Today we made hamburger out of the odds and ends left over from the cutlets, stew meat, and roasts already packaged and frozen.

We cut the larger pieces into strips and layer everything between waxed paper before freezing. The fat is almost all gone, but the tendons grind better if frozen first. If left unfrozen, they tend to wind around the grinding barrel, which then requires frequent stops to clear them out. Ask us how we know…

Michael put the strips through the grinder once.

Then once again.

Then I weigh and package. The Foodsaver uses plastic bags. I suppose we could use butcher paper. But having the air vacuumed out of the package means less spoilage from freezer burn. It’s all a balancing act! We recycle as much as we can, but frankly, plastics are amazingly versatile and form a huge part of our surroundings, even on our subsistence farm. If we didn’t use plastic packaging, we would probably smoke more of our meat, which involves nitrates, those notorious carcinogens that keep the meat from spoiling while smoking. By not purchasing a lot of other stuff that keeps our consumer economy going, we minimize our plastics footprint.

We ended up with 30 lbs of burger, for a total venison harvest of 65 pounds. It has taken about 5 days of hard work to take that 65 pounds from hoof to freezer. I am ever thankful that we are both still strong and well enough to do this work.