Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

[LifeNRA]

Just got a new bowhunting magazine. The one article mentioned that the meat from a doe is better than from a buck! I never shot a doe in my life so I cant answer this question! Also, I dont think I ever ate the meat from a doe! This would be whitetails only, by the way!

Does the meat from doe taste better than a buck?

Silly question, thats for sure, but it has me curious!

[hangunnr]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

Only difference I notice is if the buck is all rutted up he'll have a slightly stronger taste.

hangunnr

[dogdoc]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

yea--I'd say the doe meat does taste a little better but a lot of that depends on the age of the buck. The older bucks and rutting bucks do have a little stronger game taste--but heck--I like it all!

todd

[LifeNRA]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

But the article also said about a nice fat doe in the freezer. I would asume, he was talking about an older doe? Been thinking about this all morning. Seem like a silly question to me, but then like I said, I never shot a doe before! Not until I got the bow. Then I started getting my doe license last year.

[rhine16]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

as far as i know, the older each of em are, the tougher the meat gets....

[mike]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

i say the doe meat is better! jmo.. the bucks are usually tougher and gamier. again JMHO

[too_pointer]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

I know that I would rather shoot a buck before the rut than after. All the running the bucks do has to toughen them up some

too_

[Turkeygirl]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

Noy a silly question at all. Very young bucks, like spikes and button bucks, and does of any age taste better than bucks. Of course, I won't complain, deer meat is great in general, but I think preferred is doe meat. We also eat the liver but only from does and very young bucks - not as tough and very mild flavor - delicious actually.

[rifleman25]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

I have shot both and can't tell one from another. I dont label my packages specifically and just know that both are eaten when they are gone.

[Hoosierbuck]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

We eat several does, young and old, and usually an older buck every year. We have labeled packages and everything, and can't tell any difference.

HB

[sskybnd]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

i dont know the dif either, but if they are older deer i let them hand in a cooler for up to a week to 10days at 45 deg.

[Guest lobsterman]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

never shot a doe!

jeeze...

[LifeNRA]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

[ QUOTE ]

never shot a doe!

jeeze...

[/ QUOTE ]

Yep! I never got into shooting a doe, until I got my bow two years ago. Thats just me, I will now during the archery seasons. I know the older deer will be tough compared to a smaller one, just like beef. This article just had me a little confused, because they made it seem like the meat was different! I was thinking that it would be very hard to tell the difference between two deer of the same age.

Thanks for all the replys!

[wtnhunt]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

First doe I ever killed back 8 or 9 years ago, the meat was so tender and tasty we fooled people who said they would never eat deer into believing it was beef, always a fun game lol.

In my experience mature does do have considerably better meat(taste and tenderness) than a mature buck especially a buck that is rutting . Of course the younger the deer the more tender they will be, but then too you dont get much meat from a smaller younger deer. In same age mature deer in my opinion from my experience a doe will have better meat than a buck.

[Bowhntr]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

I think doe meat is better than a buck. It just seems like a mature buck is stronger than a doe to me.

[M00N]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

Young does, button-bucks, and average age does are more tender than a buck and not as gamey tasting. The younger the deer the more tender and pink the meat is on them and the less wild game taste they have.

My first deer was a late born fawn the meat was a much lighter shade of pink than the doe and buck meat harvested that year. That meat was some of the best tasting deer meat I ever ate! Very tender like veal and no hint of wild game taste in it. My button-buck last year was very tender, too.

We share our meat in our hunting group between the two families. When a deer is harvested the meat is split in half and one family gets half and the other family gets the other half. We end up each year with about 4 different sets of deer meat in the freezer because of this sharing tradition. The buck meat is always the last group of meat to be eaten out of the freezer because of the gamey taste and toughness.

Buck's as they go through years of rut season after rut season their meat tends to get tougher and much more wild game tasting. It isn't that bad of a different though that you'd see me passing up venison from a buck placed infront of me at the dinner table.

[homeslice]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

i,ll eat anykind of deer meat it,s all awesome

[Guest Dust]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

Is there anyway to remove the gamey taste. My wife won't eat and won't cook it because of it. I have to give mine to a buddy the will invite me to eat or donate to "Hunters Sharing the Harvest".

[VTbowman]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

[ QUOTE ]

Only difference I notice is if the buck is all rutted up he'll have a slightly stronger taste.

hangunnr

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree with this. Did not matter how long I hung them either. Rutting bucks are more "gamey" then bucks and doe shot earlier in the season.

JMO

[BrotherBadger]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

When i was a kid, someone(grandfather, IIRC) told me that the reason why Does taste better is because there isn't as much testosterone. Which explains why Rutting bucks taste more gamey. Personally, i actually prefer to shoot does, because the meat is that much better(to me atleast). However, if i see a nice big ole throphy buck, i take him.

[ladydiehard]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

[ QUOTE ]

Is there anyway to remove the gamey taste. My wife won't eat and won't cook it because of it. I have to give mine to a buddy the will invite me to eat or donate to "Hunters Sharing the Harvest".

[/ QUOTE ]

Does and young bucks are always better tasting IMO. Especially young deer of either sex.

We use older bucks for burger, sausage and canning.

Canned meat, no matter what age or sex, is so mild and tender that I have fooled many people with it.

I'd suggest canning it. Plus, your wife will probably love the convenience. Canned meat can be put in soup, stew, warmed and served over bread with gravy, etc. Quick, easy and delicious!

[Guest luckyman4]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

[ QUOTE ]

When i was a kid, someone(grandfather, IIRC) told me that the reason why Does taste better is because there isn't as much testosterone. Which explains why Rutting bucks taste more gamey. Personally, i actually prefer to shoot does, because the meat is that much better(to me atleast). However, if i see a nice big ole throphy buck, i take him.

[/ QUOTE ]

Most, if not all, of the beef we eat in stores comes from steers (bulls w/testes removed), cows, and heifers. "Bully beef" is tougher and leaner; I would guess because the testosterone causes a greater portion of the bulls body weight to be muscle, with less fat for marbeling. Venison from bucks is also subject to testosterone, and therefore may be leaner and tougher than doe meat.

Personally, I have found that the area where a deer is taken makes a big difference in the taste. Deer taken in big woods situations eat alot of browse and mast crops that contain tannins (acids found in the leaves of plants, needles of evergreens, and nuts like acorns). I've never seen any research into the topic, but I think those tannins get incorporated into the meat - the older the animal, the more "wild" the taste. Deer taken in agricultural areas around corn fields have a more mild taste, more like corn-fed beef.

[OJR]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

I have shot quite a few of both sexes and I can tell the difference between the bucks and does. The does are much more tender and flavorfull!

The one thing that I found many years ago, was to get the animal gutted and skinned as soon as possible after you drop it! The longer you leave the hide on, the stronger the taste. If you leave the hide on and it rains in it, you will really have some strong meat!

I have also found that any deer if it has been eating crops is more tender than one that is eating browse or things like that! The deer I have shot that have been feeding on lentils or garbonzo beans are absolutely the best tasting meat you are going to find other than elk or buffalo!

I might add that I will take a cow elk any day over a bull elk when it comes to the meat!

[hutchies]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

I love the doe meat. Buck has more game taste. I eat both but prefer doe. Bucks are good for the wall..........Does good beside my mashed taters and gravy.

[johnf]

Re: Meat From A Doe And A Buck, Silly Question!?!?

[ QUOTE ]

i say the doe meat is better! jmo.. the bucks are usually tougher and gamier. again JMHO

[/ QUOTE ]

I've got to agree with this and most of the others. The only buck I've killed was a 4 1/2 year old and he was noticably tougher and gamier than any doe I've killed.