Wild hog meat… do you eat it or is it too risky?

[Wyatt Smith]

Dad used to raise a couple hogs in a dirt pen. We would have them processed and eat them. We never really liked it and had to find ways to use up the meat. We discontinued the raising of pork and bought some calves. Best decision we made.

 

[AustinL]

my wife is not much of a pork fan wild or domestic unless it’s bacon, cured ham or sausage so I only process one or two a year and am pretty selective in the ones I clean.

First they have to pass the smell test this means if they stink and can be smelled from a distance as you are walking up to them it’s a hard pass for me. I also don’t like to process nursing sows as they tend to be much more run down.

The hogs I process are typically in the 120-175 lb range and will have almost a sweet smell.

 

[AHughes]

I have some actual expertise here---I grew up in the Everglades in FL and we ate them all the time . Still shoot a few every year for Christmass dinner in Florida and they taste great..Like any game they have to be processed in the field correctly and cooked with somewhat different techniques---I process my own and have never seen any apparent bad meat from "parasites"---like all pork it needs to be cooked throughly and not eaten raw---there is even a whole 500 page book "The Hog Book" by Jesse Griffiths and Jody Horton that discusses every possible detail of hunting and cooking hogs. Just make sure you use a big enough b ullet to puit them down quickly

What part of the glades? I grew up in the keys and every minute I could I was in the southern glades and all over the loop south and all the way up to Holey lands i absolutely love those memories

 

[HankBuck]

No. I think it tastes disgusting. I tried it once.
Regarding safety, I know people who do however, parasites…I just think it’s disgusting from all angles. Hence the cooking it to death but to me, no meat is worth getting sick over.

GINA, I‘ve never killed a wild hog and agree most Pigs are especially “disgusting” but the general cooking advice for any Pork has traditionally been “well done” and that’s because of a history of “trichinosis” (small parasite that can be found in the muscle fiber of hogs, bears and some other mammals). Apparently Trichinosis can survive fairly high cooking temperatures that kills other types of parasites and bacteria…Cooking meat well done (No pink) eliminates risk. Today most pork, bacon etc.. raised on farms does Not have this parasite and restaurants serve pork “medium” because it’s now considered safe. If — IF - I shot a wild boar I think I’d like to try the meat and would just cook it Well Done to be safe….then if I get sick - I will report back to this Forum and listen to everyone’s “Smarter advice”.

 

[JG26Irish_2]

A few years back I hunted wild boar in TN with some friends. I tagged a large black boar that weighted in at 325 lbs. We made about half of it into sausage and the rest into roasts and chops. The meat was delicious but did have a smell that was all its own. My wife claimed that the gamey smell would permeate a cast iron skillet and would never wash off, lol. We did cook it well done to avoid parasites. This is also a possible issue with domestic hogs.

 

[HankBuck]

View attachment 594104View attachment 594105Love me some wild hog
have eaten 100’s and trapped and killed thousands
bbq ed , fried , sausage , pork chops , tenderloin, brown sugar ham
we take lots to the food bank and or local grocery stores parking lots to help folks out with free protein

POCO - thats an impressive Pig Pile and must’ve been a Fun day & Great Hunt !
>>>>>also an Award Winning Photo: 1st Place for “Most Disgusting”<<<<

 

[Hunt anything]

With all of this talk about wild pig I had to get out a backstrap and a rope of pepper jack cheese sausage last night. It was delicious!

 

[MS 9x56]

Like any pork or bear meat you just have to cook it to 165 internal temperature and it is as safe to eat as any other meat. Not to mention it is leaner and just plain delicious.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I have heard that wild hogs are great table fare. I have also heard they can be full of bad nasty things and should either be cooked to death or not eaten at all.

What does the group think?

@John the Electrician
I have eaten a swag of wild pork but I'm very fussy. I will only eat it if it comes off good country with plenty of food. Before eating I always check the liver and heart for any nasties.
If the pig comes from an area that's got little feed I just shoot it and leave it. If poor country pigs will eat carion and are omnivores so if there's a chance it has been feasting on carion it's a big no no for me. When you see a pig ears deep in a dead animal having a good chomp it gets shot and left for other pigs and animals to eat.
So answer to your question is yes eat it but be choosy in it. GOOD wild pork is absolutely delicious.
Bob

 

[John the Electrician]

It sounds like the general consensus is yes, wild hog can be eaten with a few important things to consider.

A game warden I know was pretty much against eating it, just too much downside for what can be easily bought in the store. The assumption there is that store bought pork has a higher probability of being safer to eat.

Thanks for all the responses.

John

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

In Australia all of the authorities advise against eating it .
They warn of all the potential diseases they maybe carrying. As listed above.
In part I think it's relevant to what they are eating and the environmental conditions.
In dry times they are eating anything and in good times or cropping country they are eating grain and vegetation.
I only eat smoked and cured pork anyway so I would like to get some wild pigs of grain to make smallgoods as being free range it should be more flavourful than domestic pork.
I have worked in Biosecurity and all the training was advising against eating feral pigs and there are rules against transportation and the keeping of them.
Having shot them on dry conditions it makes them look less appealing but if I got one on grain I think I would consider processing it.

@CBH Australia
Chris once you eat wild pork of a grain paddock or food improved pasture you will never go back to store bought. Off sorghum, lupens or clover they are as fat as.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

University Of Peshawar
Principles Of Forestry Text Book (1967 EDITION)
Human-Wildlife Conflict Module
Chapter 10: Culling Of Feral Swine Subsection E- Carcass Utilization

"The flesh of wild boars that feed on the grain/corn/ nut fields may be distributed amongst the non Muslim communities (with stringent instructions to cook the meat to a temperature above 138 degrees Fahrenheit), but the flesh of wild boars that feed upon garbage (as found on the outskirts of the cities & towns) must be destroyed without any permissible scope for human consumption"

This is the policy that we forest rangers were trained to follow back in the day.

@Hunter Habib
I'm not Muslim but that is the same policy I follow. Works for me and has done for years.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

With all of this talk about wild pig I had to get out a backstrap and a rope of pepper jack cheese sausage last night. It was delicious!

@Hunt anything
Try putting apple cider, sage and fennel in your sausage mix. Absolutely to die for
Bob

 

[skydiver386]

As others have stated, younger hogs less than 150lbs should be fine, but any boar larger than that usually isn't fit for human consumption.

I've had plenty of Florida hogs that tasted great, but pressure canning is the only way I know of to kill any little nasties. Here is a great video on how to pressure can wild game.

WARNING! You will get hungry watching this video.

 

[thriller]

I have to say it amazes me how many people think eating wild pork is unthinkable. Grocery stores haven’t been around that long in the grand scheme of things and people have been eating hogs for a long time. I guess even a lot of hunters these days have gotten pretty detached from their food. Just cook it and you won’t have any issues.

 

[MS 9x56]

As others have stated, younger hogs less than 150lbs should be fine, but any boar larger than that usually isn't fit for human consumption.

I've had plenty of Florida hogs that tasted great, but pressure canning is the only way I know of to kill any little nasties. Here is a great video on how to pressure can wild game.

WARNING! You will get hungry watching this video.

Now that is just plain BS. I killed and ate a boar that dressed 546lbs and it was delicious. 2 smoked hams that wouldn’t fit in the freezer until cut up. To die for ribs on the Barbie. Breakfast sausage and Italian sausage to fill the freezer. If prepared and cooked properly it doesn’t matter how big they are. That has been my experience. But as with any wild game it needs to be dressed and skinned promptly and aged before cutting up.

 

[Finprof]

I would rather hunt hogs than deer and certainly would rather eat hog than deer.
We take out the loins and tenderloins with the rest becoming ground pork. The ground pork is used for dumplings or lion’s head or for topping ramen. My wife is Asian and ground pork is a staple. Her dumplings made with wild hog are delicious. The lower fat content makes them better.
My wildlife biologist buddy advises to freeze for at least 4 days and then cook to at least 140F.
I hunt on South Carolina farms where the hogs are eating crops. I have hunted them at coastal plantations where the swamp hogs eat mussels crabs and oysters but I don’t eat those hogs because the meat is vile. This is for sows as well as boars.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

Dad had a big old boar that weighed around 600 pounds. He had tusks exposed and very coarse hair. He was mean. I found out I could jump a cattle panel.
Big boar hogs have a unique smell, and are generally gross. I would have to be a special kind of hungry to eat one.
They are normally used for pepperoni or salami when they are sold, if they’re not used for pet food.

 

[skydiver386]

Now that is just plain BS. I killed and ate a boar that dressed 546lbs and it was delicious. 2 smoked hams that wouldn’t fit in the freezer until cut up. To die for ribs on the Barbie. Breakfast sausage and Italian sausage to fill the freezer. If prepared and cooked properly it doesn’t matter how big they are. That has been my experience. But as with any wild game it needs to be dressed and skinned promptly and aged before cutting up.

Not the ones I've shot. Several large Florida Boar hogs that myself and other family members shot went 250-300lbs, and you could smell them before you saw them. They were on ice within 90 minutes of being put down, dressed properly, and cooked in a variety of ways, and the meat still smelled and tasted like a sweaty armpit.

The taste of any wild game depends on what it has been eating, it's age, what time of year it is, how much adrenaline it had in it's system when it expired, etc. Hogs that I harvested from an old orchard in Punta Gorda, Fl had been eating fruit, and the younger ones were fantastic table fare, but a 300 pound Boar from the same orchard would make you vomit every time you opened the smoker.

 

[Hunt anything]

@skydiver386 , one question, how do you know what a sweaty armpit tastes like? Just kidding. I’m with you on the giant boars having a certain funk about them. I shot a big 400 pound plus boar years ago. It was on a cold night and i gutted it right away and skinned it the next morning. Did not smell good but I hate to waste anything so I figured I would make a spicy Cajun smoked sausage out of it . It SUCKED