# eating wild hogs



## sweatequity (Oct 11, 2013)

I joined a club that has lots of hogs. I killed an 80 pound sow with my bow two weeks ago. It was an exciting spot and stalk hunt. I got within 10 yards and let the rage fly. She ran less than 10 yards.

There were about 7-8 around with one being a big boar I could have stuck. I decided to shoot one of the smaller ones because I was 300 yards from my truck and dont have a four wheeler. 

I always hear a big older boar will taste bad. Is this true? The sow sure taste good and we seem to have more hogs than deer, so figure the next one should be a hoss but hate to pay more to process a bigger hog that will taste bad.

Opinions?


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## joey1919 (Oct 11, 2013)

I've cooked em all, 30 pounds to 300. Hickory smoke makes anything taste good


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## blood on the ground (Oct 11, 2013)

Pay no attention to size, wild hog is good meat when processed correctly. Just make sure you don't let it lay to long in warm temps! Domestic or wild it can spoil quickly!


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## Mako22 (Oct 12, 2013)

My processor (professional outfit) told me not to bring him any boar over 90 pounds due to boar taint. Many folks will tell you to castrate a wild boar immediately to avoid boar taint but my research shows that this does not help. Boar taint cannot be smelled until you actually cook the meat. It has to do with some kind of fatty acid build up in the boars meat due to his not being castrated while young like they do with commercial pigs. I also understand that the taint does not affect the taste of the meat just the smell that is released while cooking. I shoot sows only and small boars just to be on the safe side. BTW you will find that as deer season gets going the hogs will become completely nocturnal, might want to get a trap.


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## Paint Brush (Oct 15, 2013)

Woodsman69 said:


> My processor (professional outfit) told me not to bring him any boar over 90 pounds due to boar taint. Many folks will tell you to castrate a wild boar immediately to avoid boar taint but my research shows that this does not help. Boar taint cannot be smelled until you actually cook the meat. It has to do with some kind of fatty acid build up in the boars meat due to his not being castrated while young like they do with commercial pigs. I also understand that the taint does not affect the taste of the meat just the smell that is released while cooking. I shoot sows only and small boars just to be on the safe side. BTW you will find that as deer season gets going the hogs will become completely nocturnal, might want to get a trap.


 Buddy your processor has sold you some ocean front property in Arizona. If a hog is gonna be rank as you mentioned you will know it when you walk up to it. I have eaten them up to 300# and if you take a couple precautions theres nothing wrong with a boar hog. #1 don't get him mad before he is killed one that has been caught with dogs sometimes will be strong. #2 get him cleaned out and cool as soon as he quits kicking. Put the quarters on plenty of ice, key word plenty. Drain water next day and re  ice . Day 3 process. One problem with coolers is they hang everything in the same cooler. You don't want to hang hot carcasses with chilled carcasses. And not every one takes good care of their kill in the woods. Learn to do this part of the hunt yourself guys. You and your family will benefit from it.


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## Ga Waters (Oct 15, 2013)

Paint Brush nailed it!


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## dick7.62 (Oct 15, 2013)

What Paint Brush said.  I mostly have killed big boar hogs and all of them were good.  My biggest 267 lbs gutted, 95 degree day, tasted great.


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## Grey Man (Oct 15, 2013)

I killed a 180 lbs boar that stank to high heaven. Put the meat in a cooler with ice, water, salt and cut up potatoes for three days (kinda like the suggestion above). Tastes great, no musk!


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## hoochman2 (Oct 16, 2013)

dont listen to your processor, or second thought you might want to find another one


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## dotties cutter (Oct 16, 2013)

My oldest sons wife will not let him keep meat from a male hog so when he gets one he calls me and over several years I have yet to get one that was not as good as any sow after I dressed and chilled it.


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## Boar Hog (Oct 16, 2013)

S





Woodsman69 said:


> My processor (professional outfit) told me not to bring him any boar over 90 pounds due to boar taint. Many folks will tell you to castrate a wild boar immediately to avoid boar taint but my research shows that this does not help. Boar taint cannot be smelled until you actually cook the meat. It has to do with some kind of fatty acid build up in the boars meat due to his not being castrated while young like they do with commercial pigs. I also understand that the taint does not affect the taste of the meat just the smell that is released while cooking. I shoot sows only and small boars just to be on the safe side. BTW you will find that as deer season gets going the hogs will become completely nocturnal, might want to get a trap.



Your processor is not very experienced in hog processing, find a new one. We don't castrate for any other purpose than to fatten up a boar and make him less aggressive. The main reason a hog, boar or sows meat has a bad odor is poor handling, be careful not to burst the bladder and cool the carcass as soon as possible. Kill'um all! And eat'um!


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## bany (Oct 16, 2013)

boars stink. the bigger "older" they are the more they stink usually. this rarely transfers to the meat. handling and timing and temp.......


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## rustybucket (Oct 16, 2013)

First off, I process all our meat, we don't use a processor. 

One thing I do to pigs, before gutting or skinning, is wash them off with a hose thoroughly.  They have all kinds of nastyness on the outside of them.  I've even taken a scrub brush to a few of them that were extra dirty.

I don't think this outside cleaning helps the meat any, but it does make processing them and keeping the meat clean easier.

On a side note, in my experience, age of the animal only means the meat will be a little tougher.  The meat is still tasty, just may be a little tougher.  So the older the pig, the longer I cook whatever part.  Again, this is just my experience, not saying it's the rule.

On another side note... One of my families favorite wild game dishes is my deer/hog BBQ.  Just put some on this morning actually.

You put one deboned deer ham in the croc-pot, and then lay a deboned hog ham on top of it.  You could leave bones in if your crockpot is big enough.  Cook it in the croc-pot on high until the meat falls off the bone.  The MOST IMPORTANT part of this is to keep the liquid drained out of the croc-pot.  I do not want to boil the meat, I want to roast it.  I use a turkey baster to suck the juice out every hour or so.

Once it's done, let it cool, then pull/chop it up in to BBQ.  Add your favorite BBQ sauce (we like Sweet Baby Ray's brand).  Freeze what you don't want to eat in the next week.  It will keep for a LONG time in the freezer.


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## Paint Brush (Oct 21, 2013)

*Boar hog*

Yep I was right about em. just got finished with supper and the wife cooked a shoulder roast out of the boar I shot last week end, you couldn't ask for a better pork roast. I grilled the tender loins Sunday nite, let them cook slow and added BBQ sauce the last 10 min, EXCELLENT. This one I killed with a bow and he was around 200 live wt. We dressed one this weekend that was about 300 he is in the cooler and will process tomorrow nite and then try him. Just my guess but it will be just as good. I know everyone you talk to wants hogs gone but I wouldn't trade one for a deer, no way. If you have them on your land you need to be putting them on the table.


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