Don’t Leave Meat in the Woods This Turkey Season

Written by Ethan Demi (MTN OPS Ambassador and Licensed Outfitter)

With turkey season right around the corner and a freezer that's depleted of turkey meat, I can't help but get excited by the thought of adding some more white meat to the cache in the near future. I know I’m not the only one.

But every year, there’s one thing I see that really bums me out.

Way too many hunters take just the breast meat from the bird and leave the rest behind. The number of people tossing the legs and thighs is shameful. And I can’t help but wonder…is it because they don’t know what to do with them?

Whenever I advocate for someone to keep the legs and thighs, I almost always am met with the same rebuttal: “Aren’t they tough?”

Sure, they’re tough. But do we discard the tough cuts from cows or pigs? No, we don’t. We grind them. We braise them. We slow cook them into meals that make people go back for seconds. The same is true for turkey legs and thighs.

Personally, I get more excited about the legs and thighs than the breasts. Why? Because of the variety of things you can utilize them for. Grind them for snack sticks, sausages, burgers, or meatballs. Braise them low and slow, shred them, and throw them in sandwiches, breakfast bowls, soups, tacos, burritos, quesadillas… the list goes on.

A big tom yields about a pound to a pound and a half of meat from the legs and thighs alone. Leaving that behind just doesn’t make sense.

And while I’m specifically advocating for legs and thighs here, don’t overlook other parts like the wings, heart, or liver. If we’re going to chase these birds, we owe it to them to use as much of the harvest as we can.

So, go flop a few gobblers this spring. Have fun and fill the freezer. But whatever you do, don’t leave good meat in the woods. Keep those legs and thighs!