Would a 600 lb. boar be any good for eating?

Generally speaking, no. Now, let me qualify my statement by saying that I have never killed a boar that big, but my experience has shown me that boars north of 200-lbs can be stinky/gamey. An exception would be a barr hog, but the source of testosterone is missing. Young animals always taste better than older ones. There is a guy on this forum that recently shot a 500 pounder and he reports that the meat is good and not gamey -- so, there are exceptions to the rule.

Generally, if their nuts are bigger than grapefruits, the dogs won't eat it, and if you try to cook any of it, you will have to air-out the house.

I have had good and bad with big boars. The only way to tell is to cut a little piece off and throw it in a pan. Either it will stink or it won't. Just check it before you invest a bunch of time in processing.

I've shot them over 300 that were fine (319) and I was present when one 750 lbs was killed. The 750 pounder didn't stink but the meat grain was very large and the texture made it unpleasent to eat. Even ground up, it sucked big time. It was the first and only time I can remeber a tenderloin not being worth the effort to cook it.

I am no expert by any means and in fact have only eaten three differnt hogs.

But I was told if the meat is really red then it is no good. If it is pink then the meat should be good. I found this to be true on one of the pigs I ate. The loin portions were very red and not very good eating. The chops were pink and tasted great. It had nothing to do with being bloodshot, it was stabbed in the neck.

thanks guys

I have never killed a wild pig that did not taste good.

I have killed two boars over 300lbs, the biggest
went past the 300lb mark on my scale.

I have killed several in the 265 to 285lb range.

I have killed some that smelled so bad that you would think thet the meat would not be good. However after gutting and skinning, the meat was fine.

If I shoot one in the 100 degree heat of summer, I just get it skinned and on ice pretty quick.


All have tasted very good.

In fact I just got through eating some meat from a 225 pounder.

This will get someone's undee's in a bunch but they DON'T get that big without being fed...

So who knows maybe one that's fed high quality feed might still be okay at that big.

In wild/feral pigs (working for a living) the complaints from clients about the meat start around 200+ pounds (boars, not sows). But I can remember an experienced client who claimed the meat on his 330lb. boar was good.

Kyler

I took a boar in January that weighed a bit over 400 (carcass weight was 210). He has been perfectly good eatin'. My guess is that a lot of it has to do with the fact that he was not run by dogs, and didn't get wound up. I actually stalked up on him while he was bedded down sleeping. As soon as he started to stand up I shot. He droped on the spot with a round at the base of the neck. I think alot of the larger hogs that people have that taste bad were also wound up prior to being killed.

quote:

Originally posted by Rhys:
I took a boar in January that weighed a bit over 400 (carcass weight was 210). He has been perfectly good eatin'. My guess is that a lot of it has to do with the fact that he was not run by dogs, and didn't get wound up. I actually stalked up on him while he was bedded down sleeping. As soon as he started to stand up I shot. He droped on the spot with a round at the base of the neck. I think alot of the larger hogs that people have that taste bad were also wound up prior to being killed.

Rhys, you're right. You chase 'em with dogs and they get adrenalized and that can definitely contribute to the stink and the taste.

Kyler Hamman wrote:

quote:

This will get someone's undee's in a bunch but they DON'T get that big without being fed...

I couldn't agree more...

In my experience, the younger boars are OK, but the older ones are generally not palatable.

When you can smell them from 30 yards away, rest assured that things won't improve much in the frying pan...

quote:

Rhys, you're right. You chase 'em with dogs and they get adrenalized and that can definitely contribute to the stink and the taste.

I know nothing about pigs, but am very strict with the antelope (African) that I keep for own consumption and consider the following criteria carefully:
Did it have adrenalin? Condition of the animal (fat/thin)? Was it gutted and bled properly? Was it aged in a chiller?
These factors to me make more difference that the species.

Karoo, we are talking about hunting scenarios here, and they get stinky when you chase for any length of time with dogs or otherwise. Barr hogs can be really good no matter how big, as the lack of testosterone is a plus!

Everyone has a different definition as to what is big. Where I hunt in Florida, the biggest hog I have ever seen was about 300-lbs. The biggest I ever killed out there was 250-lbs, and his meat was good -- but, he was a barr hog. The hog in my signature was 200-pounder and oddly enough despite being chased by dogs, he turned out to be tasty.....I guess there are exceptions to the rule......

If you take any boar that is the dominate breeding boar in the area you would have to be really hungry to eat him. He will be constantly defending his harem and not fit to eat. The last 225# boar that I took was not a breeding boar and was very edible.

quote:

Originally posted by ga sixgunner:
Would a 600 lb. boar be any good for eating?

I'd like to run into a 600 lbr . This little guy ran about 480 and tastes great. Look back at one of my requests on here for recipes and you will find some good input. I have tried several so far and the taste has been great. He is however, tough, so be sure to marinate for a few days.

600 overkill -- I was hoping you would weigh in on this thread. I thought for sure your massive hog would taste gamey, but again you have proven that there are definite exceptions to the rule!

Great trophy!

quote:

Originally posted by Whitworth:
600 overkill -- I was hoping you would weigh in on this thread. I thought for sure your massive hog would taste gamey, but again you have proven that there are definite exceptions to the rule!

Great trophy!

I just had some of his spiced brats last night. Great taste and getting my mind anxious for the mount do in June

quote:

Originally posted by ga sixgunner:
Would a 600 lb. boar be any good for eating?

Almost certainly he will be. I've shot and cooked or had reports of pigs cooked (that I gave away) well over 150 hogs, including two boars that went just over 300 and a few more in the 250 plus range and they ALL tasted good. However all of these were shot while feeding/ moving normally, etc, not being dogged. Only one pig out of the total had that urine smell when being cooked. He was a small boar about 110 pounds or so and while the cooking smell wasn't terrible, it certainly wasn't Chanel #5 either. Once cooked, no smell and he tasted fine.

If nothing else, the 600 pounder will make good pigburger or sausage. Pigburger=about 2/3 lean pig meat and 1/3 good quality bacon (smoked, maple flavored, etc...experiment for your favorite combo) ground up. If you like it less fatty, reduce ratio of bacon. Hard to beat on the grill.

I generally do not respond to posts like this but I feel a response is nessary in this case. First I want to clarify where I am coming from. I started hunting hogs in south Texas over 20 years ago. I haven't kept count in quite a few years but when I was hunting three to four nights a week I was taking between 300 and 600 hogs per year and I have taken my share of large feral boars. It is my opinion that 99% of them are edible if you cook them on the outside because you will never smell the boar odor. But try and cook him in the house and some will run you out of the house. I have ate my share of boars. Oh,the texture of the meat will be different in the large pigs but they will be edible. The odor of cookig a boar is something you will never forget if you have ever smelled one cooking. However, how a pig smells immediately after you take him has absolutely nothing to do with how he will smell when cooking if you do a good job of cleaning him.If it did then nobody would be able to eat domestically raised pork because they all stink! I also owned a commercial swine farm and one of the reasons we castrated the male pigs was because it eliminared the hormone testosterone which I suspect is why some boars smell and why some don't.Have you ever ate a large ( 250 to 400 lb ) wild barrow ( Barr)? Just like eating a sow. I am sure that someone knows why some boars smell when they are cooked but I can't put a name on one.I believe it has something to do with Testosterone.

I refer you back to my response to 600 overkill.
---
Posted 27 March 2008 04:41 Hide Post
Hang him in the cooler for at least 14 days and let rigor mortis run its course and they will all be tender.--

Also, I don't think that catching them with dogs has anything to do with if they will smell when cooking. The majority of my hogs have been taken with dogs and I don't notice any difference. Also my remarks are referring to feral hogs. I don't know anything about the Europeans. These are just my opinions.

quote:

Generally, if their nuts are bigger than grapefruits, the dogs won't eat it, and if you try to cook any of it, you will have to air-out the house.

I have killed and eaten them up to roughly 300, and had no problems at all with any of them... Curiously, the only real nasty pig I ever tried to eat was a little bacon sprout of ~5#. The little guy was in a pen with his mother when we shot her, and the bullet exited and broke a front leg at the dewclaw. (He was lying under her, and we couldn't see him.) When we opened the cage, he blew out of it like you had kerosened his butt, and I pinned him to the ground. I then realized his leg was ruined, and went ahead and killed him, butchered the little guy and put it on the pit. So help me, that little devil was like chewing on a bag of rubber bands, and the thing tasted like an old boar smells... Go figure! All I can think of is that the adrenaline messed him up something bad!

Again I will say I have never had a bad pig.

If the weather is hot I put them on ice ASAP.

If it is below 40 degrees I will let them hang over night.

I have kept them in an ice chest, on ice, for as long as five days, before doing the final butcher/freeze with out any problems.

I was a professional Butcher for several years, and I find wild pork much better than store bought.

PS Black Bear is good meat too.

I'm sure there probably is something to the adrenalin problem. Most animals taste better if killed quick before they get all excited. The big guy I shot with the 600 died so fast i don't think the bullet had stopped yet so that might have helped on the taste

I think this pretty much applies to any and all game. Hell, you probably scared that pig to death with the monster you're shooting!

I know it scared the guide to death---almost

My last big hog was pretty bad...ok really bad and my family agreed...... however the dogs loved it....even when I was boiling and cleaning the skull....the dogs were all over it. The neighbors dogs almost busted the fence trying to get a piece. It was hilarious. So now I BBQ pieces of it here and there and feed the all the dogs. I have to make sure to put it on last or it will stink up the tritip and fish.

So the question remains.....I would give it a taste...if you dont like it someone else will.

Hey, the dogs have to eat too!

Big & small, when hunting pigs in Hawaii, they were all destined for the smokehouse. I'd never smoked meat before, so I made up a small smoker that would handle 15 pounds of meat or so. Through trial, error, and merciless peer review; I came up with a great marinade. I'd soak it overnight, smoke it for about six hours and pack it in freezer bags. I'd through a chunk of it on the grill for 10 minutes, or chop it up and warm it through in a frying pan....and man I'm making myself hungry for something I haven't had in a long while. All pigs were run with dogs, and the largest was probably close to 300 pounds, but they all tasted great!

Easy to make smoker directions, and my personal marinade on another thread sometime.

Matt

Keep in mind, too, that the hog's diet figures prominently in the quality of the meat.

If the hog has been feasting on carrion and some of the more bitter grubs, you can bet the meat will not be top rate. On the other hand, if the hog has made its livelihood in a farmer's sweet corn and sugar cane patch for a few weeks, chances are much greater that the meat will have the potential to be good table fare.

I would worry about getting the thing into the bed of a pickup before I worried about cooking it!! What a horse!!

And I'd be worried about the amount of damage it would do to the rear suspension of my truck......

Marko - we could drag the back bumper without all the necessary horsepower/sticky tires

Instant wheelstander!

quote:

Would a 600 lb. boar be any good for eating?

It depends on how hungry you are and what your definition of good is.

I personally prefer the Javelina (with the gland carefully removed) to ANY us feral hawg of any size, as I think the meat on the ferals is way too white and tasteless. The Javelinas are nice and tasty and red and .. well, just better and tastier.

Mike

That's odd, Mike, I've found the ferals that I have killed and eaten to be tastier than store-bought pork, albeit tougher as it is leaner....... I have never eaten Javalena but am looking forward to the opportunity!

quote:

Originally posted by 600 Overkill:

600 - I just *love* that photo!

Over here in Europe, boars are naturally considered ideal for eating up to a weight of approx. 100-120 lbs dressed (that is something like 130-170 lbs live weight). Heavier pigs are also eaten, naturally, and they have the advantage they loose less weight (percentage wise) when processed.

What is rarely, if ever eaten is rutting boar. They are supposedly foul as anything to eat, and not a lot can be done to improve the meat quality.

Btw, it is a good idea over here to test the pig carcasses for trichinosis - in fact it is mandatory in most Central European countries if the meat is sold for public consumption. I have never seen any reference to this being done in the US. Is that because it is unheard of, simply not done, no vet is available to do the test, or you simply make darn sure you cook the meat through?? Bears can have trichinosis as well, and bear meat is eaten in North America, so I assume somebody must be aware of the issue??

- mike

This is the most current data I have seen. The key is to be sure to cook all wild pork to 150 degrees. When hunting hogs in hot weather, which is most of time here in Texas, we are careful to get it dressed and on ice as soon as possible. I also have started using rubber gloves while dressing out hogs.

Bob

"In the United States, the national trichinellosis surveillance system has documented a steady decline in the reported incidence of this disease. During 1947--1951, a median of 393 cases (range: 327--487) was reported annually, including 57 trichinellosis-related deaths (4). During 1997--2001, the incidence decreased to a median of 12 cases annually (range: 11--23) and no reported deaths. No apparent change in the trichinellosis surveillance system can account for this decline. However, because the surveillance system is not designed to detect asymptomatic cases, the number of reported cases probably represents only a portion of the total number of infections.

Although trichinellosis was associated historically with eating Trichinella-infected pork from domesticated sources, wild game meat was the most common source of infection during 1997--2001. During this 5-year period, 72 cases were reported to CDC. Of these, 31 (43%) cases were associated with eating wild game: 29 with bear meat, one with cougar meat, and one with wild boar meat. In comparison, only 12 (17%) cases were associated with eating commercial pork products, including four cases traced to a foreign source. Nine (13%) cases were associated with eating noncommercial pork from home-raised or direct-from-farm swine where U.S. commercial pork production industry standards and regulations do not apply."

We also have another little goodie: Swine Brucellosis.

"Swine Brucellosis is an infectious, bacterial, reproductive disease
that can cause abortion, low conception rates and other problems. It is
transmittable to humans, known as undulant fever, and causes flu-like
symptoms such as fever, chills, aches and pains. It is treatable with specific
antibiotics."

"Texas Parks and Wildlife Department recommends all hunters use disposable
plastic or rubber gloves when field dressing or cleaning wild swine.
Bury or burn the gloves and entrails and then wash your hands with soap
and hot water. And finally, make sure the meat is thoroughly cooked."

On Googling "taste pork boar testosterone", it turns out there have been some "scientific" studies on the subject including percentage of men & women who could or could not smell the odor, and percentage who found the taste objectionable.
http://jas.fass.org/cgi/reprint/22/1/166.pdf

http://www.veths.no/upload/SportFaMed/1_Lundstr%C3%B6m1NKVet2005.pdf

Apparently, many European countries prohibit castration of pigs!!

Pigs have rights too, Steve! If that isn't liberalism in the extreme, I don't know what is........sheesh.......

quote:

Originally posted by Whitworth:
Generally speaking, no. Now, let me qualify my statement by saying that I have never killed a boar that big, but my experience has shown me that boars north of 200-lbs can be stinky/gamey.

Usually large male pigs (boars) have a strong scent, if they are over 200# ..

Harry's advice is the best, cut a chunk and see if it stinks ... if it stinks, don't bother processing it .. it will stink like the worst BO you have ever smelt.


120# sows are the best!

Here is a boar killed just the other night in Texas behind my house. You can see the boys have removed the reproductive organs before getting started. They also fried a piece and it was tasty so they processed it.
Rubber gloves are also recommended for disease control and odor control.
He head shot it with a Browning BLR in .308 using Fed premium 165 gr sieras.