What’s the most trimmed meat you’ve gotten off a deer?

I’ve never weighed a dead buck, but occasionally I’ll really take a lot of time boning and trimming a big carcass.

The buck I shot during muzzleloader had a bigger body than most of the ones I’ve ever killed. Ended up with 84 pounds off him in burger, roasts, loins, and sliced jerky

I think that’s a new personal record, not sure if I’ve ever broken the 80lb mark, it’s like shooting 3-4 doe fawns lol

That is a pretty dang big buck for sure. I cant answer the question as to whats a lot because I generally quarter them and then have a place do the rest. I keep the backstraps and tenderloins however. Do you go after the rib meat and stuff that most leave?

I only weigh my ground for sausage, weighing the rest seems senseless

CaptainMusky wrote:

That is a pretty dang big buck for sure. I cant answer the question as to whats a lot because I generally quarter them and then have a place do the rest. I keep the backstraps and tenderloins however. Do you go after the rib meat and stuff that most leave?

I’ll sometimes trim the brisket and flanks out (did on this deer), but as for actual rib meat I do not.

Not sure how or what people actually do with that, I’ve sliced a few out before and they look like fatty bacon with hardly any red meat. No way I’d throw it into my grind?

I’ll see if I can find the pic (old film / actual pictures) of a giant body buck I took. One I remember field dressed out was 238# on our hang scale and I was about 95# meat. I know mixing 15% beef with it put over 100#. Other one I remember was like butchering a small elk. Didn’t weigh that one

i usually weigh the trimmings…….as i take them in for processing and most places you need a minimum amount to make a batch of whatever.

on the rib cage…….i used, figured it make a hot dog or 2. but i did one this last go round, and i’m picky. laid all of the rib cage meat on a pile………said it aint worth the time and effort……no more. critters need to eat too!!!

The doe I had my nephew shoot involved no pi$$ing around with the rib meat. At some point you have to value your own time.

The rib cage was put by the chickens and they enjoyed it way more than we would

I’ve never weighed my trims before, but I might start. I like The Bearded Butchers on YouTube. Very good at explaining and showing techniques with different kind of butchering. Cow, pig, bison, deer….. In this year’s deer tutorial, they did a lot of weighing to show what you could or should get. And they take out all the rib meat as long as it was a decent sized deer. Video was of an adult doe and they put it in the grinding pile. I also take most of the rib meat on good sized deer.

I got 86 pounds total off this guy from bow season. Kept the steak cuts and took the rest to a butcher in town that makes way better sausage than I can. Just got that meat back, between him and the axis I shot in texas my venison freezer is pretty much full (it’s fuller than the picture looks).

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Being a number nerd at heart, I typically weigh every deer before skinning and then weigh the finished meat. Being very picky, trimming everything as cleanly as possible, 67 lbs was what I got from a 186 lb buck.

I had one over 200 lbs that i lost a good amount of meat due to bullet fragmentation and bloodshot damage and still ended up with 65 lbs.

Re: rib meat. I have tried the rolled rib roast method and was amazed at how good it came out. It’s worth googling and trying.

That’s about what I got Timmy from the buck I shot this year, keeping the steaks and loins. Did not get a weight before skinning but would guess it was in that 180-190 lb range. No rib meat, I don’t ever take it but might have to check out that rolled rib roast.