To bag or not to bag

I freeze jugs and put them in the ice chest. The meat doesn't get wet that way.

 

If we take one in the morning, it's usually in the freezer by evening... If not, its in tubs in a frig on racks to let the blood drain out.

 

I forget how I came about this I either read or someone told me they wrap it up in clean unscented sheets. I tried this about 15 years ago an have been doing it since,just quarter wrap an refridge it 5-7 days almost acts like a hide, just change sheets every 2 days or so soaks up a lot of blood an moisture works good for me

 

I’ve hung it outside before in a 5 gal bucket. Drill a few holes in the bottom for blood to drain and keep putting ice on it for several days weather permitting.

 

Same concept, but this KY Afield video recommends using pillow cases. I thought that was a good idea.

 

Quarter, cooler, ice. Don’t have anywhere to hang in my situation. Take my time and cut it out, grind, etc...over a few days if I need too. Drain bloody water once per day. More ice if needed. I may break down and buy a vacuum sealer in the near future but I normally label and double ziplock bags as needed. Have never had any go bad, no freezer burn, etc... My dad froze most of our stuff in bread sacks or plastic grocery bags growing up. LOL!

 

I picked up a vacuum sealer this year.
I’ve always done quarter, cooler, ice too, but it’s not working that well with the Foodsaver.
As the bag is getting vacuum sealed, it draws the blood and water up to the opening. If there’s enough liquid in the bag, it gets pulled out the end, and sometimes it doesn’t seal just right.
I went through half a roll of paper towels on the doe I worked up Friday, trying to get the meat dry before bagging it.
Right now, I’m thinking the next one will go in bags, in the fridge for a few days, before vacuum sealing.

 

I bag mine then cooler with ice for 5-7 days to age and let meat relax and get tender. I have used trash bags to keep it dry but recently read not to use them because they are not food grade. So i switched to 2.5 gallon food storage bags. Keeping the meat dry but cold seems to produce best quality for me. Then I dry with paper towels and vacuum seal with 5 mil bags and it keeps easily for over a year. Investing in a quality chamber vacuum sealer makes a huge difference over foodsaver for longevity and ease of processing.

 

One time I froze the meat same day as harvest and it turned out tougher than leather. Most meat care experts dont recommend it.

 

The key is trying to keep it dry and cool with some air circulation. Obviously in a cooler there is no air flow or the cooler would not be very good. Those big walk in coolers have great air flow, maintain good temps. I've had great luck leaving ice in the bags putting a bag down and meat on top with ice in bags around the meat. I'll rotate the meat around every day and drain off any water that has gotten to the bottom. Meat is incredible