Do you age ruffed grouse or eat fresh

[sachem longrifle]

Is there a difference

[PierBridge]

Me personally....I eat it as soon as humanly possible....

[BLACKJACK]

What do you mean by 'aging'? How would you go about it?

Theres always the old argument about aging venison, some people swear by it, some people will say that venison doens't have the marbling in the meat, aging does no good.

I would venture to say that most people eat grouse, pheasants, ducks 'fresh' without aging, clean them and get that cavity cooled down as soon as possible.

[BobT]

I read an article in Outdoor Life magazine one time that was submitted by a Mnpls chef. He stated that aging venison does serve to improve texture and tenderness. Aging allows bacteria to begin the process of decaying but in a controlled environment. I believe it is held at a temperature of somewhere around 38 degrees for a period of maybe 10 days or so, BUT I AM NOT SURE ABOUT THIS SO DON'T TAKE MY WORD FOR IT. When the bacterium do this the meat becomes more tender as it is being broken down. I'm sure aging must be done under varying conditions and length of time depending on the meat being aged.

One of the most common mistakes that is made is over-cooking wild meat. Wild meat is far leaner than domestic and requires less cooking time. Any meat that has been cooked too much becomes nothing more than a dried out piece of leather in my book.

Here's a simple recipe you could try for grouse or other game birds. I made it up this past weekend and it turned out delicious, tender, flavorful, and moist.

I boned out a couple grouse breasts that I got over last weekend and left them whole. Then in a skillet I put a couple tablespoons of butter and a little soy sauce and heated it just until bubbly. I patted the breasts dry and then coated them with a mixture of flour, Lowry's Season Salt, pepper, and garlic powder and then fried them just until the breasts were done, no longer.

Excellent! My 10-year daughter was fighting me for them.

Bob