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Show Cutting up your wild game is fun By JOHN W. CANNON Outdoor Editor Hunting has many challenges and rewards, and some hunters may be missing out on a very satisfying part of the hunt by letting someone else cut up their deer for them. For myself my-self and a number of sportsmen, cutting cut-ting and processing our own game meat is a very fulfilling and enjoyable en-joyable part of the hunt and helps to remind us of our dependence upon mother nature. Im not going to say that this aspect of the hunt is for everyone, but there is something about cutting it up yourself that just makes it better. As you fillet the chilled red meat from the bone, in the same moment you anticipate the savory steak in the frying pan and recall the - thrill of the hunt. A I - "" I ou i f . For me spending a day cutting up my deer gives me an opportunity to reflect upon the hunt, to relive and relish it in my mind before I must return to my life in civilization. Then each time that I pull a package of carefully cut and wrapped venison from the freezer, the memory of the hunt comes back to me. While the flesh of the beast nourishes and sustains me physically, physical-ly, the memory of the hunt and the preparing of the meat help to nourish and sustain me spiritually. This intimate interaction with nature enriches the soul, and brings a feeling of oneness with the wild things of the earth. As I eat the venison it becomes a part of me; its flesh and protein become part of my own muscle and blood. I am no better than the deer and the deer is no better than I, but we are equal participants in the interaction interac-tion of all living things, each having an impact on and affecting the other. If a bear eats a man is the bear then superior to that man? The hunting of wild things reminds us how interdependent we are upon all living creatures. We are part of them and they are part of us. Without the plants and animals of the earth, we cannot survive. sur-vive. We must preserve the natural world, for it is part of us. The Big Mac in a Styrofoam box distances us from nature; we forget the role that the earth has played in giving us those two all-beef patties and sesame seed buns. The hunter, on the other hand, returns directly to the original source of mankind's survivalthe natural environmentand what could be more natural than cutting up your own wild game? For me it has become an integral and important impor-tant part of my hunt. Preparation of the meat starts even before the hunt begins. A successful suc-cessful hunt is paramount to having something to cut up, and so every effort toward that end is time well spent Foremost among these preparations prepara-tions is the ability to shoot straight A well-placed shot is the first step toward tasty venison. This year I shot a small two point through the heart at about 200 yards. He was running, angling away from me when I shot I was using a 30-06 with a good variable power scope. The bullet went through his heart and lodged in the far shoulder, doing do-ing very little, if any, damage to the meat He ran about 75 yards before he died. Within minutes I began to prepare the meat First I removed the scent glands from his legs to prevent any possible contamination of the meat Then I opened the deer, being careful not to puncture internal organs. Carefully I cut through the membranes that hold the stomach and intestines in place and then partially par-tially rolled them out onto the snow. Following this, I the removed the bowels and pulled the stomach and intestines from the animal. Reproductive Repro-ductive organs are also removed, but the hind quarters are not split to prevent contamination of the meat while packing the deer out of the woods. I generally prefer not to split the brisket either until the animal can be hung up to cooL So next the diaphragm is cut to gain access into the chest cavity. To remove the heart and lungs it is necessary to either cut the throat from the outside out-side to sever the wind pipe, or I prefer to reach up as far as I can and cut the windpipe from inside and then the heart and lungs can be easily eas-ily removed. Since the ground was covered with snow I packed him full of snow and let him chill for about 45 minutes before carrying him out In the meantime I pulled out my license and tagged him. After carrying him to the jeep trail about a half mile through the woods, my friend Chad Whitacker and I loaded him into the back of his Toyota 4x4 and once again we packed him with snow for the long ride home. It was very late by the time I got home. Since it was a cool night and he was still packed with snow I decided to hang him in a tree and skin him in the morning. If the weather had been any warmer, I would have had to skin and quarter the deer that night and get the meat into the refrigerator. It's always fun getting permission permis-sion to use the entire refrigerator for a couple of days, and sometimes bribery is needed. Anyway the next morning I cleaned out the fridge and got it ready for my deer. After skinning the deer, I cut it into quarters and laid them on the racks of the refrigerator. I turned the thermostat down a couple of notches not-ches and then let the meat chill for a couple of days. At last the real cutting begins. There are many ways to do this, and most bring satisfactory results. Sharp knives and cleanliness are essential. My personal favorite thing to do is to fillet everything into little steaklets. I cut each muscle from the bone and then trim all the fat and sinew from the meat. Then I slice it into little steaks. They are 100 percent lean fillets with no fat or ligaments to detract from the flavor. I have found that, unlike beef fat, venison fat gets a wild, gamey taste after any length of time in the freezer. So trimming the fat increases in-creases its freezer life and helps give the meat a mild flavor. The meat trimmings left over are great for being ground into deer burger, and the fat trimmings can be frozen and used as dogfood throughout the year. Many people like to make jerky out of their deer, and venison salami is also very popular. Others like to bottle their venison, which is a tasty alternative. Whatever you prefer, don't be afraid to try making it yourself. I'm not knocking professional game processors one bit and most of them do an excellent job, but if you're a hunter, you could be missing out on one of the most enjoyable aspects of the hunt cutting and preparing your own game. 1 The author packs out a two point he shot this year in the Manti-Lasal Manti-Lasal National Forest. The author au-thor likes the eating qualities of young deer. I |