 140*, and preferably cooking in 165* bath for 2 hours (depending on thickness), then reducing the heat to desired temp above 140*.
I have always removed the bone on venison shanks prior to sous vide, and I always coat with 20% salt solution prior to cooking for 20 minutes minimum. This high salt concentration will kill surface bacteria. Rinse off, season to your liking, then vacuum seal and place in water bath.

 

[thirdeye]

The sauerkraut has live lactose fermenting bacteria in it. You added it to meat so the bacteria started going to work on it. The shank also has a bone, and bone is where a ham will go sour when drying so it could have had some bad bacteria in the bone and it started going to work as well.

I recommend to Never 'experiment' with sous vide cooking unless/until you know the science behind it and know what you are doing. 50 hours is a very long time to sous vide any meat...follow pasteurization tables for time/temp.

Lactobacillus is used when making cheese, yogurt, sauerkraut or sourdough starter, etc. It's not harmful, although I can imagine what the smell would be like after 50 hours at the prime breeding temperature. Bone sour would not have occurred to me, that is a good point.

I do not recommend sous vide with bone in cuts under 140*, and preferably cooking in 165* bath for 2 hours (depending on thickness), then reducing the heat to desired temp above 140*.
I have always removed the bone on venison shanks prior to sous vide, and I always coat with 20% salt solution prior to cooking for 20 minutes minimum. This high salt concentration will kill surface bacteria. Rinse off, season to your liking, then vacuum seal and place in water bath.

Are you only referring to wild game only?

 

[indaswamp]

This is just one guide I pulled off the internet...
https://www.cliftonathome.co.uk/cooking-guide/sous-vide-beef/
you will notice that all the cuts with a bone that will be cooked over 4 hours are cooked at 60*C (140*F) or higher. The steak cuts like t-bone that are cooked at a lower temperature are not cooked over 4 hours.

For domestic meat cut like beef, I will pack straight salt on the bone on both sides and let it sit for min. of 20 minutes to kill surface bacteria from the saw at the processor. Rinse off, then vacuum and water bath.

This is what I do...chef jj may have better info for the O.P.

 

[thirdeye]

I was cruising for some information as well and stumbled upon this ARTICLE that specifically discusses "a bad smell with long and low sous vide", and a scalding procedure that will prevent it.

 

[indaswamp]

I was cruising for some information as well and stumbled upon this ARTICLE that specifically discusses "a bad smell with long and low sous vide", and a scalding procedure that will prevent it.

Yes, scalding after sealing will definitely do it. Thanks for posting.

 

[tperk100]

Thank you all for your very helpful responses. I now believe that sauerkraut was the problem. Damn Germans. And cooking at 130 was a mistake. I knew better. I got my temps mixed up with my whole beef tenderloin on the smoker temp. I had a neck roast in the same bag as the three shanks. Lost it all. Lesson learned.

Interestingly, as an avid deer hunter, I've cooked venison shanks with a variety of sauces, bone in, no salt, 144 degrees for 48 hours many times before and achieved bragging rights results. Here is one of my favorite recipes.

I've also slow cooked the very same recipe that failed here in my crockpot with very good results. I'm guessing the higher temp (even on low) and shorter cook time (around 6-8 hours) makes the difference.

I process my own venison, and I do it with meticulous care, avoiding any circumstance that could negatively affect the meat. Harvest circumstances vary greatly, but generally the time from whole "in my sights and on the hoof" to quartered and on ice "in the cooler" is only about 3 hours. For many years I have aged my venison smothered in ice. It stays on ice for a few days until I pull it out piece by piece for processing in my garage....with sparkly clean utensils and equipment.

 

[indaswamp]

Glad to help. Welcome to the SMF!

 

[chef jimmyj]

All good info here. I don't know much about SV but this Polish Boy knows Cabbage and Sauerkraut. Without getting too deep into it, there are Sulphur Compounds in the Cabbage. Over long low temperature cooking, <185°F, the cell walls breakdown and release more and more of these Compounds. They combine into a variety of new Chemicals, including Sulphur Dioxide, has that wonderful Rotten Egg smell. With a few exceptions you will usually see Cabbage and Sauerkraut Recipes that read, " Cook, Uncovered, just until tender. " I highly suspect this was a major contributor to the FUNK...JJ