[DogZilla15]

Joe.... You make it sound like the gutless method is also a meatless method. I guess it's no different than folks breasting birds simply because it's easy, not necessarily ethical. I don't think the gutless method is an invitation not to take everything edible, it's just what some people do.

 

[bpurtz]

This is my hunting buddy preparing elk heart at camp:

In the front is a pork loin wrapped in elk caul fat:

The coyotes, bears, and birds were pretty disappointed because of what I left behind after the gutless breakdown...

 

[joe_camo]

This is my hunting buddy preparing elk heart at camp:

In the front is a pork loin wrapped in elk caul fat:

The coyotes, bears, and birds were pretty disappointed because of what I left behind after the gutless breakdown...

Excellent work! You set the bar very high on this one!

I have seen the heart and tenderloins recovered by cutting into the "guts" after the quarters have been removed using the gutless method but never the caul fat. Could you please give a tutorial on how you recovered the caul fat (fat distributed in the small and large intestine) without getting into the "guts"?

How did you guys cook up the ribs, liver and skirt steak?

Thanks for posting and thank you for using all of the animal.

 

[TrailBlazer]

I got zero issues with leaving heart, liver, intestine fat?? behind.....As long as there is not blatant waste then it is a personal preference and not something we should try and make others feel bad or less of a hunter about.

 

[Orion]

I got zero issues with leaving heart, liver, intestine fat?? behind.....As long as there is not blatant waste then it is a personal preference and not something we should try and make others feel bad or less of a hunter about.

+1

Orion

 

[Gun Rod Bow]

Joe likes to follow me around and find things to criticize. He’s been banned from copying my posts.

I’ve quartered elk the old way. Splitting the rib cage with a meat saw.

I’ve cut and wrapped my own meat for well over 30 years. We make sausage at home. I take every scrap of meat.

My daughter would never let me leave a heart behind. Elk heart for dinner on the night we cut and wrap is a tradition. You can slice the the side of the rib cage to get the heart. Tenderloins come out the third rib from the back.

We take rib meat, neck meat, brisket etc because I love ground elk meat.

No one I know eats elk liver. Or internal fat. Whatever. We do however use the leg bones to make elk stock.

Not sure the point you’re making about heat retained when all that’s left is guts and bones.

All meat gets cut off bone eventually. You just do more of it up front with gutless.

I’ve seen Steve Rinella bone out game to pack it out. I don’t think he took ribs or intestine fat.

I’ve fed my family a lot of elk meat in the past several decades. And don’t leave usable meat.

Of the 50 or so elk that I’ve been part of packing out. Exactly 2 came out whole.

We are typically in roadless areas with horses or packboards to get them out. Add Grizzlies to the mix and we always act quickly to have them boned and bagged within an hour or two. We all carry our own meat bags and rope

I’d be happy to have any game cop inspect a carcass I’ve left in the field.

You’re welcome to eat all the liver you’d like.

 

[bpurtz]

I start by cutting the hide along the backbone - tail to skull - then skin and peel the hide down the side. If I'm going to save the hide, I tube out the front leg - otherwise cut from below the leg joint up to the top.

* remove front shoulder
* filet the various layers of meat covering the ribs, neck, brisket
* remove backstrap
* remove back ham
* remove back loin - this can be tricky - you have to push guts to expose and cut the loin out.
* cut out flank meat - this exposes the caul fat - you just have to be careful with delicate cuts and the caul will easily pull out. Drape the caul fat over a clean log and in about an hour (in warm weather) it will dry out to a rubbery pliable texture that you can simply fold up to haul out. Cutting out the flank also exposes the skirt - you might have to push the gut a little, but you just filet along the inside of the rib/chest and along the diaphragm. If the gut has been punctured I don't take the caul or any "dirty" meat.
* cut out rib meat
* cut top joints of first four ribs to remove both sides of front loin
* pull those 4 ribs down and you can remove the heart

Flip the animal over - brush any dirt off of the hide and start from the top of the list. I don't take the liver - nobody in my family will eat it. I have eaten the tongue - made good tacos. I used to not take the heart until a buddy showed me how to properly prepare it.

I take my wild game to The Meating Place - flank, skirt, rib meat, neck all go into scrap that is processed into either burger, Italian Sausage, Jalapeno Cheddar Smoked Sausage, or Jalapeno Cheddar Pepperoni. I also love their jerky and have been known to send the backstrap in for the best jerky you could ever dream of...

 

[winterkill]

It's awesome that you guys are able to get all that meat with the gutless method. My earlier comment was based on videos I've watched that leave a lot of meat behind. Wasn't a criticism, like I said, to each their own.

 

[joe_camo]

I start by cutting the hide along the backbone - tail to skull - then skin and peel the hide down the side. If I'm going to save the hide, I tube out the front leg - otherwise cut from below the leg joint up to the top.

* remove front shoulder
* filet the various layers of meat covering the ribs, neck, brisket
* remove backstrap
* remove back ham
* remove back loin - this can be tricky - you have to push guts to expose and cut the loin out.
* cut out flank meat - this exposes the caul fat - you just have to be careful with delicate cuts and the caul will easily pull out. Drape the caul fat over a clean log and in about an hour (in warm weather) it will dry out to a rubbery pliable texture that you can simply fold up to haul out. Cutting out the flank also exposes the skirt - you might have to push the gut a little, but you just filet along the inside of the rib/chest and along the diaphragm. If the gut has been punctured I don't take the caul or any "dirty" meat.
* cut out rib meat
* cut top joints of first four ribs to remove both sides of front loin
* pull those 4 ribs down and you can remove the heart

Flip the animal over - brush any dirt off of the hide and start from the top of the list. I don't take the liver - nobody in my family will eat it. I have eaten the tongue - made good tacos. I used to not take the heart until a buddy showed me how to properly prepare it.

I take my wild game to The Meating Place - flank, skirt, rib meat, neck all go into scrap that is processed into either burger, Italian Sausage, Jalapeno Cheddar Smoked Sausage, or Jalapeno Cheddar Pepperoni. I also love their jerky and have been known to send the backstrap in for the best jerky you could ever dream of...

Thanks for the detailed explanation, I will give this a shot next chance I get. Except for cutting out the rib meat - there is nothing I look more forward to than wild game ribs.

one of the best things about these forums is the sharing of ideas. If one leaves themselves open to learning the sky is the limit.

Who else here learned Grizzly bears can climb trees to rip into elk quarters? New one for me, seen wolverines do it but never a grizzly. With that gained knowledge I am not leaving anymore meat out overnight in Grizzly country.