Whole Hog

[twigg267]

I was unexpectedly given a whole hog for Christmas. I’m grinding most for sausage. My question is, can I grind the pork meat and pork fat together package and freeze? Like to pull from freezer after holidays ready for the mixer. all suggestions welcome. first time I’ve ever butchered a hog myself. thanks

[Parksider]

twigg267
Now that’s what I call a gift! Not speaking for everyone but we use boneless pork butts with the fat cap on, single grind on 4.5MM plate to mix with venison for sausage. We buy in bulk usually 100# and package up whatever we don’t use that day. I chamber vacuum seal in 5# bags so I never have to guess how much each bag weighs-I’d do 10# but they don’t fit well in my vacuum sealer. They last forever in the vacuum bags and the ziplock freezer bags are more expensive than the chamber bags.

[Jonathon]

twigg267 Yes, you can absolutely do that, just don’t mix in seasoning or cure first! We were testing some equipment here and one of our salesmen ground packaged and froze around 60 lb of pork for us. He used regular Meat Bags and closed them with the Bag Sealer and I would defrost them, mix in my seasoning and start stuffing. It certainly made my life a lot easier and I don’t think I ever really noticed a taste difference, the only issue was waiting for it to defrost! Vacuum sealing it might give you even better results than using the meat bags but if it is going to be a year or less then the meat bags will work perfectly well.

[twigg267]

Thanks guys!!

[Paynester]

I butcher several hogs per year. What your doing is literally called whole hog sausage. Yes, grind it all up together, awesome sausage. However, I mix in seasoning per 20 lbs batches, minus the cure, so it’s ready for wifey to cook with. For us, having 10-different flavored batches with also with regular ground sausage (no seasoning) is the way to go. Simple as defrost and cook, or during summer, stuff into castings for the grill. I’d also suggest taken out the tenderloins as well as the bellies for bacon, all of the rest sausage. Hope this helps, have fun!

[Jonathon]

Paynester That’s gotta be a lot of freezer space! Do you have a freezer chest specifically for that? What do you package it all in?

[Paynester]

Jonathon hi I have 2-Stand up freezers and 1 large chest freezer. I package all ground sausage in Walton’s 2 lbs. sausage poly bags. For steaks, I wrap in freezer butcher paper, also from Walton’s and on occasion, I will vacuum seal steaks in my marinade sauce so it’s simple as pull out let it defrost and it self marinates until grill time (lazy day lol). I also butcher a couple Holstein bulls, they are about 1-year and as a matter of fact, they will be butchered tomorrow morning. I butcher at this age, because of several reasons, first and foremost, these bulls start acting like AxxHoles around this age, the meat will be extremely tender, and the size is more manageable. I think next year, I will simply buy a steer from auction instead of raising from bottle up to butcher time.

[Jonathon]

Paynester That sounds awesome, home raise beef has just got to taste that little bit better from the pride of what you have done! Having the ability to store that much meat at a time is a great way to ensure your food supply and you would be able to live off that for a LONG time!

[twigg267]

I’m really enjoying and learning from your conversation. Thanks.
What is the best way to purchase bulk meat? Steer at cattle auction?

[Paynester]

twigg267 I’m sure you have farm auctions in your area. I think raising your own steer/bull/heifer is great from the stand point that your raising it so therefore you know exactly what’s going in it to produce the meat. I bottle fed these guys, weaned them, then raised them on corn and soybean meal along with hay and as much grass and acorns they could find. In addition, you are very aware of your animals health and well being. And the cost can be up there, but it’s your family’s meat. Now on the other hand, you don’t know how a animal was raised if you purchased from an auction. But if you don’t have the land, time, facilities then that’s the absolute best way of you getting bulk meat. I’m not sure if you can butcher yourself, but if you can, that’s even more savings. I’ve seen a 1200lbs steer sell at auction for $385 and it should of sold for $1000+. I may very well purchase a steer next year at auction grown out to 1200 lbs we will see. Any additional questions please ask, this entire Meatgistics is the coolest thing I’ve found, tons of knowledge in here. Merry Christmas.

[twigg267]

I aged the hog for 10 days. Grinded today. My question, Best way to mix seasoning into 50 lbs of breakfast sausage? I have 50 lbs of 75 /25 pork/Fat. I have your holly regular breakfast sausage 50 lb seasoning .

[Jonathon]

twigg267 Some people will add it during the second grind and let the grinder do some of the work for you. I tend to not like this as it makes clean up that much more difficult on the grinder. I just add the seasoning to the meat after I am done grinding. To make mixing it in easier you can add some water. Just dont add as much as you would for a cured sausage. I would say for 50 lb around a pint of water will be enough to help.

The holly is great, it is our best seller for a reason!