Piney Wood Rooters

[2cycle]

Deer season opens here on Aug 15. Got a buddy that hunts some club property, that is over run with wild hogs. He said he'd save me as many as I want. Most times they shoot them and leave them, or just drag them off somewhere because they are such a pest. The processor is just 15min from where he hunts, and said he'd drop it off there with my name on it. Most hogs they kill are around 100 to 250lbs, feeder pig size. These hogs are razorback/feral cross, more razorback than feral. I say that because they don't have true shoulder plates like a real razorback.

My question is, Is the belly good for curing? I've always wanted to cure bacon again. And thought it would cure good because its so lean.

Growing up in Fla we hunted them year round with dogs, or trapped them. They were real piney wood rooters, aka razorbacks. We'd mostly only keep the shoulders, loins and hams.

Second question, are the ribs worth keeping? We never kept the ribs back then.

Greg

 

[lcruzen]

August 15th??????? I'm guessing you don't let em hang very long.

 

[2cycle]

The bacon we get from the store, comes from feeder pigs of less than 250lbs. I know, I used to feed out 250+ feeder pigs a year for market. Had 12 brood sows, and 2 boars.

And yas I know about freezing game meats to kill all the nastys.

Greg

 

[2cycle]

You didn't make a wrong statement.

"Lard hogs" are no longer commercially raised for market. When I was a kid, the bigger and fatter they were, the better for market. The hogs going to market today are referred to as "bacon hogs" (or they used to be when I was in the hog business), they are bred to be long and lean. Back then we tried for the least amount of backfat, 3/8 to 1/2in. Now they have to be 5/8in or more because they are skinned by machines.

Greg

 

[fireguy]

With all the Feral hogs Ive shot in that range, they never had much belly worth a darn... had some bacon made a couple times and it was just all fat... cured, not even a thin strip if meat

... Hope your luck is better than mine...

On another note that is great seaon is opening soon for you SC boys... Archery here isnt till the 15 of sept.

good luck!!!

 

[1894]

Is it too early to side track this thread

I never heard about the freeze to 5* ( I'm assuming that's 5 F ? ) to kill the trickywhatever bugs. Only heard about cooking to ( crud , can't remember the temp off the top 'o my head ) at least med well to kill the critters.

Early bear season starts in about 8 weeks here and they can carry the same trickywhateverthey'recalled bugs as pigs do. Be nice to rest assured that a good deep freeze would let me cook to medium , M/R temps and still be safe

Same bugs , just different animals ,should be the same to kill them.

 

[packplantpath]

Cooking to temp will kill most everything bacterial. The problems come from worms that are parasites to people too. They often can survive heat, but they can't handle freezing.

 

[2cycle]

I just wanna know about the bellymeat, and the ribs. Are they edible meat, or buzzard and worm food?

Sorry ya'll. I was the first one to sidetrack my own post, with my response to TH.

Greg

 

[2cycle]

Thanks TH.

Greg

 

[earache_my_eye]

I would be interested in knowing about the ribs also. One would think that they would be good enough to eat off of a sow, but not a boar.

 

[2cycle]

The best part of this is. Someone else is gonna wake up before the roosters, sit in a deer stand and shoot a wild hog for me. Drag him to the truck with his 4wheeler, load it in the back, and drop it off at our local meat cutter. Like I said, he hunts a 15min drive, from the processor. All while I'm still sleeping, or just waking up. They kill them all the time here, and don't keep them for eatin. Fields of crops are planted here, just to attract deer outa the woods. And the hogs are vermin to those hardcore deer hunters. Kinda like we think about roachbugs, and feral cats.

Greg

 

[2cycle]

Back when we shot a boar in Fla. First thing we'd do is remove the testicles. He's already shot with a high powered rifle slug. He's gonna bleed out, de-nut him while he's still kickin and the meat will be better.

Greg