Feral Pig Meat Quality Question

S

Sparrowhawk

New member
Saw the high tension hog shooting ethics thread over on Firearms page and DON'T want to go into what people are doing with their dead pigs.

Wondering what the meat quality is of feral pigs in Tennessee from the Highland Rim and eastward.

Supposed to have a connection with access to several large farms that are covered up in unwanted ferals and kind of thought it would be cool to eat some of them and donate the rest to charity.

That thread has me convinced only pan-sized pigs are worth eating.

Anybody bopping ferals around here that believes the bigger ones are worth having processed?

Based on your answers I'll proceed with contacting Nashville Rescue Mission and like organizations to see if they want whole carcasses. I sure ain't going to pay to process them...
 
I dont normally mess with anything over 150lbs mainly just because its a hassle. However you can eat bigger pigs they just take a little more prep. When you kill make sure you get your pig gutted, skinned and on ice asap. Leave the meat on ice for about 5 days. Drain the water out and add new ice to your cooler every day. This process takes all the gamey flavor out of the meat. This will work for pigs up to 275-280lbs. Anything bigger than that I wouldnt recommend eating.
 
As a wise man on this site said "If a hog smells like light brown sugar when you walk up on it then it is good, if it smells like anything else it will probably smell like that when you cook it." Ever since I herd this on the predator podcast on wild hogs I have tested this theroy and for the last few hogs it has been true. Go over to the big game fourn on here and look for a gentleman that goes by Guess he is a good source for wild hog information. If you would like to know more about the podcast just serch predator podcast. As far as wild hog meat I have been eating it for years and it is good. Even made bacon out of one this year.
 
I discovered the sugar comparison by accident. I was standing in a grocery store talking to a man that I know doesn't get far from the TV much less get near a hog. The whole time I kept smelling a hog and for once I knew it wasn't me
laugh.gif
. As my mind drifted while he talked, I started looking at all he had in his hands. When he left I started going through the store sniffing all the things he was carrying. I'm surprised that video hasn't turned up on some reality show!
lol.gif
It was the light brown sugar. Hogs have a very distinct musty yet sweet odor. Boars smell like pee on the campfire!

Most hogs are good to eat even the very large one's it is just a matter of prep and knowing which hogs are good for which cuts. The really big old sows are pretty tough to chew. we make many different types of sausage out of these. Even the big boars can be eaten, but you don't want to cook them in the house! They smell like pee on the stove as well! they do not make good sausage. They are great smoked and taste much better than they smell. Most boars we leave for the coyotes.

Gutting and skinning are really not necessary if you can get them processed in a timely manner. There have been times when we had to leave hogs or deer in the field over night for one reason or another guts in and we still ate them. I'm not dead yet!

By the way the meat is good enough that even After dressing 3 domestic hogs yesterday from 250 to 400 pounds. I still dressed out the 120 pounder we killed last night!

read my cleaning method in the big game section it is locked in place for all to read.

thanks JRBB00 I'm glad you enjoyed the show.
thumbup1.gif


on another note it is very difficult to find people willing to take wild pork. Lack of education is the main reason as far as I can tell.
 
My dad traps and hunts hogs in Texas and I've shot quite a few while I was down there visiting. We have eaten all sizes and I would definitely rather have pork that deer. The big boars are really tough to skin and do smell horrible but when they have been properly cleaned and the urine kept off the meat, I can't discern any taste in the meat. The meat from big boars is definitely tougher than younger ones though.
 
In south texas when we trap hogs we take the smaller shoat size and casterate them,ear tag em,turn em loose and shoot em after about 3-4 months on the yellow brick corn road.Tasty
 
Last edited:
Alright, I have argued this with more people than I can count on. You can eat any size feral hog. You just have to know how to prepare it.

1. Kill hog, the quicker the better.
2. Field dress hog, again...the quicker the better. (Glen's dressing procedures work perfectly. I like to be standing over mine with a knife waiting for them to quit kicking
smile.gif

3. Skin hog quickly and quarter. Wash off dirt, grime, and extra blood and get it on ice as soon as possible.
4. Pour 1 cup lemon juice and 1 cup white vinegar onto meat/ice and mix around. Let soak overnight.
5. The next day, remove backstraps and tenderloins. Drain liquid from remaining meat and add ice, lemon juice and vinegar.
6. Repeat for 2-3 days.
7. Butcher as you normally do from this point. If you don't do it yourself, now is the time to take it to the processor.

The lemon and vinegar will remove all smell and gamey taste from the meat. I like a little game taste in my wild game but that's me. I only soak for 2 days. An extra day will remove just about all of it.

I have used this on everything from small pigs to huge smelly boars that friends swore you couldn't eat and wanted to leave in the field. It works, everytime. I just finished preparing some for the grill from an ol' nasty boar some friends said couldn't be eaten. There is no smell to it other than the spices I'm using.

Quick recipe for anyone interested.

Cut hog, or any other meat, into small bite sized pieces and soak in worcerstershire sauce, salt, pepper, garlic, etc for about an hour.
While meat is soaking, cut full package of bacon in half so you have 1/2 sized slices of bacon. Cut up whole onion and jalapeno peppers into slivers.
Lay out bacon and put one piece each of meat, onion and pepper. Roll bacon and hold together with a toothpick. Grill until bacon is done. While grilling, pour one bottle of your favorite bbq sauce into a sauce pan and add one small jar of red plum jelly. Heat/stir slowly until smooth. Dip meat into sauce and eat. Enjoy
 
I usually do not shoot a large boar, but I do not usually
pass on a good shot. I find that if I shoot a boar, no matter the size, I cut the testicles off IMMEDIATLY.
I then get to camp in a reasonable amount of time and clean the hog. I then put it on ice over two-three days with the drain plug open. The meat then comes out light pink. I then cut and freeze the meat. Then I cook the meat and eat when I am in the mood. Never had a problem with anmy pig since I started this process.
 
Last edited:
An acquaintance got himself a boar hog. He liked it being so cheap. Then he started cooking it and found out why it was so cheap. He at first accused the packing plant of giving his meat to someone else and giving him bad meat. They didn't, they made sure that he got ALL of his meat back.
Domestic boar hogs sell so cheap for a reason, I don't see any reason to assume that a feral hog would taste any better.
 
We took one a couple years ago, weighed in arond 225 on the hoof. Dressed as normal, transported back to WY frozen and processed. Everyone that had some liked it, was closer to beef than pork as far as taste. Planning on another trip soon.
 
Originally Posted By: SparrowhawkSaw the high tension hog shooting ethics thread over on Firearms page and DON'T want to go into what people are doing with their dead pigs.

Wondering what the meat quality is of feral pigs in Tennessee from the Highland Rim and eastward.

Supposed to have a connection with access to several large farms that are covered up in unwanted ferals and kind of thought it would be cool to eat some of them and donate the rest to charity.

That thread has me convinced only pan-sized pigs are worth eating.

Anybody bopping ferals around here that believes the bigger ones are worth having processed?

Based on your answers I'll proceed with contacting Nashville Rescue Mission and like organizations to see if they want whole carcasses. I sure ain't going to pay to process them...

I've eat some big'uns and small 'uns from tenn and carolina, some taste more like pigs than others
some a little strong some down right good, I ain't got one yet, maybe this year, my friend who goes
alot says running 'em with dogs does something to 'em ?????? maybe? I don't know..I do know even if
it taste a little strong it's still good for you..and will probably add years to your life....
 
I had a small hog from a buddy in Florida a number of years ago. I couldn't stand the smell of it cooking, let alone the taste. Fast forward a few years....we put 4 in the freezer this summer. Smelled just fine processing it, but as soon as I started cooking it....yuck! My wife and kids don't mind it, but to me it smells just like boar pee, when we used to raise hogs as a kid. I took the time and processed these cleanly, nothing tainted. I'm not sure I'll ever bring one home again.

Good news is, I've got enough frozen meat to feed the dogs for a few months.
smile.gif


Tony
 
OK check out this one and give me a guess at its weight

hog.jpg


This was a Boar and it was some of the best eating I ever had. We did Casterate it right away and used the above methods of soaking in Ice water with salt for a couple days before sending it to be processed.
 
As I mentioned in the other thread, a lot of zoo's would love to have the meat. Same with a gator farm if your in the southeast.
 
I have ate them from 20 lbs to 475 lbs and love them all just have to clean them good and not get the hair are pee on the meat.
 
most zoos and big cat farms will not take hog meat. too dangerous to feed raw.
I've tried many ways to get rid of it.
gave 2 to Mexican's today. and they took 3 hog heads from the domestics I killed yesterday.
 
Originally Posted By: daddyfleaOK check out this one and give me a guess at its weight

hog.jpg


This was a Boar and it was some of the best eating I ever had. We did Casterate it right away and used the above methods of soaking in Ice water with salt for a couple days before sending it to be processed.

That's a nice hog. Did the young fella in the photo kill him?

I'd guess him at about 160-175 pounds. I used to overguess, and now I've getten conservative, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was a bit more. Did you weigh him?

As far as meat goes, I've been prety fortunate with good meat. I usuually shoot smaller hogs (less than 150 pounds) and soak in ice water. I know a guy in Texas that swears by ice water - five days, change ice water every day, and add pineapple juice each time. Says that works wonders on even the rankest hogs. I've never tried it, but may this year.
 
Originally Posted By: DASI have seen this mentioned a couple of times. What does castrating them do after they are dead?

From someone who used to work with livestock I can't see that it would do anything. Whats in the meat at that point is in the meat. And since they are dead nothing additional will go in.
Now if you did it a couple of months before you shoot it there might be a big difference in taste.
 


Write your reply...
Back
Top