We have no section to this, so why not start a thread on it?
On meat care –
Bear: the single most important thing to do with bear in order to insure meat as palatable as possible is to get the carcass cooled down as fast as possible. Bears hold an incredible amount of heat and that thick layer of fat and heavy hide hold it in amazingly well. Get the animal gutted as fast as possible, get the hide off as quick as possible, and if you have access to clear, cold water or to ice/snow, get the cavity into it or packed with it as fast as possible. Once you get it cooled down, you can do with it as you see fit. If you don’t get it cooled down, it won’t matter what you do with it as it won’t be fit to eat.
Aging: if you don’t have access to a meat locker to hang the carcass (this includes constructed versions or natural, weather conducive versions), then wet aging can and does work. I’ll quarter the carcass and remove all the of the trim, stew, tenderloins, and backstrap meat. All the meat goes into a cooler and under enough ice to cover it. Let it sit until the ice melts, drain the water, and repeat (if desired or if you have time). The ice will keep the meat cool, the time will help age it, and the water will flush most of the blood out that needs to be out. From there, process as normal for cutting, packing, and wrapping. Also, if you let the meat thaw in the fridge for a couple to three days before cooking, it will age a bit more there (but not much).
Bird Stock: Making stock is easy. Just retain all the bones that you clean of meat. These bones then go into a big roasting pan and into the oven. I slowly roast them at about 250-300 degrees until the bones start turning a light golden brown. In a large stock pot, soften diced or chopped onions in a bit of oil. Then, out they come and all the bones, shank meat, and those lovely juices in the bottom of that roasting pan go into a stock pot. Sweat everything together for 20 minutes. Add 8 cups of water add in any spices you choose (or, preferably none at all to allow for seasoning of the soups later to taste and recipe), and bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain out the bones and large chunks of sinew, fat, etc. Put the strained stock in the fridge overnight to allow it to cool and the fat to congeal on top. Skim the fat off, and package. One of the easiest to use ways we’ve found to keep stock is to use ice cube trays. Each cube is two tablespoons and there are 16 cubes per tray (2 cups). Freeze the cubes, then store in Ziploc bags in the pre-measured 2 tablespoon cubes.
(I’ll follow up with a red meat stock recipe later).
Okay, I started. So, who else has some tips? Recipes?
