Id like to learn to process my own deer | Page 3 | The Woodsman Hut | Forums

So to start, you'll need a few things. You will need several large containers of water for rinsing, and several empty containers for temporarily storing your meat. You will need several sharp knives, a stable surface on which to work that will hold the entire animal (unless you are butchering while hanging, unfortunately we are not currently set up to hang), freezer paper, some good tape (we use priority mail tape, it doesn't come undone in the freezer even after long periods of time) and some clothing you don't mind getting blood and such on.

Next, you make and incision from the area underneath the knee you just cut all the way up to the slice in the gut cavity where the internals used to be.

Next, and I can't stress this enough, put down your knife! It's really easy to cut yourself doing this so safety first! Once your knife is down, grab the hide with both hands and pull! It helps if you have someone else to hold the leg down. At a certain point you may have to lift the skin and cut the fascia with your knife. Don't cut into the meat at this point, just the stuff holding the skin to the meat. You will have to do this quite a bit to remove the entire hide.

Now, trim some of the fat and rib meat away from the tenderloin or back strap. This is located directly next to the back bone. Don't trim too much, or you run the risk of cutting into the best part of the meat!