By David Draper

I’ve never met deputy editor Colin Kearns’s brother Brian, but I can tell he’s my kind of guy. If his Facebook photos are any indication, he spends his time roasting whole hogs, going on BBQ-fueled road trips and otherwise leading a damn fine life. In short, I want to be him, especially after seeing his submission for this week’s Food Fight, which I’m predicting will slaughter my simple pot roast. But then, Brian’s a chef, so I don’t mind losing to a pro.

By David Draper

Depending on where you live, you may have been hearing an awful lot about Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease, or EHD, as it’s more commonly known. The disease, which is often fatal to deer, was first recognized in 1950s, but it has made headlines this fall across the drought-stricken regions of the U.S. where tens of thousands of deer have been found dead or dying of EHD.

Many states have either reduced the number of deer tags available or, as in my home state of Nebraska, recommended wildlife officials do so. Some hunters in EHD hot zones have expressed concern about eating meat from deer that may be infected with the horrific disease. So, is it safe?

By David Draper

If you’re getting into processing your own wild game, it pays to invest in a good knife set. I originally bought this roll from the Bargain Cave of Cabela’s Sidney, Neb., store close to 15 years ago. The Messermeister knives that came with it have served me fairly well since then, but now that I’m cutting a lot more meat than I used to, I’ve started to swap out the original knives for some new ones. If you call me to cut your deer, here’s what I’m showing up with (from left to right):

Dexter Sani-Safe Boning Knives: This is my first season with these two boning knives—a 5-inch straight blade and 6-inch curved blade. In the past month, they’ve cut a bear, two antelope, and one deer. I’ve touched them up a few times, but for the most part the high-carbon steel blades stay sharp enough to bone and trim one deer-sized animal. I really like the handles, which are not only comfortable, but also clean up easily and are hi-viz white so I always know one is on the cutting table while I’m working with its mate. Best thing is, they are inexpensive. I picked these up at Cabela’s for less than $20 each. Chances are, they’re the same models your butcher uses.

By David Draper

In a strange story that made its way around the Web last week, Ryan Adams of Pflugerville, Texas, who writes the ambitious cooking blog Nose To Tail At Home found himself in a bit of trouble with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Adams, who is not a hunter, plucked and prepared white-wing dove that had died in a collision with a window. After posting the process on his blog, TPWD officials came knocking:

“…according to Texas Parks and Wildlife spokesman Steven Lightfoot, that was the wrong thing to do. It is illegal to possess any wildlife resource that has not been taken legally. Lightfoot explained. “By legal I mean there are certain means and methods… you have to have a hunting license and you have to have the appropriate weapon and ammunition.”

Lightfoot says Adams would have had the right to eat the bird if he had legally hunted it and since those weren’t the circumstances he should have turned it over to a game warden.”