Processing problem ( nowhere to hang! )

[Poopers]

My living situation will not allow me to hang my deer. I heard somewhere that you can quarter deer in the field, immediately process and freeze the meat when you get home. Then when you want a steak or whatever, you suspend it on a rack above a dish in the fridge or 4 or 5 days to "bleed and age" it. This sounds like it would be ideal for me!



Any of you fellows do this? Or know of an alternative I can use?


Thanks

[Swampman]

Here in FL we keep them in an ice chest with the drain open for about 5 days.  You just add ice everyday.  It works great.

[Casull]

No need to bleed or age it.  Just cool it, cut it up and freeze.

[tacklebury]

Yep, I take a big coleman cooler along with a bag of ice in it, when going deer hunting.  Then if I get one, I gut it, drag it a little ways, skin it, then quarter the carcass and put the parts in the cooler.  and dump the ice in over the top.  I can get a large buck in that one cooler and at least a little ice on top.  It doesn't take the ice long to get it down to a decent sub 40 degree F. Temperature.  Of course, I have to walk up and get my jeep where the cooler is while it bleeds out some after gutting. 

[mechanic]

Here in FL we keep them in an ice chest with the drain open for about 5 days.  You just add ice everyday.  It works great.

Works as well as, and tastes as good as, hanging.
 
Ben

[LanceR]

A lot of folks never hang or otherwise their deer and don't have any issues.  In most parts of the country there is little to nothing to gain from hanging a deer in the 2-1/2 year class or younger unless they have had a lot or stress or been eating poorly.

I process my own deer (4-5 a year) as do many of my neighbors and we all have come to the conclusion that for most deer, aging is not needed and can be detrimental if you don't have good control of the temperature and humidity.  Most of what we take is quartered and in the fridge within a few hours of dropping them, especially when it's warm and when it's cold and they'd be solid in the morning.

I generally have them vacuum packed and in the freezers within 12-15 hours.

Lance

[yellowtail3]

My living situation will not allow me to hang my deer.

been there before. I use same method other have mentioned: have a cooler and a gambrel. I put layer of ice in cooler... and then butched the deer while it's hanging, tossing cuts into the cooler and adding ice. Take cooler home, tilt at an angle and keep adding ice for a few days, then wrap & free pieces. Works pretty good.
click photo below; this was a nine-pointer the day before. Just needs a little more ice...