Do I have to hang them?

567 Views 4 Replies 3 Participants Last post by tinknal, May 8, 2010

Jean in Virginia

Discussion Starter · May 8, 2010

First of all, thanks to all of you, I have learned sooo much.

Three of our piggies are going to camp Monday, man comes to the farm, dispatches them and carries them off to the locker.

Two are at 300, one at 260, probably 6 months old.

I'd like to keep all the hams here, bone them, slice and freeze myself, and can some of it, but I'm wondering if they have to hang to age.

The locker only hangs pigs for 2 days at most, and I'd like to save money, and not let any of it go to waste.

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highlands

· #2 · May 8, 2010

For young pigs like that the 2 days of hanging is sufficient. For an older pig I would hang it longer. First period of hanging gets the heat out. Next is to get the rig.mort out. Next is for aging and tenderizing. The 2 days will give you the first two reasons.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
Pastured Pigs, Sheep & Kids
in the mountains of Vermont
Read about our on-farm butcher shop project:
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/butchershop
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/csa

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Jean in Virginia

Discussion Starter · #3 · May 8, 2010

Thanks Walter. I've been reading everything I could find, but didn't really get a clear answer.

I butchered a roadkill deer this summer (hit by my neighbor in front of my house) and she
ended up being a little tough, which has really had me thinking about rigor/tenderizing.

I don't want to jeopardize any of this meat.

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highlands

· #4 · May 8, 2010

The other issue with the road kill deer is it may not have been bled out. Proper bleed out helps a lot.

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tinknal

· #5 · May 8, 2010

Probably the easiest thing to do would be to tell the processor to leave the hams whole, fresh, and unfrozen.

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