Hanging game and wildfowl

[Lloyd90]

How long will you hang game (pheasant) and wildfowl (mallard) for usually? 
 

My mate hung a pair of mallard overnight the other day and I thought it would be too warm at 13c. 
 

Looked it up online and said optimal hanging temp is around 50-55f (10-12c) and can hang game for 3-5 days like this 😳. 
 

I thought you have to hang in chilled or cold room? 
 

I just thought at the moment were almost half way through November and haven’t even had any frost yet. Incredibly mind still. 

[JDog]

Mallard and Geese overnight only. 

[Mr gen]

I don't think wildfowl benefit much from being hung for long periods, in the way pheasants do and even then I wouldn't hang a pheasant for 5 days at 13c but that's more to do with my preference. When it is this warm we still have flies about that can blow on the game.     

[sam triple]

I hange everything for one day only , but all down to taste 

[Walker570]

I normally come home hang them overnight and straight in the freezer in the feather. Have not had a bad bird yet in maybe 35yrs doing it that way.  Freezing meat tenderises it anyway.

[Lloyd90]

I shot a mallard and cock pheasant this evening after a nice little walk about with the dog. 
 

Both hung outside on the fence at the moment. 
 

It’s about 10c tonight. 

[Lloyd90]

19 hours ago, Walker570 said:

I normally come home hang them overnight and straight in the freezer in the feather. Have not had a bad bird yet in maybe 35yrs doing it that way.  Freezing meat tenderises it anyway.

With the guts still in? 

[Walker570]

Just now, Lloyd90 said:

With the guts still in? 

Yup, as they are. Defrost, skin , remove breast meat and maybe legs on pheasant and bin the rest. Been doing that for at least 35 -40yrs and I'm still here.

[Lloyd90]

4 minutes ago, Walker570 said:

Yup, as they are. Defrost, skin , remove breast meat and maybe legs on pheasant and bin the rest. Been doing that for at least 35 -40yrs and I'm still here.

Thanks 👍🏻

[oowee]

I am not keen on the full gamey taste and will hang stuff mostly overnight. In Africa I have seen pigeons hung on a fence in the sun for days before being eaten. How they do not die as a result was beyond me. I have shot jackal and been told to leave them in the sun as the locals preferred it.  🤢

[GingerCat]

I rarely hang anything as haven't the time. Exception being if a friend shoots a deer and I collect it the following morning. Stops it from being overly gamey which is to my taste also  

[Walker570]

If the temperature is low I will hang a deer in the skin  for a week but I check it every day.    Temp   If I need an extra coat on then that's ok.

Otherwise the skin comes off and it is jointed and in the freezer and to be honest really do not notice the difference.

[Rob85]

17 hours ago, Lloyd90 said:

I shot a mallard and cock pheasant this evening after a nice little walk about with the dog. 
 

Both hung outside on the fence at the moment. 
 

It’s about 10c tonight. 

That's the best kind of walk with a dog! My walkabout yesterday resulted in me sitting watching 2 giant swans wandering down the river, nothing else and not a shot fired 

[Benthejockey]

Deer are usually skinned and chilled within hours of being shot and butchered the next day. Before I had a big upright fridge theyd be quartered and put in the little fridge. I did hang a roe doe in the skin for 5 days last week because I didn't have time to skin it.

Pheasant the same day or next day depending on time. 

[Lloyd90]

5 minutes ago, Benthejockey said:

Deer are usually skinned and chilled within hours of being shot and butchered the next day. Before I had a big upright fridge theyd be quartered and put in the little fridge. I did hang a roe doe in the skin for 5 days last week because I didn't have time to skin it.

Pheasant the same day or next day depending on time. 

 

Hung for 5 days in the skin outside or in a big fridge? 

[Benthejockey]

@Lloyd90In the big fridge! its been as warm as 20 degrees here locally in the last 3 or 4 weeks so no way would Id leave anything outside. We used to always use October as the start date to do home Slaughter on the lambs because it was usually below 7 degrees but the weather would definitely be against me this year if I didn't have a fridge. 

[Walker570]

I only shoot deer for the home freezer these days and usually munties or a buck fawn fallow.  With the munties I have a large fridge in our barbecue area which takes a muntie but to date have never had to use it.  I am down to one haunch at the moment and as soon as we get a cold spell I will have another one or two hanging up.  Lit the log burner in the kitchen mid afternoon a couple of times this week, so it's getting there.

[figgy]

I hang pheasants for a day or two if it's cold outside no more than five days or they get too gamey for my tadte. Ducks go straight into a carrier bags and bottom of fridge overnight if not dressed out same day morning flight done same day, evening flight following day.

[Nuke]

On 13/11/2020 at 17:23, Lloyd90 said:

How long will you hang game (pheasant) and wildfowl (mallard) for usually? 

I hang birds overnight, except for capecaillie. Those and dear/boar I usually hang for 40-60 degree days.

/Markus

[ehb102]

Pheasant and partridge shot on Saturday are so easy to pluck on Tuesday. I now schedule Tuesday plucking after shoot day. 

[Walker570]

The Americans go crazy on this subject and just cannot wait to get a deers jacket off.  I shot a mule deer way up in the Rockies and we had 18 inches of snow on the ground and sub zero temps.  There was a rush by my friends to get it skinned and they looked aghast when I suggested they just peg the chest cavity open with a stick and let it hang there for the next three days we were to be up there.  It was colder than most game larders.

[Lloyd90]

On 16/11/2020 at 08:28, ehb102 said:

Pheasant and partridge shot on Saturday are so easy to pluck on Tuesday. I now schedule Tuesday plucking after shoot day. 

Where and what temp do you store them in-between? 👍🏻

On 16/11/2020 at 12:15, Walker570 said:

The Americans go crazy on this subject and just cannot wait to get a deers jacket off.  I shot a mule deer way up in the Rockies and we had 18 inches of snow on the ground and sub zero temps.  There was a rush by my friends to get it skinned and they looked aghast when I suggested they just peg the chest cavity open with a stick and let it hang there for the next three days we were to be up there.  It was colder than most game larders.

They probably wanted to get it cut up and away before a grizzly showed up  

[ehb102]

8 hours ago, Lloyd90 said:

Where and what temp do you store them in-between? 👍🏻

I hang them under our lean-to. I've put nails in to hold them. I only start doing this later in the season. I brought a load home in October last year and it was too warm, I had to deal with them all immediately. But coming home early evening they are usually good overnight. 

[Houseplant]

I definitely don't want my game to taste any gamier. Occasionally, I'll hang gutted deer for 5 days in a chiller, but don't always have that option. Leaving the guts in an animal is not appealing and goes against everything I understand about safe game meat processing.

[aister]

I hang all the fowl I shoot in a chill. I dont think it makes much difference to hang fowl longer but it is good to be able to leave it hanging and know it's not going bad. When I come off shift I might be out 2 or 3 days in a row then I can pluck everything in one night and know it will be fine.