I will NOT go into how to butcher your deer. Part of having tasty wild game is proper preparation of the meat.  The meat must be taken care of from the time the hunter makes the kill until the time it is on the table.  

Great Venison Cooking has some video tutorials on field dressing and quartering your deer.

If you would like instructions on how to butcher your animal, check with your county extension they may have ideas for you.

My husband and sons butcher our deer with me helping as a wrapper and canner. 

We also have the supplies and equipment to grind our own meat.

I love our Cabela's meat grinder. We have the big #32 grinder. That plus the energy of all my guys, our meat is taken care of in no time.

We have used this method for years. It has become a traditional activity each year. The boys all compete with each other to see who can grind faster and longer.

This year we finally broke down and purchased an electric grinder. This is great for me. I don't have the energy (shh.... or desire) to grind by hand. When my guys are not available I can still take out some meat to grind for jerky.

If you don't have this equipment you can have your meat processor cut or grind your meat to your preferences.

For us doing it ourselves saves on costs and we know just what we are getting and how our meat is handled. Part of having tasty wild game is proper preparation of the meat.

The first time I tried canning venison I could not believe it was so easy. I thought surely there was something I am missing.

Nope, nothing missing. Our meat tasted great

Any meat must always be processed in a pressure canner.

Prepare

• pressure canner
• canning jars
• canning seals and rings
• jar lifter
• canning funnel
• large pot or blancher to cook beets
• bowls
• large spoons
• sharp knife
• towels and dish cloths
• cutting board
• heavy skillet to brown meat
• pot to make broth

Ingredients

• 11 lbs, ground venison (or other meat specified above)
• 3 tsp canning salt
• 6 onions (optional)
• 6 garlic cloves (optional)
• liquid to pack your meat - you can choose tomato juice, broth made from the meat you will pack, beef stock, or plain boiling water. 
  
  I used 2 qts home canned tomatoes, and 4 cups of water with 4 beef bullion cubes.

note - Sometimes I'll mix in some beef or other ground meat. This year my husband got a big ol bull elk. This was really fun... but the meat was not as good as a nice cow. So I mixed in beef.

Procedure

Brown meat, onion, and garlic in a heavy skillet. I like my cast iron dutch oven best. It is heavy to nicely brown the meat and the sides keeps the splattering to a minimum. I will be browning a lot of meat so this works well for me. You could also use a regular skillet as well.

Add salt, onion and garlic.

Use a garlic press or mince garlic with a knife. Chop onions.

I love my food processor for this step. It speeds things up and I don't get quite so teary eyed when chopping this amount of onions.

Cook until veggies are tender. The amounts of these can be adjusted for your taste preference. In fact you can preserve just the meat if you prefer not to add the onion or garlic.

Add your choice of liquid.

I like canning venison in broth made from the browned meat, plus 2 quarts of home canned tomatoes, and beef broth made from bullion cubes.

You can also use all tomato juice or even just boiling water.
Add liquid until browned meat is not quite covered. Bring back to a boil.

Add canning salt to each jar if desired. 1/2 tsp per pint or 1 tsp per quart.

Pack hot meat mixture into hot jars, leaving 1-inch head space.

Add enough hot broth or other liquid to cover. Leave 1 inch of head space. If you do not have enough liquid to fill jars simply top them off with boiling water.

Remove air bubbles, wipe rims clean and place your lids.

Place jars in your preheated pressure canner. Do your best to make sure the jars are not touching each other. For my canner this is a tight fit so sometimes it takes a little maneuvering.

Follow pressure canning instructions using the processing times below.

Don't forget to adjust the pressure requirements for your elevation.

Process

Process
Process Quarts 1 hour and 30 minutes
Process Pints 1 hour and 15 minutes

Adjustments for Pressure Canner
Altitude in Feet	Dial Gauge Canner	Weighted Gauge Canner
0-1000	10	10
1001-2000	11	15
2001-4000	12	15
4001-6000	13	15
6001-8000	14	15
8000-10,000	15	15

More Canning Meat Recipes

Venison Ground
Venison-hot pack
Venison - raw pack
Chicken
Homemade Chicken Broth
Homemade Chicken Soup
Fish
Smoked Fish

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