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What's the Best Way to Cook Wild Pig?

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April 01, 2013

What's the Best Way to Cook Wild Pig?

By David Draper

I am somewhat jinxed when it comes to hunting wild pigs. I don’t know how many times I’ve gone on quote-unquote “slam-dunk” hog hunts that turned into the standard “you should have been here yesterday” affairs with nary a swine in sight. Now I’ve broken the curse with a successful east Texas hog hunt at the Circle WC Ranch near Cuthand, Texas.

I spent the weekend as a guest of Bill Wilson of Wilson Combat fame. Wilson is a renowned competitive pistol shooter and maker of custom 1911s, ARs and firearm accessories. He’s also crazy for hog hunting and has created a swine-centric utopia that he opened up to me for a few days.

The hunt got off to a good start when I shot my first pig, a 220-pound trophy boar before I even climbed into my stand. Wilson had cautioned me to ease into the bait site just in case the pigs were out feeding early and sure enough, there was a blond boar rooting through the mud. The big boar dropped where he stood with one round from my Wilson Combat Tactical Custom in .458 SOCOM. This round is built for special-ops forces, but has proven itself so deadly effective on really big boars that Wilson requires his hunters to use it when trophy hunting.

On spot-and-stalk hunts for smaller meat hogs in the 50-150 pound range, Wilson had me carry a Wilson Combat AR chambered in his 7.62 x 40 WT. That’s what I shot this 80-pound sow with. Though my bullet placement was a bit too far back on the shoulder to get the same DRT (dead right there) performance I’d seen on the boar, she only ran maybe 20 yards before piling up.

So, despite my past bad luck with wild hogs, I now have a plethora of pig parts in my refrigerator waiting to get processed when I find time later this week. Much of it will go into sausage, but I’ve also been working on a number of pig recipes for another project, including my beer-braised take on a choucroute garnie recipe.

I am looking for suggestions from those of you with more experience in the realm of hogs. What do you think is the best way to cook wild pigs?

Comments (18)

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from DSMbirddog wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

I make the same things w/ my wild hogs as I do with the grocery store variety. I do cook it more slowly though to make it more tender. I have also smoked ribs and shoulders. Safe temp for wild pork for me is 160 degrees minimum.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Neil J. Selbicky wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

Oven roast and fried chops. Any roast you should stuff with garlic. That wild pig meat would go fine with venison in Field & Streams' Ultimate Deer Camp Chili recipe!

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Koldkut wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

When I lived in South Texas, it was almost always customary to have a quarter roasted over mesquite taken from any one of a billion mesquite trees that grew wild down there.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from MaxPower wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

Congrats on the hogs and breaking the curse David. Sorry I'm no help with the recipes, I can help eat them though if you want.

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from SMC1986 wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

From reading about the 7.62x40 WT it appears very similar to the 300 blackout. I have heard the 300 BLK is great on hogs so this makes sense. Not sure I would ever buy a 7.62x40 WT though as I'm looking at the 300 BLK and the 300 BLK is very quickly becoming a popular round. I wonder which was around first?

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Creek Chub wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

brine a chunk of the shoulder with whatever salt/sugar ratio you like, herbs and other aromatics. stick said chunk in a very low temp smoker or oven (Nothing hotter that 220F). If you have a meat thermometer with the heat proof cord, set the alarm for 200 degrees. 160 is where trichinosis is gone and most pork is safe to eat, but that slow climb to 200 will really break down collagen into that lip smacking goodness we all love. Plan on 1.5 hours per pound at that lower heat range and keep a foil pie pan full of liquid in the bottom. Rub? I'm a kitchen sink guy when it comes to rubs, throw it all in but make sure you touch on the 5 pillars of rub : brown sugar, salt, cumin, chili powder, and dried onion. you can shred this for pulled pork, or let it cool down and chill overnight in the fridge. the next day you can slice it like a roast and warm it up in the oven. Invite the neighbors and dine on fine swine.

+2 Good Comment? | | Report
from jack1466 wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

All the recipes sound great,,,helping to eat sounds the greatest.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from SwampWise wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

Throw a cup of Allegro, 2 tbsp of honey and a habanero pepper in a blender and pour it over the backstraps 6-8 minutes before you take it off the grill. Top it off with a light shake of a 1/2 part cayenne powder/salt mix...

...I can't remember the last time I made it to a plate before it was all gone.

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from Jerry A. wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

I think I might try to cook the whole sow, if she wasn't already broken dowm. I'd love to get one of those Cuban box contraptions (sorry, can't think of what they're actually called) to do it in.) The couple times I've seen one used on television, I almost tried to take a bite out of the t.v. screen, it looked so delicious!

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from SMC1986 wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

Jerry A I think you mean a Caja China Box? I haven't used one but people say they are great and an easy way to cook smaller whole hogs.

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from redfishunter wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

After reading this blog for a while I expected you to be a lot fatter, likely about to kick the bucket because of heart failure due to eating too much oppossum fat or something like that. But somehow you're not. Congrats on the pigs.

+2 Good Comment? | | Report
from Greenhead wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

My favorite is to make Italian style sandwiches. Cut a large roast into smaller pieces, 2"x 2" or so, it doesn't really matter. Layer these pieces in the crock pot with a diced slice of raw bacon, 1 large onion, 1 green pepper, several crushed cloves of garlic, a packet of the dry Italian dressing mix, a splash of lemon juice or cider vinegar, and a few shakes of your favorite hot sauce. Cook at least 4-5 hours until the meat is tender enough to pull apart with two forks. Remove all the meat and shred, like pulled pork. Return to the liquid in the crock pot and cook for an additional hour.

Serve on sub rolls with hot sauce and peppers. Provolone cheese is optional.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Will Brantley wrote 10 weeks 3 days ago

I've cooked a few wild pigs, Draper. Wild pig and sour kraut in a dutch oven with cornbread on the side is tough to beat.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Juan-Thomas Dibble wrote 10 weeks 3 days ago

Bone the ham, season with herbs and spices of choice, and stuff with a pound of breakfast sausage that has been mixed with a bag of Craisens. Tie it up with butcher's twine and place in a slow-cooker or Dutch oven with a bottle of beer, a sliced onion, and a sliced apple or two. Cook low and slow all day.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from gary foutch wrote 10 weeks 3 days ago

i would like to get the ultimate deer camp chili recipe

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from Neil J. Selbicky wrote 9 weeks 6 days ago

You can find F & S Ultimate Deer Camp Chili on line if you do a search.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from coffeecupmike wrote 9 weeks 2 days ago

Wild Boar Rillette, here's a link, (as a SF Giants fan sorry it's from the LA Times). Just use some boar as opposed to pork. You can also use duck, rabbit, almost anything

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from GH1 wrote 8 weeks 3 days ago

Wild hog is the best! I've turned mine into Italian sausage and Polish sausage, both are excellent. For large cuts like the shoulder or ham I use a simple salt/sugar brine, 1 cup of each per gal of water. I let it sit in the brine for a few days before cooking.
When the meat is removed from the brine be sure to rinse it thoroughly or it will be too salty.
Let the surface dry until it becomes tacky then apply your favorite dry rub. My preference is Jamaican Jerk seasoning but any barbecue rub will work.
Then I smoke at around 225F for several hours, until it has an internal temperature of 160F. I'll use a thin mop sauce to keep things moist, lemonade, pineapple juice, something like that. Apple juice is a classic.
My wood of choice is Pecan but Apple works great too. Lotsa ways to cook a pig, and they're all delicious.
Congratulations on your success!

0 Good Comment? | | Report

Post a Comment

from Creek Chub wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

brine a chunk of the shoulder with whatever salt/sugar ratio you like, herbs and other aromatics. stick said chunk in a very low temp smoker or oven (Nothing hotter that 220F). If you have a meat thermometer with the heat proof cord, set the alarm for 200 degrees. 160 is where trichinosis is gone and most pork is safe to eat, but that slow climb to 200 will really break down collagen into that lip smacking goodness we all love. Plan on 1.5 hours per pound at that lower heat range and keep a foil pie pan full of liquid in the bottom. Rub? I'm a kitchen sink guy when it comes to rubs, throw it all in but make sure you touch on the 5 pillars of rub : brown sugar, salt, cumin, chili powder, and dried onion. you can shred this for pulled pork, or let it cool down and chill overnight in the fridge. the next day you can slice it like a roast and warm it up in the oven. Invite the neighbors and dine on fine swine.

+2 Good Comment? | | Report
from redfishunter wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

After reading this blog for a while I expected you to be a lot fatter, likely about to kick the bucket because of heart failure due to eating too much oppossum fat or something like that. But somehow you're not. Congrats on the pigs.

+2 Good Comment? | | Report
from MaxPower wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

Congrats on the hogs and breaking the curse David. Sorry I'm no help with the recipes, I can help eat them though if you want.

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from SwampWise wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

Throw a cup of Allegro, 2 tbsp of honey and a habanero pepper in a blender and pour it over the backstraps 6-8 minutes before you take it off the grill. Top it off with a light shake of a 1/2 part cayenne powder/salt mix...

...I can't remember the last time I made it to a plate before it was all gone.

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from SMC1986 wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

Jerry A I think you mean a Caja China Box? I haven't used one but people say they are great and an easy way to cook smaller whole hogs.

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from gary foutch wrote 10 weeks 3 days ago

i would like to get the ultimate deer camp chili recipe

+1 Good Comment? | | Report
from DSMbirddog wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

I make the same things w/ my wild hogs as I do with the grocery store variety. I do cook it more slowly though to make it more tender. I have also smoked ribs and shoulders. Safe temp for wild pork for me is 160 degrees minimum.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Neil J. Selbicky wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

Oven roast and fried chops. Any roast you should stuff with garlic. That wild pig meat would go fine with venison in Field & Streams' Ultimate Deer Camp Chili recipe!

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Koldkut wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

When I lived in South Texas, it was almost always customary to have a quarter roasted over mesquite taken from any one of a billion mesquite trees that grew wild down there.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from SMC1986 wrote 10 weeks 5 days ago

From reading about the 7.62x40 WT it appears very similar to the 300 blackout. I have heard the 300 BLK is great on hogs so this makes sense. Not sure I would ever buy a 7.62x40 WT though as I'm looking at the 300 BLK and the 300 BLK is very quickly becoming a popular round. I wonder which was around first?

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from jack1466 wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

All the recipes sound great,,,helping to eat sounds the greatest.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Jerry A. wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

I think I might try to cook the whole sow, if she wasn't already broken dowm. I'd love to get one of those Cuban box contraptions (sorry, can't think of what they're actually called) to do it in.) The couple times I've seen one used on television, I almost tried to take a bite out of the t.v. screen, it looked so delicious!

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Greenhead wrote 10 weeks 4 days ago

My favorite is to make Italian style sandwiches. Cut a large roast into smaller pieces, 2"x 2" or so, it doesn't really matter. Layer these pieces in the crock pot with a diced slice of raw bacon, 1 large onion, 1 green pepper, several crushed cloves of garlic, a packet of the dry Italian dressing mix, a splash of lemon juice or cider vinegar, and a few shakes of your favorite hot sauce. Cook at least 4-5 hours until the meat is tender enough to pull apart with two forks. Remove all the meat and shred, like pulled pork. Return to the liquid in the crock pot and cook for an additional hour.

Serve on sub rolls with hot sauce and peppers. Provolone cheese is optional.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Will Brantley wrote 10 weeks 3 days ago

I've cooked a few wild pigs, Draper. Wild pig and sour kraut in a dutch oven with cornbread on the side is tough to beat.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Juan-Thomas Dibble wrote 10 weeks 3 days ago

Bone the ham, season with herbs and spices of choice, and stuff with a pound of breakfast sausage that has been mixed with a bag of Craisens. Tie it up with butcher's twine and place in a slow-cooker or Dutch oven with a bottle of beer, a sliced onion, and a sliced apple or two. Cook low and slow all day.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from Neil J. Selbicky wrote 9 weeks 6 days ago

You can find F & S Ultimate Deer Camp Chili on line if you do a search.

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from coffeecupmike wrote 9 weeks 2 days ago

Wild Boar Rillette, here's a link, (as a SF Giants fan sorry it's from the LA Times). Just use some boar as opposed to pork. You can also use duck, rabbit, almost anything

0 Good Comment? | | Report
from GH1 wrote 8 weeks 3 days ago

Wild hog is the best! I've turned mine into Italian sausage and Polish sausage, both are excellent. For large cuts like the shoulder or ham I use a simple salt/sugar brine, 1 cup of each per gal of water. I let it sit in the brine for a few days before cooking.
When the meat is removed from the brine be sure to rinse it thoroughly or it will be too salty.
Let the surface dry until it becomes tacky then apply your favorite dry rub. My preference is Jamaican Jerk seasoning but any barbecue rub will work.
Then I smoke at around 225F for several hours, until it has an internal temperature of 160F. I'll use a thin mop sauce to keep things moist, lemonade, pineapple juice, something like that. Apple juice is a classic.
My wood of choice is Pecan but Apple works great too. Lotsa ways to cook a pig, and they're all delicious.
Congratulations on your success!

0 Good Comment? | | Report

Post a Comment