She's A 29 Pounder!

[gltrap54]

Bought a fresh bone in raw ham from my processor to smoke & they failed to mentioned it weighed 29 pounds! I use a Weber Bullet that would accommodate this monster but my question is, can I cut this beast in half without affecting quality? I hate to freeze half of it but I've got a long list of meat slated to go on the smoker.. I have a commercial bone saw that would cut it...

 

[Fueling Around]

Photo?
I would definitely cut it down to save the hip, knuckle and shank portions for later.
You can trim away many pounds for pork roast. How much do you want for the initial smoke of ham?
I have my grandmother's bone saw for these chores.

 

[gltrap54]

Bought a fresh bone in raw ham from my processor to smoke & they failed to mentioned it weighed 29 pounds! I use a Weber Bullet that would accommodate this monster but my question is, can I cut this beast in half without affecting quality? I hate to freeze half of it but I've got a long list of meat slated to go on the smoker.. I have a commercial bone saw that would cut it...

 

[gltrap54]

Where would I cut this?

 

[gltrap54]

Where would I cut this?

Half of that 29 pounds would be great

 

[Fueling Around]

Confirms my thoughts this came from a mature hog.

About the left side of the label should get the hip joint. That should be good for a pulled pork.
Also can get above the knee for the shank cuts.
If still too large you can make lengthwise cuts along the ham.

 

[gltrap54]

Confirms my thoughts this came from a mature hog.

About the left side of the label should get the hip joint. That should be good for a pulled pork.
Also can get above the knee for the shank cuts.
If still too large you can make lengthwise cuts along the ham.

Thanks Bubba! That should solve my issue! Question... A hog that size... is the quality suffering? I mean there was a time when I was smoking hams about 14-15 pounds... I've had several in the 20-22 pound range (wet cured) that just didn't taste like the smaller hams..

 

[Fueling Around]

No it won't be the same. Just keep trimming until you get the size desired.
Equilibrium cure for extra time to get the hammy flavor well into the meat. Do you inject (I hope)?

 

[gltrap54]

No it won't be the same. Just keep trimming until you get the size desired.
Equilibrium cure for extra time to get the hammy flavor well into the meat. Do you inject (I hope)?

Yup

No it won't be the same. Just keep trimming until you get the size desired.
Equilibrium cure for extra time to get the hammy flavor well into the meat. Do you inject (I hope)?

Yup...

 

[Steve H]

John has you covered here. That is a big chunk of hog there!