Wild Boar Ham

[Atchman2]

I'm getting ready to finish my Wild Boar Ham. I've had it soaking in a brine of brown sugar, molasses, curing salt, and of course water for at least a week. The ham is pretty large so I soaked it about one day per two pounds.

Tonight, I took it out of the brine and put it in clean water. I rinsed it first before soaking it. The last time I did one of these it was too salty near the surface. From what I understand soaking it in clean water will take some of that out of the meat.

Tomorrow morning, I'm going to put it in the smoker for awhile to get that nice smoke taste into the meat. Then I'll take it out and wrap it in foil until it finishes cooking. Hopefully, it will turn out all right. I'm going to take some down to the landowner for a treat!

I'd love to have enough hams one day to try and make country ham. I just think it is pointless unless you are working on a bunch at a time.

 

[redblood]

awesome. let us know how it turns out

 

[TAFKAP]

I'm getting ready to finish my Wild Boar Ham. I've had it soaking in a brine of brown sugar, molasses, curing salt, and of course water for at least a week. The ham is pretty large so I soaked it about one day per two pounds.

Tonight, I took it out of the brine and put it in clean water. I rinsed it first before soaking it. The last time I did one of these it was too salty near the surface. From what I understand soaking it in clean water will take some of that out of the meat.

Tomorrow morning, I'm going to put it in the smoker for awhile to get that nice smoke taste into the meat. Then I'll take it out and wrap it in foil until it finishes cooking. Hopefully, it will turn out all right. I'm going to take some down to the landowner for a treat!

I'd love to have enough hams one day to try and make country ham. I just think it is pointless unless you are working on a bunch at a time.

Awesome! Don't let it sit too long in the plain water. Hang it to dry and equalize for a day to better distribute the saltiness. If you rely too much on clean water, it'll de-salinate your meat.

Did you inject your brine down along the bone? When I did my deer leg a couple years ago, that was a key thing suggested for hogs to prevent bone rot. I think it's more critical for long-cure preparations.

 

[Atchman2]

Sounds like I already messed it up. Should I do that with the brine? I've never heard that before, but it does make sense. It is out of the smoker and into the stove now. Waiting for it to get to 180 degrees cooking VERY slowly. If it sucks, I'll just toss it out to the coyotes and raccoons. The last one I did it was too salty. That is why I soaked it in the clean water for awhile. It was fine once you got away from the skin level but right at the skin, it was pretty salty.

Also the last one I did, I didn't smoke it. I thought the smoke would give it a nice taste. I wrapped it in foil before putting it in the oven. This one had a decent fat layer on it. I'm hoping it will turn out okay. Probably should have came on here before I started the cooking process. I actually thought about wrapping it in bacon too, but everything I read says it will taste too much like bacon.

(I don't know how tasting like bacon could be a bad thing though.)

 

[TAFKAP]

Sounds like I already messed it up. Should I do that with the brine? I've never heard that before, but it does make sense. It is out of the smoker and into the stove now. Waiting for it to get to 180 degrees cooking VERY slowly. If it sucks, I'll just toss it out to the coyotes and raccoons. The last one I did it was too salty. That is why I soaked it in the clean water for awhile. It was fine once you got away from the skin level but right at the skin, it was pretty salty.

Also the last one I did, I didn't smoke it. I thought the smoke would give it a nice taste. I wrapped it in foil before putting it in the oven. This one had a decent fat layer on it. I'm hoping it will turn out okay. Probably should have came on here before I started the cooking process. I actually thought about wrapping it in bacon too, but everything I read says it will taste too much like bacon.

(I don't know how tasting like bacon could be a bad thing though.)

Nah, you sound alright. I did a deer leg on a wing & a prayer as well, so I'm sure there were a couple things to do differently then for me, but if I was in your shoes today, here's how I'd do it.

1) Make a precise brine based on the (as exact as possible) weight of the meat. Salt = .02 * TOTAL WEIGHT of water and meat, Brown Sugar = .015 of TOTAL Weight. Pink Curing Salt = 1tbsp per 5 LBS of meat. Whatever other herbs & spices you want to put in there, just go by flavor of the brine.
2) Brine for as long as you'd like. I arbitrarily went two weeks. Make sure you've got enough to completely cover every bit of meat & bone
3) Use an injecting needle to pump brine into every bit of the meat. Use natural seasm in the meat & bone. You're not poking holes in muscle, but following natural contours to ensure 100% penetration of the curing mixture. This is especially critical for longer brine periods associated with dry-curing and hanging. It's probably not as critical for short-term projects like this, but might as well make it habit. There's a lot of meat in there, so it's reasonable to expect voids in your brine penetration. Plus, it'll hopefully prevent a high salt concentration on the surface.
4) Rinse it off to get as much of the brine off the meat as you can. Using a butcher's knot, tie off the knuckle and let it hang for at least a day in the fridge.
5) Don't use bacon for a supplemental fat. Neutral tasting lard strips, or even a lard coating, will help tremendously. But since you're brining it, you shouldn't have too much of a trouble with moisture....especially if you're planning on a foil-encased cook time
6) Dont' waste charcoal to cook something wrapped in foil. Put your smoke to it (25% of overall cooking time), then finish in the oven for a more precise heat cycle. You owe it to the animal and your dinner table to prepare the food in a way that will make you want to eat it. It's not critical to be a purist and ensure you're burning wood for the entire cooking process.

 

[Atchman2]

All great advice it is almost done now. Waiting until it is 180 before I get it out.

Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk

 

[Atchman2]

Here it is! I'm letting it sit for a little bit before trying it.

 

[Atchman2]

Even my wife likes it! It has a different texture than farm raised ham but it is still tasty. Going to have ham and eggs for breakfast.

Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk

 

[TAFKAP]

Even my wife likes it! It has a different texture than farm raised ham but it is still tasty. Going to have ham and eggs for breakfast.

Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk

Awesome…I'm glad it worked out. How'd you end up cooking it?

 

[BamaProud]

Looks good.