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My kitchen has had just about everything you can imagine up on the counters…a whole deer quartered into a meat lug, buckets of tomatoes fresh from the garden, potatoes still covered in dirt, fresh fish pulled from the pond down the road, or sun warmed wild blackberries brought straight from the woods. Especially during the summer, there is a wide variety of real food that makes its way into the kitchen and is turned into a main dish or packaged, frozen, or canned for later use. Summer is the bus …

To no one’s surprise, July is national grilling month! Get your sunscreen on and get outside to grill up some of your favorite summertime meals. Whether you’ve got an appetite for a juicy steak, burgers, hot dogs, or a few kebabs, grilling is a delight. Not sure what to cook for national grilling month? You’ve come to the right place. LEM loves to grill, and has the perfect meat seasonings to prepare your food with!Juicy Summer SausageCooking up some tasty summer sausage and cooling off with a c …

In the world of fermented foods sauerkraut is probably the most recognized here in the United States and for good reason. Its great on sandwiches, hot dogs, sausages, cooked in stews and served along side braised meats.Besides being delicious, its also pretty dang nutritious. It's most notably claim to health fame is when the 18th century English explorer Captain James Cook stumbled upon sauerkraut and sailed with it during his voyages. The fermented barrels of goodness was deemed responsible fo …

Proper Freezer StorageAfter you’ve processed your deer into desirable cuts, it is imperative that you properly wrap and freeze the packages. Putting the cuts into plastic freezer bags will not guarantee you delicious and fresh meat in the coming months.The most effective way for freezing meat is to use quality freezer paper that is waxed or poly-coated on one side. The coated side of the paper should go against the meat. To optimize the protection, you can fold a freezer sheets around the meat a …

Many of us have memories of hunting with our dad, wearing our hand me down camo with a heavy shotgun slung over our shoulder; trudging through knee deep snow. Hunting is a rite of passage for many kids, and my childhood was no different. My earliest memory of hunting was my 7th birthday, when I accompanied my dad on a quick turkey calling expedition. It wasn’t actually hunting, as season wasn’t open yet…simply a walk in the woods with some turkey calls. I can still remember the feel of my dad’s …

Outside of General Tso's chicken, I think pot stickers are one of the most beloved Chinese culinary creations that Americans enjoy today. It's a dumpling that consists of two delicious worlds that are a match made in heaven. One side is a steamed and silky, the other is seared and crispy.This recipe calls for venison but wild boar would be an awesome substitute. Keep in mind that part of these dumplings deliciousness comes from the fat content of the meat filling. So if you're going to be using …

Christmas is this week! With holiday season in full swing comes Tamale season. We eat tamales every Christmas Eve in my house and this year I decided to make Venison Tamales. I don’t know if this is a Texas thing or if other states do it, but I love Tamales on Christmas Eve. Shoutout again to LEM for the meat grinder. It has made easy work of the three deer my husband and I have shot, butchered, and processed at home. My family, in the past, normally just bought tamales. We didn’t go through th …

Jerky is a popular snack that people have enjoyed for centuries. It is made by drying and curing meat to preserve and enhance its flavor. There are many types of jerky, each with its unique taste and texture.One of the most common debates among jerky enthusiasts is the difference between ground and muscle jerky. Ground jerky is made from ground meat and has a smooth texture, while muscle jerky is made from whole slices of muscle meat and has a chewier texture.Let's explore the different characte …

If you mention picking persimmons to the average person, they will give you an odd look and ask what the heck a persimmon is. However, the outdoorsy people -- the hunters and foragers and homesteaders – will know exactly what you are talking about. Wild Persimmons are something special, and once you’ve found a spot where a tree is, you’ll visit it regularly to beat all the wildlife to the deliciously sweet fruits.They look somewhat like an orange plum (hence one of the terms it is referenced by …

Meat Processing at Home: Process and Preserve Your Own Venison with These TipsAlthough hunters take their venison to meat processing facilities, anyone can process their own meat at home, given the right conditions. There's no better feeling than knowing you harvested, processed, and prepared a meal out of game meat yourself. Once you understand how the entire process works, it can take less than half an hour to complete the major processing steps. Let us show you how to process meat at home suc …