Do you butcher your own pigs? How do you store the meat?

[hydroswiftrob]

You have to brine the hams a LOT longer to make sure the salt is all the way through so they were very salty. I will admit too that we did it in the days before we hung the meat for 4-7 days so they were a little tough. There is NO way you could have sliced our hams that thin.

Remember that the "ham" you purchase in the grocery store has a certain percentage of water in it so not all meat. That can make a huge difference in the texture & ease of slicing. The best way to learn is by experience. With your first pig, do several different cuts but don't be disappointed if you don't like one. Just make notes & change it the next time. If you are anything like us, once you have eaten one you'll be eager to eat another. We probably got through 3- 4 pigs a year - we eat a lot of meat. We also raise our pigs lean so fat content will also make a difference to your meat cuts.

Most of all have fun & be thankful to the pig for providing you with some wholesome meat.

Are you doing the killing yourself? If so it is very important that you keep stress to the minimum as that does affect the quality of your meat. If you can give the pig food or shoot whilst asleep it will never know what has hit it. We try to kill in their natural environment but in a limited space. Should you miss the first time, don't panic - stay calm and get the second time. If you do miss & cause some stress, hang that meat for a couple more days. Of course none of us want an animal to suffer but there are times when it moves unexpectedly so you have to be prepared.

Liz

Thank you for posting this. This is a TON of useful information.

 

[1littlefarmer]

Well, the pig is hanging in four parts in the garage now.

Thanks especially to Liz/Cornish Heritage and OhioFarmGirl for the advice and encouragement. I'm going to let it hang until middle of the week and then either get the cuts into the brine or the freezer!

 

[Cornish Heritage]

Congratulations! You'll soon be enjoying the "fruits" of your labor and I'm betting you will never purchase pork from the grocery store again.

Whilst you are waiting for the meat to hang, research sausage recipes. Find a few you think you will like & try each one in 3-4lb batches. That way you are only wasting a small amount of meat if you don't like one. I can remember we fed one lot to the dogs as it was AWFUL (OK so not awful but we didn't like it!) It took us quite a few attempts to find one that we really liked & then Richard experimented & made his own recipe which is what we use all the time now.

Liz

 

[1littlefarmer]

So once upon a time the weather was supposed to be cold this week but I'm watching the temperature rise into the low 40's where I'm hanging the pig and the weather channel just adjusted the forecast highs for the next few days are going to be mid 40's. Do I need to cut this up now and get it in the freezer or can it handle a few hours in the 40's for a couple of days?

Help!

ETA- It is getting cold at night - into the mid 20's...

 

[fortheloveofgoats]

My wife and I will be butchering a pig in a few weeks and I've been researching a LOT on the cuts and storage but I still have a few questions.

Most of the meat will be cut, vacuum packed, and put in the freezer but the ham and bacon have me perplexed. I think I want to salt (dry) cure and probably smoke both but I'm not sure how to store them after that and for how long I can store them. I know cured ham is supposed to be good for a year unless it's cut into but can I cut up the ham and cure it in smaller pieces? I'm also still considering a wet cure so I would be happy with advice in that direction, too.

Thanks for any help!

Dry cure is a lot more labor intensive and takes a lot longer than using a brine.

 

[Cornish Heritage]

So once upon a time the weather was supposed to be cold this week but I'm watching the temperature rise into the low 40's where I'm hanging the pig and the weather channel just adjusted the forecast highs for the next few days are going to be mid 40's. Do I need to cut this up now and get it in the freezer or can it handle a few hours in the 40's for a couple of days?

Help!

ETA- It is getting cold at night - into the mid 20's...

LOL! Don't you just love when that happens! If you are getting to below freezing at night I think the meat will be OK. Is your garage dark? We had a problem like this last year before we purchased the cooler. We had the pigs hanging in the well house which stays pretty cool but the sun shines in through the door so we just covered the door with newspaper & that kept the temperature steady.

You do not want your meat to freeze. Ideal hanging temperature is around 38 to 40F so I wouldn't worry too much. Just make sure no flies emerge & get on it!

Liz

 

[Teeah3612]

Congratulations! You'll soon be enjoying the "fruits" of your labor and I'm betting you will never purchase pork from the grocery store again.

Whilst you are waiting for the meat to hang, research sausage recipes. Find a few you think you will like & try each one in 3-4lb batches. That way you are only wasting a small amount of meat if you don't like one. I can remember we fed one lot to the dogs as it was AWFUL (OK so not awful but we didn't like it!) It took us quite a few attempts to find one that we really liked & then Richard experimented & made his own recipe which is what we use all the time now.

Liz

So now you tease us with this homemade recipe and don't share?

Thanks for all the great information!

 

[Cornish Heritage]

LOL! OK so I had to get up from my desk, go find the recipe

Here you go!

3lbs ground pork

Mix together:

2tsp salt
1 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp thyme
2 tsp garlic powder or granules

Add to pork along with the following:

4 oz Bread Crumbs (we use homemade whole wheat bread crumbs)

Sprinkle of Balsamic Vinegar

Mix well & then put through the grinder on "thick" grind one more time.

Enjoy!

Not sure what kind of grinder y'all have but our grinder has 2 or 3 different discs. One allows you to "thick" grind & we have found this to work much better. On the "thin" grind by the time you have put it through twice it just doesn't have such a good texture.

We freeze our sausage in 2lb packages.

Liz

P.S. SO 1LittleFarmer, how did that pork turn out?

 

[Teeah3612]

Thanks for the recipe! I will be trying it out. I don't know about my grinder. My MIL bought it for me and I haven't even taken it out of the box.

 

[1littlefarmer]

P.S. SO 1LittleFarmer, how did that pork turn out?

It turned out real nice! We just had a delicious ham for Christmas dinner and have been enjoying lots of sausage and bacon!

Thanks again for all your help!