wild boar whole ham

[bigkev]

just wandering if anyone has cooked a whole boar ham ? i'm thinking it would be
like cooking anyother ham ,has about a good 1 1.5 inches of fat all around it verry little game taste for a razor back.....

[versifier]

I'm assuming it's not smoked. I would do it like this for any fresh pork: First, trim off most of the fat, all the skin, etc., and bone it if you want. Second, cut up some potatos, carrots, parsnips, onions, turnips, garlic. Then, get one of those cooking bags, put it in a roasting pan, spread the vegetables evenly in the bottom and place the meat on top. Follow the instructions for cooking time/weight.

If it's from a boar, you might get an objectionable smell while it's cooking - it will smell like piss (so will bear meat) - but there will be no effect on the taste with a pig. It may put off a family member or guest who smells it cooking, though. That's the main reason we cut domestic boars when they're young and easy to handle. It can take a month or so after cutting an adult pig before the meat won't stink while cooking. Leave the kitchen windows open while it's cooking. Sows don't have this problem.

You can also do it up in a crock pot, but it's much better roasted in the bag.

[HunterDownunder]

Hi Big Kev.
Over many years of hunting & shooting pigs on friends properties, we have never cooked,let alone eaten a boar,whereas we have sold them to the chillers for export to Germany,Austria etc.
You might think it a waste not to use them all ,as they damage fencing,dirty stock watering points,damage crops,however the main havoc they cause is killing & eating the young Lambs.
We occassionally butcher & cook a young sow/boar in good gondition,especially when crops are on.
You also can't beat a Wild Pig on the spit,as it has a flavour of its own.

[TooTaxed]

Your wild boar ham will not taste like a domestic ham...especially if the boar was more than about 200 pounds, which is commonly considered the max for good eating. An exception appears to be the Russian boars, which I've found to taste good even if they are 350-lb or larger. But, normal ham recipes won't work well, as the meat taste is FAR different than domestic hams! I found the following recipe and used it for a large family reunion this last Christmas. My Russian boar was well over 350-lb.

Recipe for large Russian Boar ham: Sear on all sides in a large steel Dutch oven, steel plate, or something similar. Place in the center of two or three thicknesses of aluminum foil large enough to completely cover and seal in the ham. Cover with barbecue sauce (I used a bourbon sauce, but use your favorite) and sliced onions. Seal ham in foil and place in a large pot.

(Alternative: I used a large Dutch oven with a heavy, tight-fitting lid, seared the ham in it, added a couple of cups or so of water, the onions and sauce, and baked it in the pot.)

Bake at 350-degrees until the internal temperature is 150-degrees...no higher, as the meat will toughen. Slice thinly and serve, using the pan drippings for sauce.

As improbable as it seems (onions and barbecue sauce on a ham!?!)...I was dubious enough that I also prepared a pork loin in case we didn't like the boar... it was delicious! Virtually all the ham was eaten in repeated helpings and we never got around to serving the pork loin!