Gut It Cut It Cook It

Gut It Cut It Cook It is the definitive new guide to handling venison after the kill. It is not a difficult task, but it is tricky and requires care and some special knowledge if it is to be done right. I have used (or tried to use) many well-intentioned guide books to processing deer into useable venison, and this one succeeds where all others fail.The authors' method is for beautiful boneless venison, which is the best way to get the most meat and best flavor out of your deer. The pictures of the process--from field dressing to butchery of the deer itself--are clear and vivid, showing the user exactly what to expect and how to proceed. The text is easy to follow and written with a good dose of humor and encouragement. And the book lays flat and has heavy, glossy pages that stand up to the unavoidable smears and stains.This is the best reference for deer processing since Leonard Lee Rue and Josef Fischl's classic After Your Deer Is Down, which, for all its other merits, presents a dated and undesirable method of butchering deer with the bone in.If you're like me, you will reach for Gut It Cut It Cook It long after hunting season has ended, just to relive the satisfaction of a job well done.

(Posted on 12/1/09)