Whole hog!

[mainelycheese]

I am getting a pig to butcher for freezer and to try some cured items and fresh sausages. I am overwhelmed with the possibilities. We will be doing this in 2 weeks.

So far I am planning to do Tasso, pancetta, guanciale, lardo, and possibly Canadian bacon. I am sure we will do some of the belly as a traditional bacon too. I am also planning to do some fresh sausages. Maybe lonzino as well... I am blessed to have use of a walk-in and commercial smoker to accommodate this project.

I feel incredibly lucky to be able to use a commercial kitchen and have formed an army of hands from my favorite fellow culinary students. The pig is coming from Brambly Farms.

Any of you fellow food geeks have suggestions for me? As it stands right now we are getting a pig that will weigh anywhere from 140-190 hanging weight and it is being split with 2 other people, but I will get half and I arranged the whole ordeal, so I have a weighted say in what all we do.

[OudeKaas]

Hm. I think I am beginning to hate you just a wee bit . . . . oh, wait it's just pork envy. 

[Jaspar]

mmmmmmmmmm smoked porkbutt sandwiches with homemade warm blue cheese sauce.

[Tomer1]

How much are you paying for a whole pig?
Are you buying directly from the butcher or from a farmer which deliveres it to processing?

[mainelycheese]

I am buying from the farmer. They service restaurants in the greater Boston area. The price per pound is around $5.00/lb hanging weight, skin on, bones, etc. It is not cheap pork, it is high end pork. I do not like to support factory farming, and by buying this pig, I will be able to avoid factory farmed meat for a long time. I used to raise and butcher my own poultry, but where I live in a micro apartment, this is the way for me to go. They deliver the pig to processing, and then bring the pig to me in 3 large pieces; head, and 2 sides.

[Tomer1]

Do you make some dishes with the internal organs (which cant be frozen) or discard?
I love liver with fried onion and breaded fried brain  .

[FarmerJd]

We butchered 4 hogs that I raised this past winter and smoked/processed all the meat. We did a good bit of the Canadian bacon, brine cured and smoked the hams and bacon, and made several hundred pounds of smoked and fresh sausage.  Lot of work but worth it. Good luck.

[mainelycheese]

Yes we plan to use everything. Chef is particularly fond of offal, and I will eat it too. We aren't getting the brains, but all the other goodies will be there. Sad about no brains, but have to deal with the processor.

I am known at school for leaving with a bag full of carcasses whenever they cook duck. It is amazing what people throw out. I have a good stock of duck offal, fat, and stock that was all obtained for free. I eat well.

[Tomer1]

The amount of very much edible "waste" thrown away by today's society is simply saddens me.

[linuxboy]

It is amazing what people throw out. I have a good stock of duck offal, fat, and stock that was all obtained for free. I eat well.

Oh man.. I can't believe it. They throw out some of the best parts. Cooking with duck fat == win. I recently helped show a few folks about processing offal and intestines for sausage. Weak spot in my heart for all the gelatinous and fatty pig parts (the cheek is so good). Awesome about your buy

[OudeKaas]

Hell yeah, pork cheek ftw.



A number of Japanese places in town do pork cheek as a nice ton-toro or "fatty pork", similar concept to toro as "fatty tuna" from the sushi world. Mmmm.....Izakaya Hagi in Times Square makes a version I am very fond of, deep-fried with ponzu sauce and liberally strewn with bits of fried garlic (the above is not that but a similar image I found for illustration purposes . . .).

[linuxboy]

Oh wow. I've made similar dishes before. Foodgasm? The pig is one of the reasons I can't ever be truly kosher. I figure God put us on on the earth to enjoy the fulness of its bounty, and if we can't enjoy the rich, full goodness of what the earth has to offer, then why bother trying to live the noble life? The noble life is the enjoyment of the earth's bounty, and sharing it with as many people as possible, to me.

[reg]

Hello all, it has been a while. I had the pleasure of working on a four week program at the Canadian Culinary Institute just this past winter. The program was a combination of butchery, curing, sausage making and so on down the line.

Attached is a short blip on the program that we taught. Hope this works

http://streaming.niagaracollege.ca/?v=pblakeman/BBQLab

Reg

[mainelycheese]

Just an update on my pig project. What an experience! Half of the students who were "coming" did not show up, so we did not get all accomplished that I had planned to. Did get a prosciutto, pancetta, lardo, 2 guanciale, tasso, several slabs of bacon, bratwursts, a cured ham, cured picnic shoulder, and stock done so far. Will work on more smoking projects and head cheese when I get back next week.

I also have a wide variety of fresh products in my freezer.

Here is the first meal from the pig taken on Sunday. Cider brined heritage pork, Brussels sprouts, mustard sauce...

[coffee joe]

Yum!!