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Feral Hog Flavor

8K views 33 replies 15 participants last post by  Bait washer 
#1 ·
Never having eaten feral hog, is the flavor close to domestic hog or does it have more of a wild/gamey flavor?

Thanks
 
#3 ·
Most hunters don't eat them from what I hear but it may have something to do with parasites too. Be sure if you do eat one it is cooked properly, even domestic hogs get them but they are treated chemically I think.
 
#4 ·
Ive shot wild hog and eaten as well and it was every bit as good as domestic/tame hog, only that IMO it was definitely leaner as they get around a lot. I am not sure how their diet comes into play as far as affecting taste, but mine was tasty and my wife even said so, and shes skeptical on wild critters we've never tried before.
 
#5 ·
Antlerz22 said:
Ive shot wild hog and eaten as well and it was every bit as good as domestic/tame hog, only that IMO it was definitely leaner as they get around a lot. I am not sure how their diet comes into play as far as affecting taste, but mine was tasty and my wife even said so, and shes skeptical on wild critters we've never tried before.
So you would say it compared well with flavor of domestic?

Thanks
 
#6 ·
Most feral hogs are so lean you have to add fat to make sausage and burger. The key for me is no boars over about 150 pounds and no sows over about 250 pounds. If it is borderline on size I will not dress it out if it has a strong smell. I have never been able to get that strong smell out of the meat. Dress your hogs quick and get them on ice. I then leave them on ice and drain the meat for at least 24 hours adding ice as needed so the meat bleeds out completely. Put rock salt on the top of the ice to make it last longer. I leave the drain on my cooler open and prop up the other end so it drains out of the cooler and place the cooler in the shade or the garage where it runs out under the door. Then cook as you would any other lean meat just make sure it is cooked all the way through. JMHO
 
#7 ·
I usually cook a couple at our Christmas shindig. We always use young pigs at about 40 to 50 lbs. and never have had any trouble with "gamey" flavor. Like Ed says, they must be dressed quickly and have time to bleed out completely. We season them and smoke them for about 5 hours or so over a mesquite fire then shred the meat off of the bones. Half of the meat is put back in a foil covered pan by itself and half is cooked in a mushroom gravy. After another 3 hours or so, we remove covers from both pans and brown the meat. Open a cold one and have at it.
 
#9 ·
wilded said:
Most feral hogs are so lean you have to add fat to make sausage and burger. The key for me is no boars over about 150 pounds and no sows over about 250 pounds. If it is borderline on size I will not dress it out if it has a strong smell. I have never been able to get that strong smell out of the meat. Dress your hogs quick and get them on ice. I then leave them on ice and drain the meat for at least 24 hours adding ice as needed so the meat bleeds out completely. Put rock salt on the top of the ice to make it last longer. I leave the drain on my cooler open and prop up the other end so it drains out of the cooler and place the cooler in the shade or the garage where it runs out under the door. Then cook as you would any other lean meat just make sure it is cooked all the way through. JMHO
Come to think of it Ed my hog was a boar but he was only about 80~90 lbs and we cleaned him within 1 hour after I shot him and it was still fairly warm and steaming as we cleaned it--it was cool outside. But tasty he was.,
 
#11 ·
In a drift of pigs does only the dominant male breed the females ? or is it like a jenny craig orgy ?

You Michigan boys better get on them pigs.
 
#12 ·
Ive been told that a true wild hog will have wallers on them. Its a piece of fatty tissue? thats got hair on it and hangs off either side of the pig on their necks near the shoulders. Im not sure if doemestic pigs mixing with true wild pigs will develop these or not, but all the wild pigs Ive seen with them were black and those wild ones that had domestic colorations didnt. Any body else notice wallers or not etc..?
 
#14 ·
Antlerz22 said:
Ive been told that a true wild hog will have wallers on them. Its a piece of fatty tissue? thats got hair on it and hangs off either side of the pig on their necks near the shoulders. Im not sure if doemestic pigs mixing with true wild pigs will develop these or not, but all the wild pigs Ive seen with them were black and those wild ones that had domestic colorations didnt. Any body else notice wallers or not etc..?
Actually there are no real native wild hogs in America as the only native hog like creature, the Javelina is not a true hog. Feral hogs can be hogs that just escaped from the farm yesterday or they can be decedents of the first hogs brought by the Spanish to the Americas. Which ever they are after a generation in the wild for all practical purposes they are wild. Later hunters brought in European wild hogs and released them to hunt on hunt clubs. Some of these escaped and crossed with feral wild hogs creating crossbreeds. There are very few over 50 % European type hogs in the wild. That being said some of the feral hogs after a few generations in the wild look just like true European wild hogs but are really what we call razorbacks. Even many of the babies are striped like a watermelon in color when they are born but develop a color usually black brown or reddish brown as they grow older. The flap of skin you are talking about also occurs on some domestic hogs and not really on very many others so it is not an indicator of wild blood. Having killed well over 1000 hogs in wildlife control I have only seen a couple with the flaps and both were solid red hogs that looked to have not been far removed from the farm. I have seen young wild hogs every color of the rainbow including some that looked like they were bred in a show barn. They will however change as they grow older and do not feed out well if captured and penned. JMHO ET
 
#17 ·
Good post Ed, thanks for the info.
 
#18 ·
bar-d said:
I hate to be ignert (Texas spelling) but the only hog waller I ever heard of is where they waller (also Texas spelling) up the ground.

I will make it a point to get some photos next opportunity and show you what Im talking about.
 
#19 ·
wilded said:
Actually there are no real native wild hogs in America as the only native hog like creature, the Javelina is not a true hog. Feral hogs can be hogs that just escaped from the farm yesterday or they can be decedents of the first hogs brought by the Spanish to the Americas. Which ever they are after a generation in the wild for all practical purposes they are wild. Later hunters brought in European wild hogs and released them to hunt on hunt clubs. Some of these escaped and crossed with feral wild hogs creating crossbreeds. There are very few over 50 % European type hogs in the wild. That being said some of the feral hogs after a few generations in the wild look just like true European wild hogs but are really what we call razorbacks. Even many of the babies are striped like a watermelon in color when they are born but develop a color usually black brown or reddish brown as they grow older. The flap of skin you are talking about also occurs on some domestic hogs and not really on very many others so it is not an indicator of wild blood. Having killed well over 1000 hogs in wildlife control I have only seen a couple with the flaps and both were solid red hogs that looked to have not been far removed from the farm. I have seen young wild hogs every color of the rainbow including some that looked like they were bred in a show barn. They will however change as they grow older and do not feed out well if captured and penned. JMHO ET
The hogs I saw where captured in Quincy Florida, and there were no other colors but the black ones, so thats why I assumed only the blacks. And almost all that I saw had them on them. To say there arent any other colored hogs with the flaps I cant--but those I did see were only black. As far as only a few as you said having them, almost all they captured had them. So Im thinking its some kind of a genetic thing going on that maybe hasnt spread as far to the west and or is more common in that particular area. And in the Mobile river delta, and like you said- Ive seen hogs that literally looked like porky pig but were as wild as ever.
 
#20 ·
Bigdrowdy1 said:
Properly Prepared Pork is Perfect for the Palet or Party
Hey wait a minute! I know the 6 p's and it goes Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance:sheep:
 
#21 ·
those hogs you are talking about are a distinct variaty of hog and the term is wattles and we didn't have them in texas for a while but now find an occasional one [ wonder how ] they are like the mule footed hogs that we didn't youse to have either .you will occasionally find a hog with both wattles and mule feet but they are mainly and east coast variaty . the true wild pigs are the russion or uerasion pigs wich all domesticated pigs came from after selective breeding . there are some crazy looking porkers out there especially on the islands heck they look prehistoric lol the standard wattled and mule footed hogs are jet black but like angus cattle you will find some reds . and unfortunatly we have a good population of russions to deal with they are a whole new ballgame when running with dogs . but as far as eating i prefer them to domestic to me the flavor is tottaly differant . and we eat em boars and sows alike right out of the skin like bananas lol if you smoke it right even road kill taste great lol
 
#22 ·
Son and I shot a 225lb boar last March. We washed the hog for about 20 minutes with running water to remove most of the foul stench. Then we dressed it out, iced it down and took it home. All the while being very careful not to conaminate the meat with anything that touched the outer skin.

I was pleasantly surprised at the flavor of this pig. Though it was not domestic pork, it had a mild flavor and actually tasted great. The texture was a bit different but easily cut and devoured. I have e few more pounds left in the freezer and really need to get it out an try some more recepies.
 
#24 ·
Most feral hogs are so lean you have to add fat to make sausage and burger. The key for me is no boars over about 150 pounds and no sows over about 250 pounds. If it is borderline on size I will not dress it out if it has a strong smell. I have never been able to get that strong smell out of the meat. Dress your hogs quick and get them on ice. I then leave them on ice and drain the meat for at least 24 hours adding ice as needed so the meat bleeds out completely. Put rock salt on the top of the ice to make it last longer. I leave the drain on my cooler open and prop up the other end so it drains out of the cooler and place the cooler in the shade or the garage where it runs out under the door. Then cook as you would any other lean meat just make sure it is cooked all the way through. JMHO :eating:
Doesnt salt make ice melt quicker?
 
#25 ·
I see a lot of opinions here in this thread. I won't reply to every point. I will just say that wild hog meat is one of the best tasting meat there is, period. The first wild porker I shot was in Texas on my deer stand. I like to spend every moment of available/legal shooting light possible before I call it a day when out in the field. This one particular evening, I was counting down from ten, when I would get up and call it a day. I'm on about seven and I hear something. Sounded like a popping noise. I strained my eyes and I see 100 yards out, the outline of a hog in the darkness. I knew they were around, but I had never seen one. Well, didn't take me long to decide I was taking him and I would deal with the particulars afterward. I took him down, a 100 LB boar. Next weekend, we roasted up a leg at the camp. Marinated in Italian dressing over night. Braised on the open fire for a half hour. Then we wrapped it up with a can a beer, onions, peppers, and seasonings in two layers of heavy-duty foil, tight, and placed it in a home-made dutch oven contraption over a wood fire for 5 to 6 hours. Roasted it long and slow. You want to talk about tasty and tender! I have been hooked every since. In fact, I prefer wild hog over whitetail deer. Parasites? C'mon! We eat wild caught meat all the time! Anyone who talks about being worried about parasites here on this website, I'm gonna call you out! LOL! Anyone who talks about parasites in wild hog is spending too much time reading government sponsored scare tactics on the internet and not enough time in the field!

Seriously, wild hog is right up there with axis deer on my list of desireable meat. Get You Some!
 
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