The gamey flavour of venison can turn people off eating wild meat.
Venison meat is often described as having a certain "gamey" flavor. While some people find this is a plus side to eating wild meat, many people dislike the taste. Understanding how this flavor develops in meat will help you improve the quality and taste of your venison. Gaminess is typically caused by three factors which include the time of kill, the diet of the animal and the preparation methods used after the kill.
Time of kill
The time and conditions when the animal is killed has a large impact on the taste of the meat and can result in a gamey flavor. If the deer was shot during breeding season, the meat might taste gamey because the animal might not have been eating normally or because it was experiencing the stress of the season. Also, an animal that is shot while it is running would have an increased stress level and this affects the taste of the meat as well. Finally, the age of the animal at the time of kill also impacts the taste of the meat. An older animal will naturally have a gamier flavor and tougher meat.
Diet of the animal
The animal's diet has an effect on how gamey the meat tastes. Depending on the animal's habitat it will have access to different food sources. A deer that has access to a diet only of pungent plants such as sagebrush will taste more gamey. Likewise, if the deer has access to other food sources such as cornfields, the meat will be higher quality. Knowing the area the deer was killed in will help you predict how it will taste based on the surrounding plant life.
Preparation
How the meat is prepared can greatly improve or worsen how gamey the meat will taste. It is important to field-dress and cool the meat as soon as possible. Meat that is not properly cooled or dressed will have a gamey flavor caused by the growth of bacteria. Also, meat that is not properly packaged in tight wrappings will be exposed to the air and will get a bad taste.
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