Gun Digest
 

How to Hunt Deer for Self-Sufficiency

If you know how to hunt deer, you’re well on your way to providing a self-sufficient source of animal protein.
If you know how to hunt deer, you’re well on your way to providing a self-sufficient source of animal protein.

Weights and Measures

It takes 200 pounds of meat to feed a family of four for a year. If you can kill deer, you can easily account for 150 pounds of that total with venison. You can then supplement the other 50 pounds with small game.

How to Hunt Deer: Location

You will need to find a place to hunt, either public or private. If you plan on butchering yourself, you need to make sure you have the proper equipment and adequate space. You must keep your game under 40-degrees Fahrenheit and out of the rain and other moisture to avoid meat spoilage.

Learn How to Hunt Deer

Like most types of subsistence food acquisition, research and scouting will help you achieve your goal. There are many great books on hunting public land, but one of my favorites is, of course, my husband’s Whitetail Wisdom book.

Published 10 years ago and still on Amazon’s best-seller list, the book crams Dan’s decades of deer hunting experience and insights from his time as editor of Deer & Deer Hunting into a very useful handbook for learning how to hunt deer. If you’re not a hunter, it will teach you the ropes of how to hunt deer. And if you’re a season veteran, it will dispel many of the longtime hunting myths that cause many of the struggles hunters face when pursuing pressured animals.

How to Cook Venison

There are many great ways to cook deer meat. My book, Venison Wisdom Cookbook, is full of down-to-earth, family friendly recipes. Some people think that having to plan their meals with frozen or canned meat is difficult.


This is the Best Venison Jerky Recipe You'll Ever Find


It really is just a matter of knowing what you have to use in your freezer.  I indexed the venison cookbook based on cut of meat so if you have hamburger to use then you can just turn to the hamburger section and there will be a list of great recipes to try.

Anyone can cook game meat. Don’t let the fact that you have hunted it in the woods instead of bringing it home on a Styrofoam tray make you feel intimidated. Instead, let it make you feel invigorated for the great gift you have provided to your family.

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