If you kill and eat your own deer meat, you’ve probably asked the question a time or two before – How long will deer meat last in the refrigerator?
And we’re not talking about the freezer, but the actual fridge. It’s the place we often quickly stash meat after boning out the meat from our most recent deer kill.
Whether you’re in deer camp or at home, things can get hectic, and we tend to get short on time, often neglecting the venison in our fridge that awaits processing.
How long will your deer meat last in the fridge?
So how long will it last sitting in the fridge? I’ve often wondered how long is too long, so I finally broke down and did a little research on how long is too long in the fridge when it comes to your wild game meat.
In so doing, I found a handy little reference chart from askthemeatman.com.
Here’s a quick reference chart for how long your meat can handle the fridge, as well as the freezer.
Now, with that being said, I have most definitely left thawed out venison in both my fridge and freezer for longer than this chart indicates with no significant issues to speak of.
Personally speaking, if the meat still looks and smells good, I’m eating it. I have left vacuum-sealed venison roasts, chops, and steaks in the fridge for close to a week without issue.
I have also eaten ground venison, elk, and other game meats that have been frozen for years without issue. So long as they aren’t freezer-burned and dried out, I say “game on” when it comes to eating frozen game meat.
