Wild eats: How to cook wild game safely

GREENCASTLE, Ind. — When prepping wild game at home, it’s crucial to put food safety first.

“Food safety starts in the field,” said Abbi Sampson, Purdue Extension educator, during a webinar. “You want to consider non-lead bullets or slugs. That’s because the lead fragments from ammunition can remain in some parts of the animal meat.

“We want to make sure we’re not using any of the meat around the wound channel on that animal.”

You should also stop foodborne bacteria in its tracks.

“Whether we’re talking about wild game or commercially raised meats, bacteria is something to keep in mind,” Sampson said. “Anything that’s perishable could have things like salmonella and E. coli. We want to make sure we’re cooking our foods correctly.”

The four words to keep in mind are: clean, separate, cook and chill.

Clean: Make sure your hands and cooking surfaces are clean.

Separate: Keep raw meats and other foods separate on countertops, sinks and in the fridge.

Cook: Cook meats to recommended internal temperatures.

Chill: Get leftovers into the refrigerator within two hours.

“Make sure you wash your hands, especially with wild game, after touching the outside of the carcass,” Sampson said. “If you’re removing fur, or if you’re going back and forth from touching different surfaces.

“Make sure you wash your hands properly. That means wetting your hands, lathering with soap, scrubbing for 20 seconds, rinsing and drying.”

For rabbit and squirrel, the minimum temperature is 145 degrees. If you want to ground the meat, make sure it’s cooked to 165, Sampson said.