The Burger Grind

 

Wrapping burger - this is far less than half the total grind

Last weekend the 2023 hunting season officially ended with the burger and sausage grind.  Every year we save up all the burger scrap meat until the end of the season and then grind it all at once.  I usually wait until a couple of months after hunting season to actually do the grind.  By waiting a couple of months I have an idea of how much meat I am going to need to get through the year. Then I can grind the extra meat.  Burger and sausage is the most popular option for game meat amongst everyone I know.  And the burger we make is way better than anything you can buy.

Anyway this year we made 176 pounds of burger and sausage.  That is a LOT of meat.  141 pounds of it is straight elk and deer burger mixed with beef fat.  The other 35 pounds is deer meat mixed with pig fat and spices to make Italian sausage.

Since we got back from Japan I have also been lightly pickling vegetables to eat with breakfast.  So I've been having sauerkraut and 'Shiozuke' with my freshly ground burger and sausage for breakfast (photos at bottom).  Shiozuke is super easy.  Basically you add vegetables - I used green beans and baby boy choi - to a big mason jar, add a tablespoon of salt and fill to the top with water.  Then the vegetables are lightly pickled and ready to eat the next day.

I looked into Japanese pickling techniques and there are all sorts of them to try.  I have also been pickling kale. I think the next technique I want to try is called Shoyazuke and is based on adding soy sauce and rice vinegar.

Sorting and weighing all the meat before the grind - need to know how much fat to add

Cutting up the frozen meat prior to grinding - an old package of meat from last year is added to the burger pile

Freshly ground burger for breakfast

My homegrown version of a Japanese breakfast - bacon and shiozuke

My Arizona olives and lightly pickled beans and box choi (Shiozuke)

I grew this pepper from a seed out of a store bought pepper and now it has a pepper on it - we had it for dinner last night

Fermented foods and eggs for breakfast